Andy Dawson

With the creation of the Treat Drop platform, we changed the way Costa Club rewards its members. A reward vehicle by ‘Drop’ culture in fashion, music and gaming, Treat Drop makes membership more fun, engaging and rewarding.

Using purchase behaviour data, we parachuted tailored rewards straight into their app, making customers feel valued on a personal level – increasing basket size as well as overall satisfaction.

The programme opened huge partnership opportunities, such as winning free trips with Jet2 and Odeon cinema tickets. These special drops and limited-edition rewards upped the excitement for customers, kept open rates high and provided a huge, engaged audience for partners.

Treat Drop achieved the highest engagement from Costa’s most valuable customers – with 6-figure incremental transactions per Drop, and a huge spike in repeat purchase in new categories.

Our success was rewarded with a DMA Gold for Best Customer Programme.

At a time Costa were raising prices and making free drinks harder to get, we attracted 12k new club members within the first week – helped by expanding Treat Drop into store by using menu boards as an acquisition driver.

Treat Drop played a huge role in loyalty overtaking non-member sales and cemented Costa's status as one of the most successful loyalty schemes in the UK.

I helped create and maintain the Treat Drop world, with overall responsibility for copy and TOV – making sure every touchpoint was consistent and familiar, yet also fresh and impactful for Costa Clubbers and prospective members alike.

To mark the Royal Coronation, we turned Costa’s most under-used core loyalty benefit, Refer A Friend, into a national Charles hunt – asking our whole loyalty base to refer Charleses (and those with Charles-based names like Charlotte, Carol and Carlos) to our loyalty scheme. 

Within hours of the email landing, it had driven so much traffic to the app that it crashed.

593% Uplift in successful referrals in 24 hours

1,233% Increase in Refer A Friend page traffic in 24 hours

3x New members acquired daily across all channels

1x DMA Gold for Customer Acquisition

https://www.linkedin.com/posts/andy-dawson_dmaawards-costacoffee-gofurther-activity-7138896633856970752-PK2_?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop

Welcome is a triggered comms journey for new members, structured to get them familiar with all aspects of the Club. The journey works by showcasing the full range of products and benefits, nudging them to move from one stage to the next.

Offers are used where necessary to drive trial and transactions among customers who aren’t regularly transacting – to prevent members ‘falling out’ of the journey and dropping into an inactive ‘lapsed’ segment.

And of course, these comms are also crucial for introducing new Costa Clubbers to the Brand TOV.

Testing showed that tying the Refer A Friend scheme into key cultural or calendar moments gained better traction with members. So I teamed up with a designer to create some comms to send out the day before Valentine’s Day ­– Galentine’s / Malentine’s Day.

The result was a much richer Refer A Friend offer for Costa Clubbers, that stood out amongst all the usual noise of 14th February.

When a customer gets a new phone, they’re quickly distracted by their new toy and forget all about their provider. Briefed to make the network as sexy as the tech, we created a new Welcome experience for O2 customers.

The right message at the right time: Across email, MMS and digital touch points, the programme is a personal tour through the world of O2. Personalised by phone type, tenure, tariff, location, browsing behaviour and past actions, the Welcome experience wrestles attention firmly back to O2.

Using words of welcome: To inspire customers to explore O2’s experiences and services, I used language that was warm, personal and grounded in real life – as a contrast to the grand and widescreen vision of the Art Direction.

Set some daunting subscription targets, we set about engaging customers across email, MMS and digital touchpoints. The copy challenge was hitting the sweet spot between exciting customers and the requirements of multiple stakeholder Brands.

The challenge for an ‘always on’ BAU programme is how to make it fresh, month on month.

X-Sell drives extra revenue by targeting the right offers to the right customer, aligning specific product benefits to a particular time of year or cultural event.

Giving customers a personal reason to upgrade can be a big boost to retention. After taking a deep dive into the data, I brought to life specific customer benefits for specific customer groups – all based around what the latest phones can do for them.

Apology texts that say more than sorry. Ticket sales that speak fan-to-fan. Prize draws that score a touchdown. With only a handful of characters to play with, I elevated the humble text from a simple info medium to a highly-targeted, personal message.

When new iPhone time comes round again, how do you get customers engaged with a network when they’re distracted by the excitement of a brand new phone?

One way is to remind them that O2 were Apple’s exclusive first UK partner, and use this heritage to tell a unique relationship story.

After several lockdowns, customers needed to be encouraged to venture out again – and reminded about all the exciting offers and rewards they get with Priority. The comms programme was split across multiple audiences, targeted by interest and life stage.

This execution added Sky’s premium sports content into the mix, attracting a wider audience in the process.

The use of more disruptive press executions helped get cut-through in the noisy London media environment.

This execution squeezed the sofa into the ad space – in effect making the media itself work for the campaign message.

We talked to Londoners at all points of the customer journey – whether offline or online.

Again, the media became an integral part of the creative execution.

Same message, slightly different tune. 

