Proximity London

Client: TV Licensing
Product: TV Licence
Title: TV Licensing - Pulse Will You Be In?
Media: Direct Mail
Country: United Kingdom
Date Of Campaign: Feb 17 - ongoing

Background: In the UK, if you watch or record live TV, or download or watch BBC programmes on iPlayer, you MUST be covered by a TV Licence. It’s the law and you can be prosecuted and fined for breaking it. To enforce the law, our Pulse campaign sends out letters to approximately 1.4 million unlicensed addresses every month – achieving a respectable ROI. Yet, despite the possibility of an Enforcement Officer’s visit, most of the recipients still ignore us. Proof that this is a uniquely tough audience. Solution? We needed a new way to get noticed and get our letters opened.

Idea: In most cases we had no name, just an unlicensed address that had not responded to our previous correspondence. And, though Officers visit 8,500+ addresses a day, the risk still felt remote to this audience. We wanted something to make an enforcement visit feel much more tangible. We chose to do it by creating intrigue, not alarm.We started with a non-branded manila outer. Then we piqued their interest by using a double window through which we asked: 'Will you be in on <XX Date>?' The headline used the operational limitations of arranging an enforcement visit to our advantage. As we could never guarantee a visit on a particular date, we never promised one. But simply by asking if they’d be in we implied the possibility – and that was enough. We chose the date carefully: close enough to feel imminent; far enough away so there was still time to get in touch and take action. The letter copy employed some hard-hitting facts, such as the risk of a fine of up to £1,000; the numbers of visits by Officers, as well as the possibility that they could visit at any time. Visual reinforcement came via an authoritative 'Visit Approved' stamp. And the letter signatory was always an Enforcement Manager in their area. Meaning the risk of a visit felt closer.Finally, as we didn’t know for sure that the occupant was watching TV without a licence, the call to action was NOT simply to demand a sale. It was to get this, hitherto unreachable audience, to NOT ignore the letter. Then to take action by either getting in touch to tell us that they do not need a TV Licence (because, for instance they never watch live TV or BBC iPlayer), or to purchase a licence if they do.

Results: Asking one simple question has certainly delivered answers. The letter generated a 230% uplift in response rate against control – leading to significant incremental revenue. Plus, an added bonus of the pack has been a reduction in the number of enforcement visits we have had to ask the Officers to make in order to follow up unanswered letters.