1) Glidden paint was facing declining sales and the risk of being dropped by its largest home improvement retailer. It launched a direct marketing campaign to turn things around. 2) The campaign centered around a free paint sample trial that was simple, just enough for consumers to test the product. This drove traffic to retail stores to purchase more paint. 3) The campaign was a success, receiving far more requests for the free trial than expected. It saved Glidden's relationship with the retailer and boosted sales by 31%.

1. 6 Smart Direct Marketing Lessons
from 8 days that saved a brand
Winner: Gold Effie, DMA Bronze International Echo Award, WBA Best in Show WebAward
Congratulations to the brains behind the Glidden campaign – AkzoNobel’s management team, DDB New
York and ETCETERA (a DDB company in Amsterdam), Hitchcock Fleming and Associates (web and
social media), and Liggett Stashower (PR and events).
www.DirectMarketingSmarts.com
©2013 Smith Browning Direct, Inc. No Reproduction allowed.

2. Glidden’s Dire Market Situation
§ Challenges:
– Danger of being dropped
from #1 home improvement
chain in America for low
sales
» Overcome a 40% 5-year
decline in Glidden sales
– Weak economy reduced
home sales and renovation
improvements
– Glidden viewed as
“Grandfather’s paint”
www.DirectMarketingSmarts.com
©2013 Smith Browning Direct, Inc. No Reproduction allowed.

3. Lesson #1: Know your target
audience and what they want
§ Consumers were
overwhelmed by color
choice and discouraged
by a poor economy
– Help them find their style
– Simplify options to get
them painting
www.DirectMarketingSmarts.com
©2013 Smith Browning Direct, Inc. No Reproduction allowed.

4. Glidden Gets You Going
§ Marketing strategy
– Take the pain out of painting
– Prove improved product quality
» Get trial of product
– Drive consumers to Home Depot to buy
Glidden
§ Marketing Tactics
– Train retail employees on new improved
Glidden advantages
– Free trial offer
– Convert trial to buyers
www.DirectMarketingSmarts.com
©2013 Smith Browning Direct, Inc. No Reproduction allowed.

5. Lesson #2: Your offer begins
with your product
Genius of this free trial offer – enough
to test and prove the product, but not
enough to finish the project
www.DirectMarketingSmarts.com
©2013 Smith Browning Direct, Inc. No Reproduction allowed.

6. Website

7. Lesson #3: Make your
creative engaging by
focusing on the customer
www.DirectMarketingSmarts.com
©2013 Smith Browning Direct, Inc. No Reproduction allowed.

8. TV Ad
Interactive product
demonstration on website
©1998-2013 Smith Browning Direct, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

9. Lesson #4:
It’s a multichannel world
Both for promotion and
fulfillment
www.DirectMarketingSmarts.com
©2013 Smith Browning Direct, Inc. No Reproduction allowed.

10. Print Ads

11. Retail
www.DirectMarketingSmarts.com
©2013 Smith Browning Direct, Inc. No Reproduction allowed.

12. Social Media
©2013 Smith Browning Direct, Inc. No Reproduction allowed.

13. Lesson #5:
No matter how brilliant your
marketing, the back end
determines your success
www.DirectMarketingSmarts.com
©2013 Smith Browning Direct, Inc. No Reproduction allowed.

14. Fulfillment and
email instructions
www.DirectMarketingSmarts.com
©2013 Smith Browning Direct, Inc. No Reproduction allowed.

15. Demand was off the charts
Glidden was monitoring social media and
got an offer out for immediate redemption
www.DirectMarketingSmarts.com
©2013 Smith Browning Direct, Inc. No Reproduction allowed.

16. Lesson 6: Focus on long-term
value of the customer
www.DirectMarketingSmarts.com
©2013 Smith Browning Direct, Inc. No Reproduction allowed.

17. Free Trial
Data collection
for future
marketing
www.DirectMarketingSmarts.com
©2013 Smith Browning Direct, Inc. No Reproduction allowed.

18. Conversion
and Followup
Upsell based on
color selected for
free trial
©1998-2013 Smith Browning Direct, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

19. Results
§ Goal: 320,000 trials in
1 week
§ Actual: Ran out of trials
in 3 days
§ Saved relationship with
Home Depot
§ Expanded to Walmart
replacing legacy brand
§ Estimated value/long
term impact of
campaign = +31% lift in
total sales
www.DirectMarketingSmarts.com
©2013 Smith Browning Direct, Inc. No Reproduction allowed.

20. 6 Smart Direct Marketing Lessons
1. Know your target audience
2. Don’t forget that your product is the core
of your offer
3. Make your creative engaging by focusing
on the customer
4. It’s a multichannel world
5. No matter how brilliant your marketing,
the back end determines your success
6. Focus on long-term value of the
customer
www.DirectMarketingSmarts.com
©2013 Smith Browning Direct, Inc. No Reproduction allowed.

21. Beth Smith
beth@DirectMarketingSmarts.com
§ Over 10,000 professionals have
attended Beth’s direct marketing
courses on 5 continents
§ 35-year career direct marketer
§ Creator and Educational Director
of the DMA Direct Marketing
Institute
§ DMEF Ed Mayer Award recipient
for lifetime contribution to direct
marketing
§ DMA Board of Directors Executive
Committee 2010-2013
www.DirectMarketingSmarts.com
©2013 Smith Browning Direct, Inc. No Reproduction allowed.