Crossman Communications. Con s Come-Back for Australian Summer Stonefruit PRIA Golden Target Awards. Finalist Entry

Transcription

1 Crossman Communications Con s Come-Back for Australian Summer Stonefruit 2010 PRIA Golden Target Awards Finalist Entry Category 9: Consumer Marketing and Social Marketing

2 Page 2 Table of Contents Page 1. Executive Summary 3 2. Situation Analysis 4 3. Goals and Objectives 4 4. Research 5 5. Target Publics 6 6. Communications Strategy 6 7. Implementation 8 8. Budget Results Evaluation Appendix A: Supporting Material 12. Appendix B: Confidential Material Disc: 5 Minute Tour Highlights DVD TV Coverage A Current Affair, Today, Morning Show, Sky News Health Watch, Ten News Radio Interviews Sample Only

3 Page 3 1. Executive Summary With no advertising budget, Australian summer stonefruit growers needed to boost demand for their produce especially during peak season when consumer excitement wanes. Appointed only weeks before the first fruits arrival, Crossman quickly launched the new season to food writers and engaged growers to promote crop quality through regional and metropolitan media. To put summer stonefruit in the news, we enticed 90s comedy icon, Con The Fruiterer, to undertake an early February tour of green-grocers, shopping centres, wholesale markets and media in Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane, encouraging consumers to get stuck into peaches, nectarines, plums and apricots. Newspoll research showing adults aren t eating enough fruit, supported by data from a 2007 Government-funded children s study, gave Con a solid reason to go on the warpath. A comprehensive media program led by an exclusive announcement of Con s come-back on A Current Affair launched the campaign and took messages nationwide. Con interacted with around 3000 consumers, retailers, wholesalers and growers, receiving rave reviews, with audience reach 72% above target. Tracking data showed 80.9% of Australian households purchased stonefruit during the season, a yearon-year rise of 4.5% or 275,500 households. Dollar spend was up 6%, equivalent to $10.5 million, a massive return on investment. Word Count: 200

4 Page 4 2. Situation Analysis Australian summer stonefruit production has risen by 25% in the past 10 years. With more peaches, nectarines, plums and apricots to sell, growers needed to drive consumer demand, which is typically strong at the beginning of the season when the novelty factor is high, then drops off in February right when supply and quality peak. Horticulture Australia, in conjunction with grower association Summerfruit Australia, decided the limited annual marketing levies were best allocated to a PR campaign focused on mainstream media to encourage consumers to get stuck in. Supporting this initiative, a specialist field marketing agency would undertake an in-store sampling program at selected retail outlets during peak season and existing point of sale leaflets would be re-printed. The website was not deemed a spend priority. Adding to the challenge, Horticulture Australia, through its work with other grower associations, knew competition for the consumer dollar would be fierce, especially with a new multi-million dollar campaign for bananas about to launch and other fruits highly active throughout summer. 3. Goals and Objectives Campaign Goals Raise awareness of the availability and quality of Australian summer stonefruit, especially during peak season. Position Australian summer stonefruit as dribbilicious, nature s essential summer treat easily enjoyed in so many mouth-watering ways. Encourage consumers of all ages to get stuck into summer stonefruit. Measurable Objectives Increase household penetration and dollar spend on summer stonefruit. Gain campaign support from growers and retailers, especially green-grocers. Achieve 100 positive stories about summer stonefruit in digital, print and broadcast media nationwide including at least four major TV segments.

5 Page 5 Achieve an average message rating of three out of five with each of the following elements scoring a point: o Mention of summer stonefruit and/or peaches, nectarines, plums and apricots o Dribbilicious o Get stuck in o Serving suggestion o Image (except in the case of radio) Achieve a known audience reach of 30 million. 4. Research Crossman reviewed Horticulture Australia s five-year marketing strategy for summer stonefruit and the Neilsen consumer research which informed it. This showed: Awareness of summer stonefruit is restricted by its lack of continuous presence bananas, apples, oranges and grapes are top of mind and the arrival of mangoes is greatly anticipated. Consumers knew little about selecting, handling and storing summer stonefruit. Stonefruit is perceived to lack flavour more than any other fruit. Stonefruit conjures up memories of happy summers past. We also investigated fruit consumption statistics and found children were not eating their recommended daily intake. This led us to believe this would also be the case for adults. A briefing with Horticulture Australia and key industry players provided insight into the issues and opportunities involved when engaging growers and retailers. Aside from getting buy-in to the campaign at the outset, growers, located in regional areas all around the country, wanted to see high profile national media exposure for summer stonefruit to feel assured their levies were not being wasted, while retailers required a big idea that would shift fruit en masse.