With a front cover die-cut to reveal the Tricky/Not Tricky message, this roll fold DM delivered multiple customer and product benefits.

BULLDOG was originally inspired by the independent spirit of Churchill. This line invoked his iconic 'victory' sign to tell vodka drinkers this was a gin comparable to their favourite tipple. 

Turn it up to 11...

Traditional gin marketing seems to all use the same formula: our botanicals, blah, blah, blah. BULLDOG doesn't care for that. 

Did we mention that unlike other London Dry gins, BULLDOG doesn't reek of juniper?

BULLDOG drinkers are instinctive, defiant. Just like the gin itself. This attitude come across in words and image to engage like-minded individuals.

To leave users in no doubt about the re-launched BULLDOG Brand, I decided the guidelines should be written in the new Brand TOV - while the imagery used throughout should represent the new comms environment. 

Like the Brand Guidelines, I thought the best way for the Trade to understand the Brand would be to tell them about BULLDOG in the BULLDOG way.

The way BULLDOG talks in social is the same as in the rest of its marcomms: confident, to the point – take it or leave it, it's who we are.

Skills for Life is the Department for Education’s learning strategy for education and training in England. It’s aimed at adults considering a career change, young people just starting out and employers growing their business.

Each audience was given its own creative platform for greater visual coherence under the Skills for Life banner. I helped bring those platforms to life – in social, OOH, digital and radio.

Using sector-specific data that identified shortfalls in industry placements, I wrote dynamic radio ads to target employers by location – encouraging them to offer T Level placements to benefit their business.

Due to the government’s plan to massively expand free childcare, the DfE needed to recruit even more people to a sector already short of skilled staff. Teaming up with a designer, I created a targeted digital and social campaign to raise awareness and increase take up of the Level 3 Early Years Apprenticeship.

Aimed at young people looking to start a career and older parents of school-age children, the work showed how Early Years can be rewarding – bringing out the best in everyone.

Our simple stories are illustrated with iconic, striking images, using wit to add warmth and humanity. In this way we bring to life a specific RMI offering and its benefit to the customer. In this example it’s their fast-track customs partnership with USPS.

Here our story is about how RMI’s automation in their Heathrow Hub means speedier processing, boarding and passage through customs.

And here we show the potential of RMI’s e-commerce operations in China.

The first execution in the new style was for the new China Tracked & Signed service, which opened up the whole country to ‘Peace of Mind delivered’.

And because of their partnership with China Post, there really was no one RMI couldn’t reach.

When it comes to businesses, China Tracked & Signed is good news for those looking for export opportunities with a reliable carrier they already know and trust.

Briefed to come up with a script to run parallel to the agency’s already successful ‘fighting the fear of cancer’ work, I used the nagging sound of a dripping tap as a metaphor for the persistent worry of something in your body not feeling right.

Asked to come up with a script based around the same insights as the recently successful ‘Recognising the feeling’ campaign, I used subtle ambient noise low in the mix to emphasise the feeling of unease associated with a heart attack.

Seabourn are the ultra-luxury sister brand of P&O Cruises. They liked what we did for P&O so much they asked us for their own version. This film, ‘Detail Is Everything’, transported the customer into the ‘Extraordinary Worlds’ they might miss out on, should they not re-consent.

The change in regulations meant customers had to confirm they wanted to remain part of The Cunard World Club, their tiered benefit-driven loyalty scheme. Without consent, Cunard could have ended up with lots of unhappy customers. So we tested several messaging territories to gauge best overall response.

In the early days of HD, it was tricky to get people to buy into how much better it was. This ad leveraged the latest Sky Movies blockbuster to show the benefits of HD.

To get ready for the movie debut of the popular TV series Entourage, Sky made every series available on Sky Box Sets. This ad created a bespoke environment that stood out from the usual Sky ‘white world’ Brand/Direct Response space.

The brief was to use the tried and tested letter and tip-on format to communicate the launch of Sky Sports F1 HD to existing customers. Split by product holding, the packs brought alive the benefits of watching Sky’s comprehensive new channel in HD, and exceeded target and response rates.

Asked to create a ‘service’ style letter to announce (potentially unwelcome) changes to Sky Go, I created a pack which, despite being forcibly confined to a DL format, clearly communicated the changes while sweetening the pill with an offer to upgrade to Sky Go Extra.  

The campaign ran in Switzerland, Germany, France, Italy, Spain and the UK – which meant close collaboration with the in-market writers to ensure accurate translation of the idea.

This DPS used the same copy approach to market Invesco’s Core ETF range to potential investors.

Teamed up with an Art Director and design team, I developed a warm and quirky tone of voice to complement a simple isometric illustration style.

This gave us a flexible base to create emails and digital advertising that made complicated or dry stuff look easy or interesting – using language that was supportive, free of jargon and sometimes just a bit fun.

A key part of Experian’s USP is helping people raise their credit score, enabling them to get better deals on financial products. So, when they do take on board Experian’s advice and succeed in improving their score, it’s important to use that data to make them feel better – and tell them what it means in practice.

