SNCF and Giving People What They Want

SNCF (the French rail network) has some of the best advertising out there, at least in the sphere of direct (e)mail. I say that for a simple reason. SNCF doesn’t assault you with information. It doesn’t offer you irrelevant goodies to make you resent it less for its constant emails.

What it does is make you want to travel around France. Admittedly this shouldn’t be too difficult a sell for most people. But SNCF sells it in a pure, and effective way.

Every few days you get an email which tells you about places you can visit. And it tells you how much it costs to visit them. And that’s about it. There are pretty pictures, though not too many of them. There are blurbs, and seasonal offers, and special deals. But for the most part SNCF’s DM really boils down to a simple and compelling proposition.

Here are some places you will probably want to go to. SNCF can take you there, and do it for cheaper than you might think.

In a time of airline competition and squeezed budgets, it’s a refreshingly straightforward, no bullshit sales pitch. I’m sold.