Situation

DENTSPLY Maillefer, an endodontic division of DENTSPLY International, Inc., manufactures and sells a comprehensive line of high-quality, innovative equipment and supplies for root canal therapy. Maillefer products are sold through a network of distributors. Over the years, Maillefer has used offline incentive programs such as its Endodontic Savings Plan (ESP) Rewards to recognize loyal customers with discount pricing and points with volume purchases.

Solution

All Star created and launched a customized reward program using our proprietary online platform. The target audience for the program was Maillefer’s existing rewards customer base, which included endodontists and general dentists who buy a large volume of endodontic products. Additionally, Maillefer targeted new customers to join the rewards program. All Star converted more than 600 of the 1,000 existing paper-based customers to the online platform.

To entice online participation, a bonus incentive was given to those who opted to register and participate online. The program was structured to keep participants excited and engaged. For example, the bonus points offer for online participation increased from 500 to 1000 points in January 2005, and e-mail communication increased to every other month. Participants were given the ability to bank points earned for higher level awards.

The rewards program was supported with a quarterly direct mail postcard campaign and monthly point statement mailing, which promoted online registration and promoted specific products through a double points offer with purchase. The rewards program also incorporated a four-tier email campaign that offered bonus products with purchase, as well as bonus points in an effort to drive specific product sales. The call to action was for endodontists to place product orders via an embedded order form, or call their distributor directly to place orders. The promotion of Maillefer C+ Files ran as a monthly bonus point offer on the reward web site throughout March and August, and was promoted again in an October email campaign.

Results

Partnering with All Star allowed DENTSPLY Maillefer to transition customers smoothly from its longstanding offline rewards program to a more convenient, cost-efficient and dynamic online program. Two emails garnered impressive 46% and 37% open rates and 17% and 23% click through rates, respectively. The end result is a unified solution that is much more engaging. save time and money on communication and administration. Online registration enabled All Star to capture vital customer information, including a database of 491 e-mail contacts, as well as vital marketing data attained through the opt-in registration process that Maillefer has used to further understand the buying habits of its customers. .