Challenge
Sell Advertising Services to Advertising Agencies
Selling coals to Newcastle has never been easy. Yet Advo System, Inc., one of America's largest distributors of direct mail, knew that agencies would profit from their services. How could they make agencies think of them as a resource rather than a competitor?

Components of "The Answer," a direct-mail package sent to advertising agencies.

ADVO distributed 3,700 direct-mail packages to smaller advertising agencies around the country, ones where the Advo "Answer Package" decision makers could be reached directly. The package featured an eight-minute video that confronted agency resistance head on and also contained support materials, including a brochure, a letter from ADVO's chairman, a movie poster and some gizmos for fun.

Our star in Tommy Wins the Girl was Grant Shaud, who went on to play Miles in the TV series Murphy Brown. The package made the phones ring at ADVO. (Videoware Corporation)