Cisco Scuttles Postal Mail

Cisco Systems has abandoned postal mail in favor of e-mail in its marketing of a big-ticket networking system, saving money in the process.

The effort started earlier this year when the high-tech firm sent a 124,000-piece e-mail blast to users of its AVVID (Architecture for Voice, Video and Integrated Data) systems, which let companies integrate voice, video and data capabilities with their computer networks.

The lead-generation effort drew a 35% response, based on clickthroughs to Cisco’s Web site (www.cisco.com).

Future e-mail efforts for these products will cost the company about $10,000 apiece — half of what Cisco used to spend on postal mail campaigns and hiring outside agencies, explained research manager Susan Chiu.

San Jose, CA-based Cisco spent more than $135,000 to set up two interactive modules on the site for two AVVID products.

The first e-mail effort was sent to decision-makers such as information technology and telecommunications managers, and chief executives and financial officers at 150 multinationals like Dow Chemical, Wells Fargo and Deutsche Bank.

The recipients consisted both of responders to past programs and those resembling Cisco’s existing customer profile that the company found using data mining.

In its last direct marketing campaign in 2001, Cisco offered a technical book as a premium which Chiu felt might generate some less-than-sincere leads. “We wanted to get people who are really interested in the products and not just the book,” she said.

In addition, Cisco received a large number of leads from Web banners it ran on Hoover’s Online, Bloomberg.com, CFO.com and direct response space ads it placed in such publications as Fortune, The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal for AVVID, noted Chiu.

These leads have been turned over to Cisco’s North Carolina field sales force, which is further qualifying them. So far, none of the sales of the systems have been closed. They’re priced at between $200,000 and several million dollars depending on the size of a company and other factors, she said.

Cisco plans to expand this campaign internationally later this year. Details were not finalized at press time.

For AVVID and other systems, Cisco is constantly engaging in “demand generation,” efforts which include regular and online seminars, said Chiu.

“People don’t always know what products they’re going to need,” she said. “We have to tell them.”