The iDate campaign saw the agency send ‘experiential dumping kits’ to 50 brands, which included spoof letters and stamped addressed envelopes to their existing agencies.
Dan Hall, business development director at ID, told Event the idea came from the notion that new business is the same whether it be trying to attract new clients or ‘clients’ of the opposite sex. "Unfortunately, as with the dating game, the best clients are always attached. To turn heads we’d have to address our opposition – hence the experiential agency dumping kits and our adverts in Event and Marketing magazines.
"We’d like to apologise to any competitors whose noses are out of joint, but all is fair in love and new business."
The campaign also included full-page ads featuring spoof love letters, flowers sent to all 50 brands, and a piano singing group placed outside target brand offices, which serenaded client employees and handed out notes addressed to the marketing department.
Hall said overall the campaign has yielded positive results, with two briefs, one meeting and 13 positive responses in total.
The activity may have caused a few ripples among rival agencies, but in such a competitive industry, how do agencies make themselves known to prospective clients?
What do you think of ID's approach? Did you receive one of its dumping kits? Comment below and let us know what you think.
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