Office Depot 'Official Small Business of NASCAR' Campaign

Client/BrandOffice DepotLead AgencyThe Marketing ArmTime Frame February–April 2005ObjectivesThe promotion was designed to build awareness for Office Depot's new NASCAR sponsorship, gain market share of office-supply customers, and drive in-store and online traffic from the more than 75 million NASCAR fans overall and the six million small-business owners among them in particular. In addition to providing a unique experience and opportunity for NASCAR fans and Office Depot customers, the promotion allowed each store and its staff to share in the excitement through internal incentive programs.Target AudienceSmall-business owners in the U.S.StrategyOffice Depot wasted little time revving up its inaugural NASCAR sponsorship. Within weeks of being named the sport's first-ever "Official Office Products Partner" on Jan. 3, 2005, the brand launched a nine-week promotion entitled "The Official Small Business of NASCAR Sweepstakes courtesy of Office Depot." Driven through nearly 1,000 Office Depot stores and online (www.officedepotracing.com), the promotion maximized Office Depot's NASCAR tie and targeted its core customer base of small businesses. According to research, more than six million small business owners call themselves NASCAR fans.The promotion, which was "live" from Feb. 7 to April 10, 2005, materialized in one month. More than 20 pieces of P-O-P were designed and shipped to all stores in early February, and an internal mystery shopper program was put in place to ensure signage execution. A 30-second television spot ran on Fox during all races in the promotional period. The sweeps messaging/graphics were also included in Office Depot's circular for six weeks (delivered to 30 million households per week), while the call-to-action was also mentioned in first-quarter direct-mail pieces. The crowning moment for the winner chosen as the first-ever "Official Small Business of NASCAR" was during the Dodge Charger 500 NASCAR Nextel Cup race at Darlington Raceway on May 7. There, Corey and Taryn Reynolds, owners of Houston-based Fort Bend Lock & Key, received their company logo on the back of the No. 99 Office Depot car and were granted the rights to use a specially designed logo that features the "Official Small Business of NASCAR courtesy of Office Depot" mark to help promote their business on select materials such as business cards and stationery. They also received a $1,000 Office Depot Shopping Spree, a VIP race package at Darlington Raceway,and $250 worth of NASCAR-licensed memorabilia.The simultaneous PR effort carried the message with radio broadcasts and call-ins, as well as in national and local print features in both sports and business publications. Based on the success of the national promotion, we also created and executed local promotions in Atlanta, Chicago, Dallas-Fort Worth, Los Angeles and Miami involving nearly 250 Office Depot stores. Thousands of small-business owners entered to become the "Official Small Business" of the NASCAR Nextel Cup Series race located in that market. Each winning business had its company name featured on the No. 99 Office Depot Ford driven by Carl Edwards.Important FactorsOffice Depot launched a racing web site and included the sweepstakes graphics/message in its e-mail blasts to more than three million customers. Several print ads were placed during the promotional period, including ads in USA Today, NASCAR Scene, race programs and an insert in Crain's small business forum. Other messaging included online banner ads on multiple web sites.ResultsA total of 85,765 small businesses from across the U.S. entered the sweepstakes, helping to make Office Depot's inaugural season as NASCAR's "Official Products Partner" and the primary sponsor of the No. 99 race team a resounding success. The promotion has not only brought the excitement of NASCAR to new fans, but has celebrated the small business owner who helped the sport get its start. Of these entries, 57,975 opted in for future communication from Office Depot.Overall, the promotion generated more than 176.1 million impressions from network, cable and added-value assets. In terms of public relations value, the promotion garnered significant local and national print and broadcast coverage. For local and national radio, it generated 10.5 million impressions; for local and national print, 3.3 million. Online publications added 35.1 million more.More than 2.5 million shoppers got impressions from the in-store signage, while more than 160,000 visitors came to the web site. At the store level, signage execution rose 10% to an 82% compliance rate due to the mystery shopper program. Store managers and district managers received NASCAR Nextel Cup Series tickets in the incentive program. The program was one of the key factors in Office Depot being named NASCAR's "Marketer of the Year" for 2005.

Office Depot 'Official Small Business of NASCAR' Campaign

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