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Sunday, 25 January 2015

The American Take Over: Cadbury's Creme Egg

Now for me, Creme Egg is one of the best marketed products out there, the seasonality, the teaser marketing, the ridiculously large fan base and the brand personality which Cadbury have created.
The treat is synonymous with Easter and the chocolate delights that come with the celebration!

However, an outcry about this year's Creme Eggs has swarmed over social media and consumers are not happy! Cadbury is one of the best British brands out there and a brand that British people are very proud of, however when they were bought by Mondelez International (was Kraft) in 2010, a lot of people were skeptical of a great brand being taken over by an American corporation. The company was very important to the UK economy and Mondelez shut down a British factory and stopped sending Christmas chocolate tins to their retired employees.... but this was the start of many changes for Cadbury, which didn't go down well with the British public.

Any one would have thought than since then, Cadbury would be doing their upmost to regain the trust and loyalty of British consumers. However, there have been a number of shocking decisions made by the company, which sees consumers slipping further and further away from the brand they used to love....

Creme Egg Controversy


This article in the Telegraph here talks about the changes that Cadbury have made to the Creme Egg recipe which now does not use Dairy Milk chocolate in its coating, instead uses a milk chocolate which consumers argue ruins the great Creme Egg taste they know and love. The company also lowered the pack size from 6 eggs to 5, yet kept the price the same AND made the egg smaller.

Chocolate coins axed

Cadbury announced at Christmas 2014, that they would no longer be selling their chocolate coins due to them no longer making profit on the product. Supermarket's own branded chocolate coins took most of the business away from Cadbury, however the consumers who love the Cadbury chocolate taste were left without their favourite Christmas stocking filler treat.


Cutting corners (literally)


Cadbury rounded the corners on the Dairy Milk pieces in order to cut costs.... yet still charged the consumer the same price. They are clearly putting in every cost-saving measure to ensure maximum profits. This reduced the size of the bar by 4grams... when you add up all the bars of Dairy Milk they sell, this adds up to a huge saving for Cadbury! The brand put it down to the 'melt in the mouth' experience of the new shape.... consumers were having none of it!

What can Cadbury learn?

Anyone who knows anything about how to run a business and market products knows that knowing and understanding your customers' needs and wants is the number one rule and is at the core of success.

The Cadbury brand has high emotional attachment, nostalgia and links to every British person's childhood. Cadbury needs to understand that we love the brand and when a big American corporation comes in and starts messing with our Cadbury, whether that be packaging, traditions or recipes... we are going to make them pay! 

Mondelez have been putting profits before consumers and eventually they need to wake up and smell the coffee!

It seems as though Cadbury has a lot of making up to do if it wants the British consumer to put Cadbury back in it's hearts as their favourite chocolate brand!


Stephanie

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Why creating DEMAND from consumers is the best marketing tool!

I don't know about you but everywhere I've driven, every TV show I've watched and every social media channel I've browsed in the last couple of weeks, I can't help but noticed McDonald's new marketing campaign, whether it be in outdoor advertising, TV and radio ads or paid posts across Facebook and Twitter;





Post by McDonald's.

Yes, the McRib is back! Now, I can't say I'm a regular McDonalds visitor myself, but judging the hype on social media, this was a clearly loved product. The McRib product is often introduced for limited periods of time and then taken off the menu. Clearly the marketing spend around bringing the McRib back has been huge as I have seen it just about everywhere! By creating these touchpoints, consumers can build their excitement and remember the product everywhere they go.

Now, one may argue why do McDonalds created this 'limited-time-only' product? If it's so popular- why don't they just keep it on the menu year-round? 

Well, from what I can tell, when it was on the menu permanently, the sales were low... yet not low enough to keep it off forever... so here are the reasons I believe that the intermittent reintroduction of McRib is a great marketing strategy;

  1. It creates a sense of urgency in the consumer: It's available for a limited time only! The consumer must stock up if they want to make the most of the product whilst it's still around. The great thing about food is that it's perishable... so customers can go back to McDonalds as many times as possible in the time period in order to repurchase.
  2. Nostalgia: Customers may remember the product from the past and want to relive perceived 'happier times'... this also applies to brands who have executed this brilliantly e.g. Cadbury's Wispa
  3. Retains customers who may not be regular customers: Customers who might not regularly make trips to McDonalds may do so purely to purchase the McGrill- this therefore brings in extra custom and the potential to retain them further/ up or cross-sell.
  4. Creates a great talking point: We all know social mentions and shares are fundamental to establishing an online presence, therefore something which consumers feel their peers may talk about/ something which they perceive to be 'safe' to discuss like McDonalds food.... is likely to be highly discussed. This also applies to the offline world.
  5. Something new, but not a risk: New products can hit it off with consumers, but their sales are usually low to begin with due to consumers fearing trying something new. However, the fact that McDonalds have brought this back because it was so well loved in the past, which is a message highly reiterated in their marketing communications activity for McGrill, consumers are much more likely to buy it. When your peers like something- you are likely to want to like it too!
  6. Customers feel like they have achieved something: By creating a 'hype' or an upstorm about bringing the product back, customers feel like they have caused this and therefore they feel a better connection with the brand as they feel as though their needs are being listened to. Effectively, this is the case, but it also brings more awareness and talk around the brand itself
This is the kind of genius marketing I get excited about!! So simple yet so effective!

Stephanie
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Friday, 16 January 2015

Using social media 'fame' in advertising

We have all seen the people who are famous just from being on the internet? Believe it or not there are hundreds of 'celebrities' who have risen to fame just from publishing content on the internet... from Jenna Marbles, Zoella and Tyler Oakley, the Youtube 'vloggers' who have risen to fame, to Brittany Furlan and Dapper Laughs who created entertaining Vines to instagram stars like Amalia Ulman and Kordale and Kaleb Lewis.

