Back in mid-2007, Siemens Enterprise Communications made the decision to get away from mass-produced print; a decision that’s now helped them to engage customers one-to-one but also one that’s helping them to dramatically reduce their environmental impact.

Siemens Enterprise Communications wanted to provide printed collateral that spoke to customer’s needs and prompted dialogue, rather than pump out generalised product brochures in response to enquiries. Stockpiling brochures was also creating storage and logistical issues as well as creating huge waste.

Siemens Enterprise Communications appointed bda, specialists in the development of integrated campaigns for the telecoms/IT industry, to come up with a practical solution. Having seen the success of previous one-to-one campaigns developed by the agency, Siemens Enterprise Communications adopted the idea of personalised solution brochures with variable content as created by bda.

Siemens Enterprise Communications was keen not to “sell at” its decision maker target audience, but rather to identify business concerns faced by decision makers before presenting them with product solutions.

bda invented e-collateral, a method for Siemens Enterprise Communications to generate bespoke solution brochures on demand, available in either PDF or printed form.

Siemens Enterprise Communications drives enquiries to a website ecollateralfromsiemens.co.uk where they can access areas that relate directly to one of four operational issues: Grow Your Business, Reduce Operational Cost, Manage your Assets More Effectively, and Achieve Corporate Excellence. The user simply clicks on their area of interest, to then be guided through a short series of tick box enquiries that relate to more specific interests; this in turn drives the content choice for inclusion in the brochure.

The system, developed by bda and piloted in October 2007 in three languages, UK, US Englisha and German, fulfils the broad objective of providing bespoke content, but also offers a customer-friendly way to gather data which turn feeds Siemens Enterprise Communications’ own CRM. Depending on the areas of interested earmarked by the customer, brochure content can vary between everything from case studies to illustrations, with paragraphs of solution-oriented text tactically inserted to blend with the overall message.

“Both parties had a baptism of fire mostly due to the complexity of the variable solution sets available,” says Sharon Scott Global Marketing Manager at Siemens. “But we needed a way to present our portfolio in way that makes sense to the customer. E-collateral meets that objective perfectly.”

Going a step further to engage Siemens Enterprise Communications’ broad customer base, bda plan to implement programming which allows the tone of language used to vary subtly, according to the level of contact making the enquiry, industry sector or company size.

As for output - Siemens Enterprise Communications own research indicates that despite the demand for instant, downloadable information, many senior C-level contacts make decisions on choice of supplier based on receipt of a printed brochure. Enquirers from the e-collateral site are therefore given a choice of receiving a PDF version of their personalised brochure via email, or ordering a printed version online.

Delivery of the pdf version is instant with a printed copy taking just days to arrive.

As bda is affiliated to a well-equipped communications group which includes a print production arm, it has huge access to fulfillment options. An online request triggers the generation of high quality digitally printed items that are despatched immediately.

The environmental angle? Less waste, the eradication of bulk print, less space needed for storage, less lorries on the road.

“Looking around our industry there’s nothing like e-collateral in B2B areas,” says Sharon. “It’s early days yet, but working with bda, we will certainly increase knowledge of customer needs and product demand. Better still, it helps Siemens meet its commitment to minimise our impact on the environment.”

Take a look yourself

Having just returned from the Autosport press day at the NEC, it is clear to see that the Kumho Tyres Stand is going to take the show by storm.

With stunning graphics and audio, real rally cars and of course the Kumho girls the stand is not only very good looking but interactive to boot.

The girls are signing and distributing posters designed and produced by us with over two thirds distributed the first day alone.

Performance car, 4×4 and road car tyre range brochures combine with posters, coasters, tyre gauges, pens and a competition to win Manchester United tickets, make for some great collateral and merchandise on the stand.

The construction of the actual shell is of the highest standard and features 2 elevated meeting rooms to create a real sense of presence. The graphics, for which we are responsible make the whole stand, collateral and merchandise come together.

Having walked round the show, which in all honesty was more like a hike in the yorkshire mores, Kumho’s  stand is certainly up there as one of the best.

Have a look at the pictures of the stand

It lives - finally.

And as David has already said - it’s not finished (well, what website ever is?)

With all the buzz around Web 2.0, is a user-generated internet really the way forward in forming customer connections, or is it simply too fraught with risk?
Where marketers jump up and down at its potential for reaching new customers via weblogs, social networking, podcasts, RSS feeds etc., some technology experts question whether the term ‘Web 2.0′ can be used in any meaningful way since many of the technological aspects of Web 2.0 have existed since the earliest days of the web.
Wikipedia defines it as “a social phenomenon embracing an approach to generating and distributing Web content itself, characterised by open communication, decentralisation of authority, freedom to share and re-use, and ‘the market as a conversation’.”
More simply - genuine interactivity, because people can upload as well as download.
Even if it’s not a fully realised phenomenon, there can be no doubt that Web 2.0 has entered everyday web usage:
71% of office workers aged 18 to 29 access social networking and content sharing websites “several times a week” according to new research from Clearswift. Two out of five of these employees access social networking sites several times a day.
Businesses are getting behind Web 2.0 fast, because of the its interactive nature.
Marketers are making use of customer input to drive the provision of more relevant content, while increasing the value of customer relationships and revenue.
Blogs and bulletin boards cost little to set up, and even if the link between the traffic increase and any new revenue generated is unclear, the content itself provides valuable insights.
For some, it’s a double edged sword; when Dell launched its blog in July 2006, almost half the comments made were negative; on the other hand, Dell could be seen to be addressing issues head on as a result of a good web 2.0 strategy that was considered.
Certainly, web content requires policing and quality control. How can you tell if information posted is always accurate, trustworthy and up to date? Set alongside the fact that content can be enormously influential just because it’s increasingly user generated.
While business struggle with how to create competitive advantage from customer input, they must also wrestle with the fact that the everyday consumer can have has much influence over a buying decision as a multi-million pound advertising campaign.Some argue that the success of Web 2.0 is dependent upon its remaining within the confines of non-commercial arenas such as social networking sites - where engagement is not coloured by an attempt to sell something to the user. And that both the security and negative postings aspects create too many issues for those trying to gain a commercial foothold.
The lack of control over postings has already led to many security breaches, with pages of legitimate websites being hacked every day, and malicious software implanted. With the risk of employees routinely adding confidential data about their employer, companies are at risk. With social networking sites now rich in valuable personal information, individuals are now exposed for personalised attacks.
It’s a conundrum for business; on the one hand, Web 2.0 can’t be ignored because of its potential to get closer to customers and develop relationships. On the other, the security risk and potential for negative blogging create headaches until greater control is exercised over access.
While web-based interaction has become crucial in understanding customer behaviour, it seems over-enthusiastic early adopters of Web 2.0 can get their fingers burnt. Handle with care.
I think it is a case of consideration. A well considered, thought out web 2.0 strategy can provide businesses with great opportunities and new ways to engage customers, add value and brand loyalty. Just take a look at DELL ideastorm.

Well we’ve managed to do it, bda’s new website is now live, yet still not complete and likely to always be a work in progress. But, then that is a good summary of most of today’s sites.

I hope you like what we have put together. We feel it gives you a better view of us, our work, our personalities and our inspiration.

We’ve been making lots of changes at bda to improve every facet of the business both internally and externally, we hope you like what we’ve done.

Have a look at our portfolio, our news, blogs, moodboard, profiles and do let us know what you think, and make sure you keep coming back!

Will write again soon!