Red Clay Media combines targeting, tracking and measurement to achieve superior results for clients

Who's Calling provides crucial proof-of-performance data

As the economy tightens, direct marketing providers face increasing pressure to prove their value. Accurate techniques for measuring the impact of campaigns are now an essential component of the direct marketing process.

Red Clay Media is a leader in results-driven direct marketing strategies. Based in Bayonne, New Jersey, Red Clay provides full-service, integrated direct marketing solutions to a variety of business organizations in one of the world's most aggressive markets.

Red Clay differentiates itself from its own competitors by incorporating the perspectives and experiences of the audience into the campaigns it develops for clients. This requires real-time business intelligence based on accurate data.

Red Clay relies on tracking and measurement services from Who's Calling to gather and analyze the business intelligence necessary for deriving maximum ROI from direct marketing campaigns.

"Who's Calling is a great asset because it enables us to track data really effectively," says Robert Lovelace, Director of Operations at Red Clay. "We provide one-stop shopping for our clients, so it's absolutely essential for us to offer them tracking and measurement."

Comprehensive data, greater flexibility

Many of Red Clay's clients are in the mortgage or automotive industries, where competition is tough and unrelenting. The ability to assess the effectiveness of a campaign and change it quickly can be critical to success and survival.

"Who's Calling generates a range of useful reports that help us tweak a client's campaign to achieve better results," explains Lovelace. "We create models based on the tracked responses from the initial mailing and then optimize the subsequent mailings for maximum impact."

For example, if a client launches a direct mail campaign in five counties, Who's Calling enables Red Clay to see which county generates the best response. Then the client can target that county for additional mailings, or can modify the mailing to appeal more directly to a particular audience.

"Our clients understand that they have to spend money to make money. But they watch their ROI very closely," says Lovelace. "If you can track responses for them, they can calculate their ROI with great precision. That raises their level of confidence and makes them more willing to invest their resources in direct marketing campaigns."

Red Clay was approached recently by a New York-based firm that routinely sent 1,000 direct mail pieces weekly. "The company wasn't satisfied with the response rates. We convinced them to put a toll-free number from Who's Calling on the mailer. We tracked the responses for two weeks, studied the results and developed a highly accurate system for targeting the firm's audience. Now the firm sends mails 25,000 to 50,000 pieces every week – and they're generating great results."

Second-chance marketing boosts sales revenue

Who's Calling also enables Red Clay's clients to follow up on missed calls or dropped calls. "This can be extremely useful to a company that depends heavily on direct marketing," says Lovelace. "When they miss a call, Who's Calling sends them an email alert with all the information they need to contact the caller. The client can take action while the lead is still hot, increasing the probability of converting the lead into a sale."

This type of "second-chance marketing" provides an extra boost for sales-driven companies. "It gives you the opportunity to get back in touch in someone whose call you missed and close the deal. Sometimes it only takes one extra sale to put your campaign over the top."

Data from Who's Calling also enables Red Clay to evaluate the results of direct mail campaigns by comparing them with industry averages. "Our knowledge of the industry helps us guide our clients towards the best strategy. Sometimes the data will suggest ways of improving a campaign or tweaking a mailer to get a better response," says Lovelace. "In this business, knowledge is crucial."

Red Clay offers targeted and customized mailing lists to all of its clients. The firm recompiles its own mailing lists and uses customer analysis, segmentation and response modeling techniques to achieve higher response rates. Red Clay also provides mortgage lists, consumer lists, business lists, insurance lists and specialty mailing lists, merging "opt-in" online information and offline data to create unique databases for its clients.

Proof of performance

Mortgage firms find Red Clay's expertise especially useful in today's economy. "Three years ago, interest rates were low and everyone was refinancing. If you sent out a mailing, you'd get plenty of bites. As interest rates go up, response rates go down because fewer people choose to refinance. So the mortgage companies have to be smarter about their marketing strategies and even more careful about how they spend their marketing dollars," says Lovelace.

In this environment, direct mail is a logical choice for marketers. "With direct mail, you can target an audience consistently," notes Lovelace. "Direct mail is reliable because you know exactly where your audience is. As the economy gets even tighter, direct mail will become more important to marketers."

With more businesses rediscovering the value of direct mail and other direct marketing strategies, the importance of tracking and measuring will grow significantly.

"Our ability to track and measure results accurately helps us develop deeper, more profitable relationships with our clients," says Lovelace. "Who's Calling gives us the power to prove that we're delivering tangible results."

Net takeaway

As direct marketing strategies become more complex and client expectations rise, accurate tracking and real-time analysis are critical capabilities.

Competitive direct marketing firms such as Red Clay Media increasingly rely on cost-effective ad tracking solutions to support the campaigns they develop for their clients.

Who's Calling nails down proof of performance – swiftly, accurately and indisputably. Tracking numbers take the guesswork out of marketing for direct mail providers and their clients.

Who's Calling is the nation's leading provider of call measurement and tracking services. Who's Calling empowers direct marketing agencies to be more proactive with clients and more integrally involved in their spending decisions. Who's Calling enables direct mail firms to provide clients with the best information, advice, and market research available for optimizing their marketing initiatives.

Who's Calling offers over 50 real-time reports that can be customized to fit your needs and the needs of your clients. To receive additional information about how Who's Calling can supply agencies with call measurement tools or to schedule your personalized demonstration, contact Who's Calling toll-free at 866-876-4000, or visit us online at www.whoscalling.com.

About Who's Calling

Founded in 1998, Who's Calling, Inc. is privately held, and a leading provider of managed services that overcome sales transaction obstacles with hard-hitting, strategic services that deliver immediate measurable results. Who's Calling pairs patented measurement and monitoring technology, sales and lead management services, call recording and monitoring, Web-based and personal staff training, and marketing services with research and results-driven methodology to increase sales transaction effectiveness and improve customer satisfaction for businesses nationwide. Who's Calling's North American client base encompasses more than 5,000 customers across 50 different industries. Clients include industry leaders such as Mazda North American Operations, AutoTrader.com, Hendrick Automotive, Lasik Eye Centers, Wells Fargo, Audi of America, Mercedes Benz USA, Yellow Book USA, Chicago Tribune, Los Angeles Times, Sears, duPont Registry and Mitsubishi Motors.

Call 1-866-688-9300 for a free consultation with your local Who's Calling consultant and find out why it pays to know Who's Calling.

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