Consumer, Food and Drink PR - Weetabix
Objective:
- To confirm the position of Weetabix as the nation's favourite breakfast cereal and to create awareness among consumers, farmers and retailers of the provenance of Weetabix wheat and the company's continued support of British farming
Strategy and plan:
- The client required a platform to communicate the provenance of the brand. Therefore, farmer involvement was crucial, and a competition was devised as the most effective solution
- The competition was launched with a photo opportunity in a field adjacent to the M1 which attracted press coverage as well as much interest and buzz
- To encourage entries Nexus engaged the support of the NFU who worked with Nexus to publicise the event through trade and consumer editorial, word of mouth and on the Weetabix and NFU websites
- Farmers were asked to build a high visibility "art installation" including Weetabix branding, and submit a photograph of their entry via the website or by post. To optimise the opportunity for coverage the entries were split into TV regions with one winner from each. In addition, to drive traffic to the website the entries were posted in a display room
- To lend additional credibility to the competition a high profile judging panel was created with Peter Kendall, NFU President, Ken Wood, CEO at Weetabix and Paul Eugene Riley, prolific installation artist. A winner was chosen from each region as well as a national winner
Measurement and evaluation:
- The Weetabix Wheat Art competition generated 69 pieces of coverage; five on television. The competition reached a total audience of over 15 million. 150 Weetabix logos appeared in newspapers alone. The competition also captured the imagination of the online audience with various blogs appearing in addition to extensive news based web coverage
Results:
- The competition generated huge interest and take-up within the farming community, successfully enforcing Weetabix's existing links with UK farmers; building a positive relationship with the NFU and communicating the provenance message to consumers and retailers
- The regional format of the competition, a winner coming from each ITV region, also ensured an even spread of coverage across the country
- The competition was widely praised by the media and participating farmers cited the opportunity for light relief and a monetary incentive as a welcome reprieve at a time when weather conditions and the bird flu outbreak meant they were in need of public support
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