6 Page 6 5. Target Publics Consumers Horticulture Australia wanted to grow summer stonefruit consumption across the board as household penetration was only 77.4% while bananas, apples and grapes were above 80%. As a result all main grocery buyers were identified as our primary target. While the emphasis needed to be on promoting fresh stonefruit as a delicious, healthy snack for Australians of all ages, we also needed to encourage use in everyday meals to achieve a solid lift in sales. Retailers Fresh produce retailers, especially green-grocers, were important to the campaign s success. We needed them to be excited about the program and help us promote the virtues of summer stonefruit to their customers. Growers Growers, whose levies fund marketing activities, needed to fully support the campaign from the get-go. Also, by activating them as spokespeople, we could expand positive media exposure in regional areas. 6. Communication Strategy Crossman was appointed only a couple of weeks before the season commenced in November. Phase one was to quickly launch the new season to food media nationwide through a comprehensive kit which included new contemporary recipes lifted from point of sale material, facts on different varieties and tips on selection and storage. Growers were used to promote the quality of the crop through regional and metropolitan media thus elevating awareness of the start of the season and getting this important target audience involved in making the campaign a success.

7 Page 7 Phase two was to drive consumption during peak season. With nothing new to say about summer stonefruit we had to stand out from the crowd with a completely different approach. To elevate the association of summer stonefruit with happy summers past, a positive cue for purchase as evidenced by consumer research, Crossman enlisted Con The Fruiterer, the iconic Greek character from 90s hit show The Comedy Company, to make a come-back as campaign ambassador. His mission was to tour green-grocers, shopping centres, wholesale markets and media in our priority markets - Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane - in early February encouraging consumers to wrap their laughing gear around peaches, nectarines, plums and apricots. To provide a solid, news-worthy reason for Con to go on the warpath we undertook Newspoll research showing adult Australians aren t eating enough fruit and supported this with data from the 2007 Australian National Children s Nutrition and Physical Activity Study. This gave Con plenty of ammo to introduce dribbilicious summer stonefruit as the solution, sharing his tips for selection and storage and favourite family recipes. A national media campaign led by an exclusive announcement of Con s come-back on Nine s A Current Affair gave the initiative lift-off and took summer stonefruit messages to consumers, retailers and growers around the country. Crossman worked closely with retailers, shopping centre management and wholesale markets to optimise promotion of Con s tour and create exciting events tailored to each venue at no further cost to Horticulture Australia. An impactful launch presentation, ongoing updates and success stories engaged and gained the support of growers throughout the campaign.

8 Page 8 7. Implementation Preparation (October) Commissioned Newspoll research into adult fruit consumption. Obtained the 2007 Australian National Children s Nutrition and Physical Activity Study report. Produced messaging, and fruit, health, selection, storage, usage and industry facts and tips. Obtained recipes and images from point of sale material. Identified growers who would make good spokespeople and briefed them on their role. Secured and briefed Mark Mitchell, AKA Con The Fruiterer, and directed high quality photography. Stakeholder Engagement (October) Worked with Horticulture Australia and Summerfruit Australia to ensure stakeholders were engaged and excited about the campaign: o Produced PowerPoint presentations for growers and retailers. o Horticulture Australia and Summerfruit Australia presented to growers nationwide and disseminated the presentation via . o Horticulture Australia presented to category managers at major retailers such as Woolworths and Coles. o Produced articles for industry publications to launch the campaign. o Produced media releases for grocery/retail publications and negotiated coverage. Phase One Launch/Recipe Outreach (October November) Quickly produced a special kit for food and lifestyle media comprising a media release on the new season, key facts, tips on selection and storage and recipes and images. Pitched and chased coverage, offering fresh fruit for photography purposes. Tailored the media release to regional areas where growers were available to speak and secured photo stories and interviews about the quality of the crop.

9 Page 9 Phase Two Peak Season (November February) Developed a media release to announce Con s come-back for summer stonefruit, deliberately featuring Con-speak to engage media and bring his character to life. Exclusively announced Con s tour on A Current Affair in November to start building hype and pave the way for successful negotiations with retailers. Backed this up with radio interviews across the country. Pitched and chased magazines and newspaper supplements/lift-outs for coverage to appear in February. Developed a six-day, three-city tour program: o Negotiated TV appearances and in-studio radio interviews as the backbone of the tour. o Identified top quality green-grocers in high traffic locations in Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane. o Synchronised selections and dates with the field marketing agency s sampling program. o Negotiated with store owners to host Con, tailoring his visit to best suit their site and resources. For example some outlets hired mobile kitchens and PA systems so he could cook up a storm, while others provided trays of fruit for him to hand out throughout the shopping centre, especially in the food court where he convinced patrons to swap unhealthy foods for stonefruit. One store had staff dress up in Con shirts and aprons. o Provided store owners and centre management with images and copy for pre-promotion purposes and encouraged them to produce posters. o Negotiated a special early morning visit to the Brisbane wholesale produce markets for Con to talk to growers, wholesalers and buyers. o Arranged travel and accommodation requirements and escorted Con throughout his tour to ensure his needs were met, for example easy access and escape and facilities to refresh his make-up. o Took video and still images throughout the tour for compilation into a highlights package for stakeholders. Pitched and chased photo stories in community and metropolitan newspapers to pre-promote and cover Con s store visits. Negotiated TV news coverage of Con s visit to the Brisbane Markets.

