Spotlight on Teachers
Washington Mutual - Fall 2002
OPTS Events
Marketing Situation Washington Mutual (WaMu) is one of the nation's leading retailers of consumer financial services. A hallmark of the Seattle-based company's more than 100-year history is its unwavering commitment to its communities. It has focused the majority of its charitable giving on K-12 public education and affordable housing. WaMu has gone from a regional bank to a national consumer brand with an aggressive expansion strategy and brand messaging that "puts people first". In Fall 2002, WaMu entered the highly competitive and diverse New York/New Jersey market with the acquisition of The Dime Bank, a regional thrift with 142 branches.
Spotlight on Teachers Promotion Goals Celebrate WaMu's entry into the New York market in a highly visible way Communicate WaMu's brand character & their deep commitment to vital, healthy communities and public service Strengthen WaMu's relationships with local schools, teachers, students and their parents Encourage the community to visit Washington Mutual financial centers The Program The gift and the solution was to celebrate teachers by buying out every ticket to every show on Broadway for a single matinee performance on November 16th, 2002 (28,000 tickets in total). K-12 teachers were selected by the community from the metropolitan New York City and New Jersey school districts to attend the Broadway show of their choice, compliments of Washington Mutual. The program was aptly named "Spotlight on Teachers". The nominating element of the program enabled wider community participation, with a multitude of opportunities for potential banking customers (educators, students, parents) to support their local teachers, as well as to have positive interactions with the WaMu brand. The Program culminated in a fabulous pre-show event staged in the heart of the theater district with a rousing send off of the teachers to each and every Broadway theater.
How It Worked Individuals stopped by any Washington Mutual Financial center or went online to get a nomination form. Completed forms were given to the teacher for home mailing information. Teachers then mailed the forms or dropped them off at any WaMu Financial Center. 14,000 qualified teachers were then randomly selected from the entries received and were notified that they won. Notification packs included a Mayoral Proclamation from Michael Bloomberg, and a congratulatory letter from WaMu. Additionally, they were given a custom Broadway Bound booklet with information about the shows, the pre-show gathering event, how to extend their Broadway experience to the classroom, local Times Square merchant discounts and a Unique ID number along with a toll free number to order a pair of tickets to their choice of show. Tickets were then sent out to the teachers along with further details about the pre-show event and transportation routes.
The two unique elements to success in the Spotlight on Teachers Program were:
1. BOLD AND UNPRECEDENTED Buying out every show on Broadway for one performance had never been done. The uniqueness helped Washington Mutual make a meaningful impact in the hearts and minds of its existing and potential customers. What's more, this fresh idea rose above the clutter of a highly saturated market.
2. HIGH-IMPACT VENUE The unprecedented buyout of Broadway shows, coupled with the Times Square street closure for the pre-show spectacle created a compelling publicity opportunity with a star assemblage of teachers, civic leaders, WaMu spokespeople, and Broadway stars. In addition to the 28,000 Broadway-bound teachers and guests, the event reached an audience of tens of thousands of passers-by in Times Square, and potentially millions more through the resulting media coverage. The heart of the theater district was closed for the event. Event installation included 3 jumbotrons for IMAG and graphic content, sound system, lighting, staging, VIP hospitality areas, green rooms, help desks, will call booths and Washington Mutual information booths. Specially produced Washington Mutual messaging with branding was shown on the stage and jumbotron screens for the two hours leading up to the show. Washington Mutual bank President Deanna Oppenheimer and Deputy Mayor Dennis Walcott and the NJ Teacher of the Year addressed the crowd with performances by the Broadway Kids and Broadway legend Joel Grey following. A shower of confetti in WaMu colors sent the teachers off to the shows. As a grand finale, the casts came out on stage to thank the teachers for their dedication and commitment – and applauded the teachers!

