BlackBerry / Telefónica-Movistar: "Competencia de Altura" (High-Altitude Competition)
Client: Research In Motion (BlackBerry), Latin America Marketing division of Movistar and Telefónica
Industry: Technology / telecommunications
Year: Annual program 2007-2010; final trip in March 2011
The Challenge
BlackBerry had come out of a negative first experience in 2007 with a North American incentive company: prizes were shipped from Miami and, due to customs and logistics issues, many participants either never received them or received them with major delays. For 2008, BlackBerry opened a bidding process among full-service incentive companies across South America.
The Solution
AV Business & Communication won the bid and ran the 2008, 2009, and 2010 programs for 1,100 members of the Telefónica/Movistar sales force across 13 countries in the region. The program ran from September to November each year, with monthly prizes (notebooks, Nintendo Wii, Visa gift cards from USD 300 to USD 1,000) and a final trip for the top salespeople in each country. In 2010 it was relaunched as “Competencia de Altura” (“High-Altitude Competition”), tied to the destination of the final trip (Buenos Aires and Bariloche). AV Business coordinated prize fulfillment across the region. The final trip (16 top salespeople, March 2011) included Buenos Aires and three days at the Llao Llao Hotel in Bariloche, with quad-bike activities, rafting, and an asado (barbecue) at a Patagonian ranch.
Results
The program’s key countries increased BlackBerry device sales by up to 30% during the program’s run. Colombia, Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Peru, and El Salvador met and exceeded their quantitative targets by between 5% and 25%. Total program budget: USD 195,000.
Notable Details
Telefónica/Movistar executives noted that the only two incentive programs where their sales force felt truly motivated were Nokia’s and BlackBerry’s. This case was presented as a case study for SITE (Society for Incentive Travel Excellence), the international association Alejandro Verzoub led globally as president in 2012.
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