10 Page 10 Post-Campaign Produced a five minute highlights DVD and a comprehensive report on the campaign s success for Horticulture Australia and Summerfruit Australia to disseminate to the industry. Produced and placed articles in industry media. Thanked all those involved in the campaign, especially retailers, shopping centres and wholesale markets who hosted visits, and communicated results. Most importantly, we made a big fuss of Con The Fruiterer to foster his enthusiasm for continuing his role in 2010/11.

11 Page Results Total Audience Reach Campaign messages reached in excess of 51.7 million people, 72% above target. Media Exposure A total of 153 media appearances were achieved. Quality was extremely high with all media clips mentioning summer stonefruit or peaches, nectarines, plums and/or apricots and around 75% encouraging people to eat summer stonefruit in different terminology. Recipes were featured 11 times. Media Type Number of hits News Wire 1 Newspaper 28 Supplements/Lift-outs 16 Magazines 27 Television 10 Radio 38 Online 33 Total 153 Television highlights included: Dedicated segments on A Current Affair, Today Show, The Morning Show and Sky News Health Watch. News coverage on Network Ten in Brisbane. TV coverage was uploaded to YouTube by various parties. Newspaper highlights included: Pre- and post-tour photo stories of Con s store visits across VIC, NSW and QLD metropolitan and community newspapers including the Daily Telegraph, Herald Sun and Courier Mail. A colourful full page grower story in the Herald Sun during peak season.

12 Page 12 Supplement/lift-out highlights included: A number of stories in Good Living and Epicure including a front cover feature during peak season. Several recipes throughout the season in the Sunday Herald Sun. A front cover feature in the Gold Coast Bulletin s Bite. A Con profile in Sunday magazine. Magazine highlights included: Colourful recipe and in-season features in Cleo, Country Style, Good Health, Woolworth s Fresh, New Idea, That s Life, Australian Natural Health, Notebook and Take 5. Five pages, including selection and storage tips, in the front of a Woman s Day recipe book tipped on to the cover of the magazine. Radio highlights included: 30 interviews with Con - many live and long - on stations throughout Australia. Five grower interviews. Online highlights included: Stories on metropolitan and community newspaper, radio, television and food/lifestyle websites including Ninemsn, the Daily Telegraph, A Current Affair and the Today Show. A sample of media materials, snapshots of media coverage and an overview of all media clips are provided in Appendix A. TV and sample radio clips are provided on disc.

13 Page 13 Store and Market Visits Con interacted with around 3000 consumers, retailers, wholesalers and growers, receiving rave reviews and putting summer stonefruit firmly on the shopping list. Con s tour schedule, a selection of photos taken during the tour, Crossman s presentation to greengrocers and retailer produced posters are provided in Appendix A. A 5 minute highlights DVD is provided on disc.

14 Page Evaluation Measurable Objectives Result Performance Against Objective Increase household penetration and dollar spend on summer stonefruit. Gain campaign support from growers and retailers, especially green-grocers. Achieve 100 positive stories about summer stonefruits in digital, print and broadcast media nationwide including at least four TV segments. Achieve a message rating of three out of five. Achieve a known audience of at least 30 million. Tracking data showed 80.9% of Australian households purchased stonefruit during the season, a year-onyear rise of 4.5% or around 275,000 households. Dollar spend was up 6%, equivalent to $10.5 million. Green-grocers heavily supported Con s tour with some immediately requesting his return next season. Growers hailed the campaign an enormous success, briefing Crossman to extend it in year two. 153 hits were generated including four national television hits. Average message rating was three. Audience reach was 51,736,356, a cost per pair of eyes of only.001c Well-achieved in the face of stiff competition. Achieved. Over-achieved by 50%. Achieved. Over-achieved by 72% or 21.7 million. The campaign was an enormous success on all counts. Most importantly it helped deliver a massive increase in sales from the investment. Word Count: 2155