Challenge:
Cervus Financial Group is a mortgage bank based in Canada. When Cervus launched in 2004, Cervus wanted to find a vehicle to announce itself to the broker world and give an incentive to brokers to book their mortgages with Cervus.

Solution:

Strategy –
Kaleidoscope developed the “Book and Win” incentive program for Cervus which rewarded brokers for bringing their business to Cervus. The Book and Win program had its own brand, supported by the Web site, and other collateral such as email & Blackberry blasts. Brokers received one ballot per approved or “booked” mortgage for each weekly draw. A range of good quality prizes such as flat screen TVs, home theatre systems, DVD recorders, digital cameras, iPods and other high quality technology-oriented prizes, as well as jewellery and entertainment packages, ensured that the draw would get attention. A grand prize of a holiday in Italy was held at the end of the campaign.

Tactical –
Each week, the previous week’s winner, and this week’s prize was announced on the Web site, and in an email & Blackberry blast that was sent out to all brokers. The prize schedule was not announced in advance so brokers waited with interest for news of the next week’s prize. Any brokers who booked mortgages in a particular week would be entered into the draw for that week so the more deals booked, the better the chance of winning. A winner was then picked at random. Broker participation was high through the full promotion and the promotional opportunities provided were invaluable: Photos of the winner with a Cervus executive presenting the prize posted on the Web site was a means to making personal contact with the brokers, and an incentive to others to participate.

Results:
Broker participation increased as a result of this promotion. By increasing brand awareness and value proposition, Cervus Financial’s target goals were surpassed: Mortgage loans increased over the Book and Win incentive period by approximately 38%.

Challenge:
Bringing a midsize technology firm to new heights within a competitive arena was the business goal and Kaleidoscope was mandated to deliver intelligent marketing. The Hanco Enterprises arm offers outsourcing services to companies with ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) and AM (Asset Management) systems, to install, upgrade or train. The Technologies division specializes in RF (Radio Frequency) solutions. This company wanted to expand its image and its service offerings once they began offering RF solutions. Kaleidoscope was contacted and commissioned to fulfil the brand and marketing needs of the firm. 

After Kaleidoscope developed the marketing plan and the brand, the Web site was the next focus. The challenge was how to incorporate two lines of business; Hanco Enterprises and Technologies into a Website that would position both firms in an equal manner. 

Solution:
Strategy - By reinforcing the focus on the brand which we’d recently created, the Web site was planned to reflect Hanco’s value proposition(s). Each brand had their own distinct look, including tagline; Hanco Enterprises - Knowledge beyond Technology™ and Hanco Technologies – Maximizing Business Solutions™. 

The overall look of each site would be uniform; however, they were created with a unique brand look and feel, including distinct colour palates. Visuals were strategically chosen to reflect exceptional service and diversity. Both sites were positioned to meet the interest and needs of a highly technical B2B audience. We focused on developing a mini community by creating two sites within one. The purpose of this was to convey a large service and product offering through two distinct companies. The plan reinforced the need to heavily focus on exceptional customer service for the Enterprises’ area of the site and extensive product focus for the Technologies’ portion of the site. 

Tactical - Although each site was developed individually with distinct home pages, there was a common navigation and a positive user experience. Each home page included a link to the other. Throughout the site, where appropriate, links between the two lines of business was highlighted. The user could easily link from area to area enhancing their experience and allowing them to control the amount of information they wanted to see by area of interest.

The content was developed as an industry leading resource for information and service support. Before going live we created a Beta site. Beginning with a focus group which included all levels of management, we were able to get feedback from our core audience then tweaking the site flow and information accordingly. We knew that it was important to this group that the site be fast and efficient and that the online relationship was a great platform to continue a solid customer relationship. 

Results:
Hanco has been able to expand their current and potential customer relationship through these sites. The goal was to continually focus on improving the experience through the use of additional tools. We gathered feedback continuously and modified the site as required, based on this feedback. Because we were able to capture input from our core audience, we have gained by being able to define our focus. Monthly traffic has increased at a constant rate of 10% since going live in 2001.

Challenge:
The Scotia Securities Partners Portfolios program includes 19 high profile mutual fund partners such as Fidelity Investments, Franklin Templeton Investments, MacKenzie Financial and AIM Trimark Investments. These partners offer mutual funds through Scotia Securities within an umbrella which streamlines management fees and lowers the minimum investment rate for an investor.

