Just about a year ago, we posted a news article on this website which identified that some of our competitors appeared a little confused by the sub postal sector targeting and distribution proposition provided by SMART-Drop. A year on, we once again find ourselves in a situation of providing the client marketplace with clarification of the SMART-Drop proposition.
There are two elements to SMART-Drop:
- Targeting and distribution to existing free newspaper round structures
- The creation of bespoke rounds dropped on a solus basis
SMART-Drop via Free Newspapers
SMART-Drop will only select existing free newspaper rounds that have a high density of the client’s target market – rounds that do not feature above an agreed index cut off point will NOT be delivered to. Having analysed a free newspaper’s coverage at postal sector level, SMART-Drop does NOT still deliver the whole newspaper coverage just because the majority of households are the target market.
The most important point being that the final mile delivery is undertaken at individual round level – even if that means distributing just 150 items on one round in a postal sector.
We have never claimed that SMART-Drop via free newspapers is a new service and is one that cannot be replicated by our competitors, but our recommendation to confirm that clients are receiving a sub sector service, would be to seek clarification from their suppliers of the level of newspaper coverage proposed in comparison to the full newspaper coverage available from the nominated titles, at individual sector level.
Or ask us for a comparative quotation!
SMART-Drop Solus Door Drops
On solus drops, rounds are created on a bespoke basis just selecting parts of postal sectors where the target market exists in its greatest numbers. If a corner of the sector does not match the required profile, it is NOT covered.
We have also recently seen claims that SMART-Drop’s solus service is not an innovation – despite being recognised as such in the recent DMA Northern Lights Awards – and that other suppliers can provide the service. That may in theory be true, but in the years in which SMART-Drop has been in development and since its launch in May 2010, we have yet to come across any delegate at our three seminars or present the concept to any client who then claimed to have been aware of the existence of such a service in the industry.
Our advice to clients? If you are considering door drops and are interested in the value of the sub sector proposition as a whole or partial answer to your promotional objectives, look around and seek different views from different suppliers. A quick comparison of data will soon tell you whether you really have a sub sector proposition in front of you!
Just use the contact page to start that process and we hope to hear from you soon!
