After calling on my survey methodology several times to determine client problems, it became obvious that testing ads had a life of its own as a separate and distinct business.
I formed Ad Testing Lab, Inc. as a business unit of the 100% Cotton & Co. ad agency.
I have available a number of case histories in which the ingredients of the survey package that are made up of a cover letter, a series of ads, questionnaire and a premium to encourage the recipients to participate.
The fun part of the campaign was the premium for the survey which pulled a 84% response and won the Spotlight award from Advertising Age.
The package of five ads, cover letter, questionnaire and the ad went priority FEDEx.
The Premium: a six foot bull whip made and braided in South Dakota Indian workshops at a cost of $18. each. On the handle a tag on the whip with the message, "Here's your chance to whip your ad agency into shape."
I'm certain the reasons for the high response was the whip. Show me a CEO who doesn't fancy himself as Zorro.
The $55 cost package to 168 hand picked CEOs of Fortune 500 companies as the first test. The response was such I needed no more mailing..
The premium: In the cover letter, I promised the CEO that if he or she were kind enough to thoughtfully answer the survey and let me know when their employees learned to stand SIX feet and one inch away from them I would send them an EIGHT foot whip for their valued response.
Secretaries that opened the package did not arbitrarily trash the package. I still hear the marvelous stories of how secretaries presented the whip packages to their bosses.ญญ
The uniqueness and novelty of the package separated my company from the competition.
