The loyalty program we run for Sony PlayStation® has 12 million members. That's the entire population of Delhi, India (not counting the sacred cows).

In 2003, we were chosen to help Sony PlayStation maintain a dialog with their customers at a one-to-one level. Not an easy task when you're talking to hard-core gamers who'd rather be raining down fire on enemy positions in Call of Duty 3 than reading emails.

Unsurprisingly, Sony was unhappy with their inability to engage and interact with these gamers. And due to the structure of their database, they had little insight into their customers' behavior.

We started by conducting a full audit of Sony's technologies, communication systems and, of course, their customers. And we enlisted gamers to run the account here at the agency.

We advised PlayStation to introduce a single username and password for all properties in order to focus on smarter data collection and improved audience segmentation.

We also restructured Sony's eCRM strategy to include personalized communication, loyalty building, and a host of smarter tools that made life easier for both PlayStation and its users.

Based on our research and strategic recommendations, we rebuilt Sony's capabilities from the ground up-starting with eCRM.

Sony's database was slow, costly and difficult to extract content from. So, we built a real-time, online reporting system that updates data daily and gives clients access 24/7.

We also rebuilt a system that enabled us to deliver highly targeted messages based on consumer preferences, current activities and buying potential-turning two undifferentiated emails per week into 5 to 6 unique, well-targeted campaigns, resulting in 29 million sent emails in a single month!

The results are impressive. We know that those who receive our email communications are 375% more likely to visit the PlayStation Store versus those not communicated to. Not only does this group visit the store more, they also spend 58% more when they do.

Since we began working with PlayStation, we've tripled the number of consumers in the database and the diversity of user data has grown exponentially. We now collect over 1 billion customer data points annually.

As part of the program, PlayStation gets valuable feedback on all aspects of its brand and a strong and profitable word-of-mouth network. In turn, users gain access to pre-released products, receive invitations to exclusive events, and drive high-profile marketing decisions for a brand they love.

The Sony gaming community today is very much alive. Whether it's helping launch the PSP®go, using PlayStation Twitter accounts to correspond on behalf of Sony, or meeting with PlayStation Senior Management-communication is healthy and transparent for both PlayStation and the gamers!