Program Timeline
December 2001	Concept Development
February 2002	Program Approved and Finalized
March- Sept 2002	Contract negotiations with Broadway Shows
Aug- Oct 2002	Program Kickoff and Nomination Period
Oct 25- Nov 10, 2002	Ticket Ordering and Fulfillment
Nov 16, 2002	Broadway Event

Performance Results Performance of the program was measured against program goals. Goal: Celebrate WaMu's entry into the New York market in a highly visible way. Result: Based on an independent survey conducted by Beta Research Corp., WaMu's unaided awareness leapt from 18% to 56%, outpacing all other banks in the market.
Goal: Communicate WaMu's brand character & their deep commitment to vital, healthy communities and public service. Result: Based on an independent survey conducted by Beta Research Corp.: 1. Nearly half (42%) of the Spotlight on Teachers sample named WaMu as "a bank that gives to the community." No other bank even approached this level of awareness; the next closest bank came in with 8% citations. More than four-fifths of the sample viewed Washington Mutual to be "sincere" in its community-involvement efforts, and comments made by respondents centered on the bank's community-mindedness" and "recognition of educational efforts." 2. Nearly nine in ten respondents in total felt that the message they took away from the program was well communicated by Washington Mutual in its sponsorship of said program.
Goal: Strengthen WaMu's relationships with local schools, teachers, students and their parents. Results: Based on an independent survey conducted by Beta Research Corp., an overwhelming majority (97%) of the teachers that participated rated the program excellent. Participation in the Spotlight on Teachers program generated a high level of awareness for Washington Mutual, based on the observation that more than half (56%) of all respondents recalled "Washington Mutual" on an unaided basis, compared to only 18% who recalled it under the same conditions prior to the program.
Goal: Encourage the community to visit Washington Mutual financial centers. Result: Thousands of teachers, parents and students visited local WaMu financial centers to pick up and drop off nomination forms.
PR: The event received widespread press coverage in the NY/NJ Metropolitan Area: The New York Times 11/17/02 Sunday edition ran a photo and caption. Many additional regional papers, including Newsday, picked up the story. Major broadcast coverage from local news stations: Fox 5 news and Eyewitness News ABC 7.
POSITIVE RELATIONSHIPS FORMED WITH LOCAL CIVIC LEADERS: We built a wide coalition of support among influential elected, civic, business and educational leaders. From Mayor Michael Bloomberg's message read at the Times Square event: "On behalf of the city of New York, I recognize those associated with Washington Mutual Bank for your efforts in making this afternoon possible and for rewarding the hard work of our teachers with a fun-filled afternoon at the theatre. Spotlight on Teachers is an outstanding program and our teachers are most deserving of this wonderful recognition."
What People Are Saying "On my own behalf and on the many staff members who participated in 'Spotlight on Teachers', a heartfelt thank you. Many of us said that it was the first time anyone had ever done anything so nice for us. We are a group of savvy investors - we have to be - and when we can we will remember your effort and choose you - WaMu." — Brenda Silver, Special Education Department, Dewitt Clinton High, South Bronx, NY "I often feel appreciated by my students, but rarely by the 'real world'… If I didn't already have an account at Washington Mutual, I would transfer my money there to show you how much I appreciate you for showing that you appreciate me." — Janice Wilson, Second Grade Teacher, Avenel, NJ I would like to thank the person whose brainchild it was, as well as all the members of your organization who worked to make it become a reality." — Janette Paul, Teacher, Brooklyn, NY I am not sure which was more special, actually attending the event, or being nominated by one of my students… Washington Mutual gave many students the opportunity to tell a teacher that they cared… My story is just one and there were 27,999 others… this was perhaps one of the most positive and wonderful events that has happened in a long time." — Susan Hart, Teacher, Sayville, NY
"I would like to commend you and your staff for their professionalism and accommodation when I ordered the tickets, and for the efficient way of delivering them." — Kathryn Munnell, HS of Telecommunications Arts and Technology, Bay Ridge, Brooklyn, NY
"There were no strings attached, no qualifications, no red tape and no difficulty." — Roberta Schneider, Teacher, Brooklyn, NY