How to unleash your full potential? All it takes is courage
Interview with Juan Magdaleno, Director at RIX Rewards in Mexico about his passion of running marathons and what it means for brands and their promotional activities.
Tell us about yourself and why you have picked this inspirational photo.
My name is Juan, I was born and raised in Mexico City. As you can see, participating in sportive events means a lot to me, especially marathons have become a real passion over the last years.
It was not always like this. For the first 38 years of my life, I never ran more than 5 km, until my best friend signed me up for a half marathon.
Shortly after that I decided to participate in my first international marathon in Chicago. I surprisingly managed to finish in 3h35min with no coach, no nutritionist, no experience. Not sure what happened after that: call it addiction or passion for running but ever since I have been driven by the joy and courage to continue and achieve greater results.
This is where we come in as a “best friend”, sign brands up for a “great experience” and encourage them to go for it.
Can you see any parallels to your work at RIX?
100%. Maybe it sounds a bit funny, but there are similar patterns we observe when we consult companies on the market regarding their sales promotions and marketing activities. Just how it took me 38 years to discover a real passion, many companies don’t have the courage to try something new and discover the real potential that lies within their products, brand communication and consumer groups.
This is where we come in as a “best friend”, sign them up for a “great experience” and encourage them to go for it. In the end I am convinced that it is in their best interest to look for alternative and disruptive ideas. In the end we all want to create exciting customer journeys that positively impact people’s lives.
The last 2 years have been a challenging “training field” for most companies. What are your thoughts about this period?
After we have successfully launched our operations in Mexico with our signature product “Free Flight Promotions”, the global pandemic hit us like most companies. No flights, frozen budgets, and uncertainty.
If anything, you learn to be resilient in these times. Like in sports, we all follow our individual path, with external variables that require us to act in an unplanned way to achieve our objectives. I believe these are the moments, where you discover your true self, your weaknesses but most importantly your strengths, that often mark an exciting starting point of a new, even greater chapter.
In that sense, we actively used this last year as an opportunity at RIX to grow, broaden our product offering and develop exciting new campaign concepts.
Personally, after almost 10 years of participating in various international sport events, I had decided to challenge one of my big dreams: the Boston Marathon. For amateurs like me, the chance alone to be part of it, is like receiving a gold medal at the Olympics. Only a few in the world achieve it.
Again, it is the courage, we need to have especially in times like these, to continue believing in our dreams.
“Such experiences enrich people’s lives and trigger emotions, that finally help to build stronger relationships. Just like the experience of running a marathon. Something you remember for life.”
Talking about flying to Boston, you have successfully worked with TCL in Mexico transforming conventional discount campaigns into an inspirational free flight promotion.
Yes, in the beginning of 2020, we partnered with TCL on a promotion around the Super Bowl, where TCL offered their customers with the purchase of their high-resolution TVs free flights to one of 16 exciting destinations.
The destinations included Las Vegas, San Francisco, Miami, Havana, Bogotá, San Jose, Cancun, Puerto Vallarta, etc. Next year, we will definitely try to include Boston as well …
The promotion was a success in many ways. TCL increased their market share by almost 2%, in the high-resolution segment. They rose from place 3 to 2 in unit sales. The most interesting result of the promotion was that the largest retail chain doubled their stock of TCL TVs. This additional stock did not just have a direct impact on sales but created a strong positioning in the most demanding and competitive retail channel in the market.
Why do you think is it so powerful to touch upon people´s interests and lifestyles?
Imagine you stood in front of 2 TVs, with equal features, price, and quality, where one would offer a 10% discount and one a free round-trip to your dream destination. There is no doubt that the decision would go towards the free flight.
The underlying magic of this promotion does not end with the purchase of the TV, it is only the beginning. Once the consumer enters the exciting journey many factors are generated that create a close relationship between customers and the company.
Such experiences enrich people’s lives and trigger emotions, that finally help to build stronger relationships. Just like the experience of running a marathon. Something you remember for life.
TALK WITH JUAN
At RIX, we work with you to create rewards that transform your sales promotions into magic brand moments, empowering you to increase sales and market share in the short term, while boosting long-term brand equity.
Want to see how we can rid your brand of discounts? Get in touch.
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