Whether they create videos, blogs or images, these content creators have all been able to capitalise on their social media channels and become idols in their followers' eyes.

But what does this mean for brands?


 Brands often struggle to create viral content themselves and therefore why not take something (or someone) that is already viral and associate yourself with it. These so-called 'stars' have allowed brands to be represented by people who consumers look up to, associate with, are already engaged in a two-way conversation with and mostly who they consider to be real people. 

 Celebrities can be fantastic endorsers of brands however, as in a previous blog post, I spoke about the credibility of using movie stars/ singers with consumer brands... who actually believes said Hollywood actress actually shops at *insert low-cost store here*. However with these online social media content-creators, the idea that they are similar and relatable to by the target audience is a real selling point in the eyes of consumers. I think this article sums it up nicely.

How have brands been doing this already?

Sponsored videos/ blog posts/ tweets

Brands can pay those who they believe to be influencial/ have a viewing demographic which matches your target audience, who then review products or talk about their benefits and share the review with their users.
However, this can come across as inauthentic and consumers/ viewers are very aware of what is paid and what isn't. However, it certainly gets the brand out there and creates awareness. Brands also have to be conscious of how well the sponsoree can communicate their brand values/ product benefits.




Add to the quality of what they already produce

I believe this is an extremely effective tool, as you are no longer asking the endorser to do something they wouldn't usually, you are actually aiding them to achieve what they usually would and for the reason their subscribers/ followers like them so much.

A great example is Nikon, who teamed up with gay couple Kordale and Kaleb Lewis who's Instagram snap below went viral:
This was a great chance for Nikon to associate with great role models and ambassadors, who the spotlight is on at the moment. I also believe the collaboration is a great move, the digital camera industry is dying due to the use of smartphones and it is a great chance for Nikon to move into the 21st century and relate to hot topics.

The concept of gay marriage is highly debated and this will allow strong messages from both the couple and Nikon and in my opinion is a fantastic move for both parties. They created this brilliant ad:





Social media fame is on the rise

I believe all brands should ensure their marketers are active enough on social media to notice and understand who these people are, and what their stories are so that they can understand their value and relevance to the brands they work with!
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Tuesday, 6 January 2015

What IS experiential marketing?

Every time I mention my work in experiential marketing, I always get a funny look as some one asks "What on earth is that?!" even from people within the marketing industry, experiential or guerrilla marketing is a niche area which not all brands execute successfully/ to the best of their ability. However, some absolutely excel at it- and for them, it is a highly valuable and invaluable marketing tool which helps the consumer EXPERIENCE the brand.

Traditional advertising provides the consumer with visual and verbal communication- however experiential helps consumers taste, touch, smell and feel the brand- so this involves any physical interaction.... it can be described as 'events' to a certain extent, however not as one might think of conferences, festivals or fashion shows- however these can actually be great examples too! Can you tell why I love this industry yet?

It's actually a huge industry and brands are increasingly seeing it's value and spending more on exepriences and there are so many examples of how to execute great brand experience.

Heidi Cohen defines it beautifully "Experiential marketing enables prospects and customers to interact and connect with your offering in a way that creates memorable branded experiences. Based on these brand-related encounters, customers become more connected to and invested in your offering. This results in increased awareness and sales for B2C, B2B and NFP (not-for-profit) brands."

 There's a great statistic which says something like "You are 10 times more likely to tell a friend about something you've experienced". It's a great way to set a positive image of your brand in the consumer's mind and they are so much more likely to remember your brand rather than a TV ad which they've seen amongst 100 others that day. You are also much more likely to share your experience on social media and these posts become ads in their own right- however this is when you are translating into earned media.

 The aim is to acquire customers and achieve long-term brand loyalty and therefore achieve a lifetime customer.

 In order to be successful, brand experience activity must;
1. Fit with your brand values and communicate them in a way in which the customer understands them.
2. Exist in a space where your target audience are present (of course- that step exists for any marketing activity, but there's no point sampling men's aftershave at a Beyonce concert....)
3. Allow it to be social! Encourage people who take part to share their experiences online through #hashtags, photo sharing or taggable 'check ins'- for every person who takes part, there could be another 100+ who see the experience and see it as desirable!
4. Encourage some sort of emotion- whether than be fun, humour, delight or just thoughtfulness or consideration!
5. Use trained and well-briefed staff to represent the brand correctly

Great examples of brand experience in action

Coca-Cola

How could I not mention Coca-Cola, these guys are the absolute kings of experiential marketing and they absolutely excel at using experiences to engage consumers, deliver their brand message and create shareable content. I've worked for the brand a number of times and they are constantly executing well thought out, consistent, clever events. They have hundreds of examples from the coca-cola truck to share a coke bottles printed in shopping centres, this being a particular favourite: 



Haagen-Dazs

This is a pretty standard campaign- but of course effective as the brand is fantastically represented in a number of methods which allow the consumer to interact. The campaign involves sampling, photo (so the consumer can take away something physical) and a competition. Great touch points which last outside of the event. They also managed to get their brand heavily covered across the fashion event.




Pepsi

This is a brilliant use of technology and Pepsi's video went viral which can be an important objective when executing campaigns. I can guarantee those participants definitely told someone about their experience!



Audi

Another example of how technology is driving outstanding brand experience from Audi. There really is so much more brands can do to engage their audience. This is directly related to the product and therefore conveys innovation, forward-thinking and creativity.



 In summary- experiential marketing is physical, tangible, conveys emotion and happens in real-time.
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