Hence this series of dynamic emails, targeted by new credit score.

To help their customers save money, these emails told customers when it was time to switch their credit card to a new deal. They provided a step-by-step guide to make the process easy, while reassuring customers Experian had their back when it came to finding a deal that was right for their individual financial circumstances.

Getting customers to download the Experian app has advantages for both parties. For the customer it makes keeping track of their financial life easier, and for Experian it brings push notifications into play – meaning they can send personalised messages direct to people’s phones.

Here we used email interactivity to highlight the customer benefits of the app.

An alternative line for the multi-sensory experience of having a KitKat with your coffee.

Unsuspecting shoppers would have their nostrils invaded by the alluring aroma of chocolate and coffee, pumped out when they passed the poster site.

In store, the promo would be supported by gondola end displays, linked with floor decals and shelf talkers.

Used for additional in-store presence, with copy adapted to reflect the dump bin design.

This specially adapted FSDU would incorporate a fruit machine-style game, where customers could spin the wheel to match and win prizes – and share via social media. 

Customers could have additional chances to win a prize by using money off vouchers in store.

Nationwide ‘taster’ sites – mobile coffee and KitKat vans – would encourage people to give their ‘choco-coffee’ opinion by popping their cups into holes in the specially adapted recycling bins, fitted with sensors.

Nestlé’s Facebook page would feature an online version of the in-store game, plus location-based data.

Their Facebook page would also show how the nation was voting at the experiential sites.

As we all know, financial sector marcomms are heavily regulated. Keeping legal happy while making the messaging simple for consumers is a difficult balance. I ended up nailing it while interrogating the client after a presentation. 

Once the messaging was sorted we rolled it out in a number of digital formats – from page banners to OOH digital 6-sheets.

This jumbo screen execution hit consumers where they would actually be using their credit cards.

You shouldn’t be surprised by your card’s APR, but you can be by the media used to deliver the message. 

The carousel format was ideal to deliver the individual layers of the messaging.

The first of a number of ‘stretch’ ideas – an eye-catching transparent cover wrap.

Targeted banner designed to tailor the message to a particular consumer lifestyle.

To bring home the point of getting charged more than you thought, we would set up hidden cameras in a mobile coffee van and film people’s reactions as they are charged more than the advertised price for their drink. The videos could then be used as engaging online content.

A number of buskers would set up along key commuter routes, all singing the same song, chosen to land our transparency message: “I can see clearly now the rain has gone…”, “It’s gonna be a bright (bright), Bright (bright) sunshiny day…”

Conceived to support the Sky Xmas Campaign, this disruptive format leveraged the characters of the well-loved Penguins of Madagascar to promote the campaign offer.

Briefed to create a DM Pack to test against the proven letter/envelope format, I took the ATL Xmas train asset and created a bespoke die-cut mailer. The result not only aligned with the whole campaign, but also engaged people with the content in an unexpected way. So much so that it easily out-performed the standard format.

To give the pack an additional Christmassy feel, I snuck in some lyrical references to the song ‘Let It snow' .

Targeted at Freeview households who didn’t see the value of Sky, this pack used the critically-acclaimed Game of Thrones to create an attractive proposition: entertainment everyone was talking about for less money than they expected.

The results? Acquisition was 15% above target and conversion 18% above target. Incremental sales beat the previous champion format by 22%.

A simple, impactful execution to showcase Sky’s winning combination of exclusive content and market-leading tech.

Even with the most low-down and dirty direct headline, I still like to add a bit of charm here and there to lead the customer through the ad, right down to the CTA. DR doesn’t have to be dull.

With a bit of Photoshop trickery this '3D' vine made people stare at their Twitter feed. And it made it into the Top 10 of Twitter's weekly #9andAVine email, which was nice.

The HTC One M9’s monster speakers delivered some serious sound. This post brought the experience to life with a parody of the famous T-Rex encounter from Jurassic Park.

An engaging comp to celebrate the HTC One M9 being an official sponsor of the UEFA Champions League.

The dual cameras and innovative HTC Eye™ Experience software meant users could create rather nifty split capture images.

Yes, it’s a cat meme. I hold my paws up. But, hey, who hasn’t shared a cat video on Facebook? And this particular moggy was very relevant to what we wanted to say and tied in with the latest big show.

A mini Twitter campaign to support Sky’s ATL #AddictivelyGood Box Sets proposition, using content based on real-life situations that would resonate with users. 

These posts invited people to enter a competition to win an exclusive invitation to the ‘Sky Box Sets Club’ event. The GoT cocktail was courtesy of Buzzfeed.

These posts were tongue-in-cheek ‘real-life hacks’, conceived to get people using Sky Apps on the new tech Santa had given them.

Another suggestion on how Sky Apps can make your life better.

This competition spoke to people fan-to-fan, resulting in a significant amount of participation and competition entries.