The challenge was to manage all compliance related communications involved with the mutual fund industry and ensure that all partners reported fund results on a quarterly basis. These results are legally required to be provided to each investor within 60 days upon mutual fund purchase. Each mutual fund report required fund management information, historical results, pie charts accurately indicating breakdown of investment by sector per quarter and year to date.

Solution:
Strategy - BA key focus was ensuring that the Scotia Securities brand was not diluted with the number of partners participating in this investment program. It was imperative that Scotiabank customers understood the investment process so the value proposition of the bank’s financial advisors was in the forefront. Equally important was to have each partner logo profiled in an equitable way to avoid any influence to the investor. Always focusing on cost-savings measures without jeopardizing the effectiveness of the program was a main goal when commissioned to manage this communication piece.

Tactical - Working with each mutual fund company, it was critical to ensure that timely and accurate information was provided. The design studio was directed to develop a template that was done in a cost-effective way – the outside cover was designed in 4-colour process and the internal pages were designed in 2-colour. Charts were increased in size and shadows were added to create a 3-D effect for more interest and legibility. Images were leveraged from previous investment photography that existed in the archive. We worked with the printer to negotiate more cost-effective paper stocks to be used without sacrificing the final quality of the piece. The report was shrink-wrapped with labels to create more attention upon receipt. The new format was presented and “sold” to a large committee of decision makers, with the substantial savings to the overall program highlighted. To help create awareness, this brochure was integrated into the Scotiabank Web site, complimented with banner advertising.  

Results:
A savings of approximately 30% in the production from the previously printed quarterly reports equated to thousands of dollars saved. An increase in investor response to receiving and reading the reports highlighted awareness of both the Scotia Securities and all the Partners Portfolios mutual fund participants.

Note: Yvette Gauthier developed the strategy and spearheaded its creation while under contract at Scotiabank, retail marketing.

Challenge:
Bringing a midsize technology firm to new heights within a competitive arena was the business goal and Kaleidoscope was mandated to deliver intelligent marketing. The Hanco Enterprises arm offers outsourcing services to companies with ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) and AM (Asset Management) systems, to install, upgrade or train. The Technologies division specializes in RF (Radio Frequency) solutions. This company wanted to expand its image and its service offerings once they began offering RF solutions. Kaleidoscope was contacted and commissioned to fulfil the brand and marketing needs of the firm. 

After Kaleidoscope developed the marketing plan and the brand, the Web site was the next focus. The challenge was how to incorporate two lines of business; Hanco Enterprises and Technologies into a Website that would position both firms in an equal manner. 

Solution:
Strategy - By reinforcing the focus on the brand which we’d recently created, the Web site was planned to reflect Hanco’s value proposition(s). Each brand had their own distinct look, including tagline; Hanco Enterprises - Knowledge beyond Technology™ and Hanco Technologies – Maximizing Business Solutions™. 

The overall look of each site would be uniform; however, they were created with a unique brand look and feel, including distinct colour palates. Visuals were strategically chosen to reflect exceptional service and diversity. Both sites were positioned to meet the interest and needs of a highly technical B2B audience. We focused on developing a mini community by creating two sites within one. The purpose of this was to convey a large service and product offering through two distinct companies. The plan reinforced the need to heavily focus on exceptional customer service for the Enterprises’ area of the site and extensive product focus for the Technologies’ portion of the site. 

Tactical - Although each site was developed individually with distinct home pages, there was a common navigation and a positive user experience. Each home page included a link to the other. Throughout the site, where appropriate, links between the two lines of business was highlighted. The user could easily link from area to area enhancing their experience and allowing them to control the amount of information they wanted to see by area of interest.

The content was developed as an industry leading resource for information and service support. Before going live we created a Beta site. Beginning with a focus group which included all levels of management, we were able to get feedback from our core audience then tweaking the site flow and information accordingly. We knew that it was important to this group that the site be fast and efficient and that the online relationship was a great platform to continue a solid customer relationship. 

Results:
Hanco has been able to expand their current and potential customer relationship through these sites. The goal was to continually focus on improving the experience through the use of additional tools. We gathered feedback continuously and modified the site as required, based on this feedback. Because we were able to capture input from our core audience, we have gained by being able to define our focus. Monthly traffic has increased at a constant rate of 10% since going live in 2001.

Challenge:
The Scotia Securities Partners Portfolios program includes 19 high profile mutual fund partners such as Fidelity Investments, Franklin Templeton Investments, MacKenzie Financial and AIM Trimark Investments. These partners offer mutual funds through Scotia Securities within an umbrella which streamlines management fees and lowers the minimum investment rate for an investor.

