O&M pitches in with new ideas

Advertising agency Ogilvy & Mather has come up with a new way to cope with those “seen it all before” clients.

For the recent Ionica direct marketing pitch, O&M persuaded the clients to avoid the gridlocked London traffic on a Friday afternoon and sail, stress free, down the Thames to its Canary Wharf offices.

But to prevent the Ionica team drifting off to the sound of the gently lapping Thames, O&M handed out “pitch pep-up” packs with energy-giving items, including Lucozade.

As a final touch, those fun-loving japesters at O&M showed the Ionica team into a stereotypical boring office and then, ever game for a laugh, took them to the real room – a sofa-lined ambient setting complete with a little alcohol to help them make the right decision.

And it worked – O&M won the direct marketing account despite tough competition from direct marketing specialists.