The challenge was to manage all compliance related communications involved with the mutual fund industry and ensure that all partners reported fund results on a quarterly basis. These results are legally required to be provided to each investor within 60 days upon mutual fund purchase. Each mutual fund report required fund management information, historical results, pie charts accurately indicating breakdown of investment by sector per quarter and year to date.

Solution:
Strategy - BA key focus was ensuring that the Scotia Securities brand was not diluted with the number of partners participating in this investment program. It was imperative that Scotiabank customers understood the investment process so the value proposition of the bank’s financial advisors was in the forefront. Equally important was to have each partner logo profiled in an equitable way to avoid any influence to the investor. Always focusing on cost-savings measures without jeopardizing the effectiveness of the program was a main goal when commissioned to manage this communication piece.

Tactical - Working with each mutual fund company, it was critical to ensure that timely and accurate information was provided. The design studio was directed to develop a template that was done in a cost-effective way – the outside cover was designed in 4-colour process and the internal pages were designed in 2-colour. Charts were increased in size and shadows were added to create a 3-D effect for more interest and legibility. Images were leveraged from previous investment photography that existed in the archive. We worked with the printer to negotiate more cost-effective paper stocks to be used without sacrificing the final quality of the piece. The report was shrink-wrapped with labels to create more attention upon receipt. The new format was presented and “sold” to a large committee of decision makers, with the substantial savings to the overall program highlighted. To help create awareness, this brochure was integrated into the Scotiabank Web site, complimented with banner advertising.  

Results:
A savings of approximately 30% in the production from the previously printed quarterly reports equated to thousands of dollars saved. An increase in investor response to receiving and reading the reports highlighted awareness of both the Scotia Securities and all the Partners Portfolios mutual fund participants.

Note: Yvette Gauthier developed the strategy and spearheaded its creation while under contract at Scotiabank, retail marketing.

Challenge:
To provide an internal marketing vehicle that will support branch staff and financial advisors to retrieve marketing information and Investment advisor / branch staff tools. It should be intuitive, accessible and beneficial and streamline the internal marketing and communication process. 

Solution:
Strategy - We were focused on creating an Intranet site that would be a repository for information, easily retrieved and used by all staff at the branch level. We completed the following steps to create the program:

• Develop a marketing strategy that is focused with both short-term and long-term corporate goals in mind
• Create a brand complementing the corporate brand as a consistent, professional image
• Create and provide downloadable files that can be printed or taken for publication and local area advertising
• Develop an ordering and tracking system that will include cataloguing budget management
• Provide a motivational online environment for all staff through education, incentives and service
• Promote the Intranet internally to user members thus maximizing its use
• Update and refresh the internal marketing on a regular basis and continuing to communicate updates to staff in a timely and captivating manner
• Develop a unique user experience for a variety of staffing needs and corporate information exchange
• Create multi-lingual sites, along with material. English, French, Spanish and Cantonese were rolled out. 

Tactical - Beginning with an internal survey, we were able to capture all requests and feedback. We then assessed and prioritized the recommendations, according to corporate goals and costs and planned our short and long term goals.

We created regional zoning and determined a budget allocation per region. From this, each regional manager was responsible for managing their budget. A basic marketing kit was provided as the initial starter. Additional costs were applied to each marketing piece.

Content included:

• Marketing ads
• Press releases
• Print media files – newspaper and magazine
• Template sales letters
• Call centre scripts and trailers
• Investment
• Seminar kits
• Radio scripts
• Sample television ads
• Brochures, flyers and sell sheets in PDF format
• Tips and FAQs
• Selling strategies, forms and checklists
• Include time sensitive notices and pr releases
• Create and provide Power Point presentations
• Create and provide satellite training programs
• Create and provide mini seminars
• Competitive material
• Economic reviews
• Online program samples
• Calendar of events - Seminars, Tradeshows, Events
• Quarterly and annual meeting reports
• Premiums and incentives ordering
• Software sample downloads and/or links
• Provided regional and/or individual cost reports for ease of management

Results:
The business lines were very pleased with the results and commented that the Intranet site increased their efficiency.

• Increased participation and use of marketing support material, thus improving on the sales process
• Stream-lined costs and provided an easy to manage process
• Improved and consistency with quality in “share of voice”
• Better able to account for impact of marketing as it supported the investment advisor and branch staff – identified what worked and what didn’t for further planning
• Flexibility in adding and removing items from site as it was built to be managed by dedicated internal resources

Note: Yvette Gauthier developed this program while under contract at Scotiabank .