Lindt Gold Bunny Eggsperiential Campaign

Lindt chocolates brought a little family magic to the Westfield London shopping centre over Easter whilst also raising much needed funds for Great Ormond Street Children's Hospital.



Lindt Gold Bunny World created a magical atmosphere for the whole family. The Gold Bunny oversaw the proceedings which included an engaging bunny maze created from real hedgerows. The maze took families on an exciting journey to the centre, where they found a Lindt Gold Bunny surprise. To make sure no-one got lost there were Lindt Master Chocolatier stilt walkers to help families through the maze and to find their chocolate treats!

There was also free colouring and painting activities for children and an exclusive Lindt Gold Bunny pop up shop where families could purchase their own Lindt Gold Bunny or Bunnies! With a minimum £1 donation from the sale of each delicious Gold Bunny going to Great Ormond Street Hospital Children’s Charity; the aim was to raise £25,000 in order to assist with the upkeep and maintenance of patient family accommodation.

While I am unaware if they achieved their target it is a fantastic piece of work for a good cause and deserves all of the attention it can get.

If you missed out on this great event but would still like to help please go to the GOSH site for more details.

Experiential marketing versus features and benefits

Marketing has traditionally been all about features and benefits. Marketers have assumed that customers are rational decision makers who can weigh up the features and benefits of a product easily against narrowly defined competition. Advertising companies have used these assumptions as a strategy, by emphasising these features and benefits to persuade consumers to purchase. For example an advert for a car may talk about the antilock braking system, the built in roll cage and the airbags and side impact protection system (the features) to emphasise the safety (benefit) of the vehicle.

Experiential marketing builds on these assumptions. Today, customers take functional features and benefits, product quality and a positive brand image as a given. Consumers still expect all of the above attributes but in addition they expect to be entertained, to have their senses stimulated and to be able to incorporate the product into their lifestyle.

Traditional F&B marketing still has its place however it is primarily focused on influencing the behaviour of the consumer up to the point of purchase. There is no follow up for the brand as to whether the customer enjoyed the consumption experience. This can lead to trial and brand switching. Experiential marketing focuses firmly on the consumption situation as an experience. In order to get repeat purchasing a consumer has to enjoy the whole brand experience. By influencing the consumer in the post purchase period the experiential marketer can increase customer satisfaction and brand loyalty.

By focusing on the consumption situation and the customer experience experiential marketing treats the consumer as a human being whose decisions are based on rational thinking as well as emotional influences. Instead of focusing on narrowly defined product categories such as shampoo or shaving cream the experiential marketer thinks “grooming in the bathroom.”

This holisitic approach allows experiential marketing to build upon traditional F&B marketing. In his book, Experiential Marketing, Bernd Schmitt highlights some great examples of companies using experiential marketing to build upon their established F&B campaigns. What is becoming clear is that while experiential marketing doesn’t replace the need for emphasising the features and benefits of a product it is becoming an essential part of the marketing mix.

More feel good street theatre

Bet this puts a smile on your face...



Told you so!

7 things you didn't know about me!

I haven't had time to keep up to the latest goings on in the marketing World this week so thought I'd throw in a random post. Not that there's much structure to this blog anyway...

1. I am slightly accident prone and tend to get injured often.

To be fair you probably did know that but having broken around 20 bones I curiously have never had any stitches. I have lost a lot of skin over the years, the worst being at a wedding in Perth where I fell as I grabbed 2 kids from running on to the road. The skin loss was obviously sore but when Jill ripped the dried baby wet one from my head I fainted for the only time in my life hitting my head off the sink on the way down. That hurt too.

2. When I was a kid I wanted to be a vet.

I even did my work experience at the local vet surgery where I got to give a dog an injection to put it to sleep. This was supposed to be a privilege but the owner wanted to come in at the last moment to be with his life-long companion and thanked me for putting him out of his misery (the dog that is). I will never forget the old man sobbing as he was escorted out by the nurse while the vet dropped the dog in to a bin bag and threw it in the shed for collection. Guess you don’t have to be an animal lover to be a vet...

3. I used to be in an orchestra.

I played the clarinet for 7 or 8 years when I was at school. I never got round to practicing though so any potential the teacher thought I had was and remains largely unfulfilled. I still have the clarinet but it hasn’t held a tune in quite some time. Maybe one wet weekend it will make a long overdue appearance.

4. My biggest fear is not being successful.

Well, not making a difference anyway. For as long as I can remember I have wanted to be a millionaire. This isn’t based on any notion of what I could do with the money or even what it means but just because it was difficult to achieve and somewhat exclusive. I guess the value of 1 million pounds in 1985 is quite different to 1 million dollars in 2009. I am not sure what it really means anymore but I would still like to feel like I was making a difference and contributing something meaningful.

5. I was a member of the National Ferret Welfare Society.

I had a pet ferret called Gnipper when I was a teenager. He used to live in a hutch in our porch and was very playful if a little head strong. They make great pets although they can smell a bit if you don’t clean the cage out often enough. My brother was not a fan.

6. I love being a dad.

Despite Eilidh only being 9 months old I can’t imagine (or remember) life without her. She is fascinating to watch and great fun to play with. She does something different everyday and is always laughing which is contagious. I guess I am biased but I think she is gorgeous. Having discovered how much fun it is being a dad I would like to have 2 more as soon as possible. Jill is still to come round to the idea. Twins would be fun...!

7. I have an irrational dislike of random people.

I sometimes develop a dislike for someone famous based on no logical or even reasonable cause. Mick Hucknall from Simply Red is at the top of the list. Martine McCutcheon from Eastenders is a close second. Keith Urban and Nicole Kidman take out the couple crown. They all irritate me greatly for no known reason although I must emphasise that ginger hair has nothing to do with it.

Not all burger experiences are the same

Having just been on a stag weekend in Gosford the topic of fast food and burger joints has been at the front of my mind. Fast food is a bit of a misconception when referring to Hungry Jacks in Gosford. Due in a large part to the incompetence of one particular staff member it took my friend Ronnie 40 minutes to get his breakfast wrap. Surely this is some sort of record? It apparently wasn't worth waiting for although I could have told him that having been served 10 whole minutes earlier. To be fair mine was ready about 10 mins before that but it was beyond the staff member to give me it despite there being no other customers (who had been served). Even the guy who had gone to the drive through window had to get out of his car to see why his breakfast was taking 30 mins.

Maybe working there gets to you after a while...


Gratuitous Burger Ad to restore Ronnie's faith...

Qubik's 4 E's of experiential marketing

ENGAGE

Engage the consumer. Consumers are far more savvy, perceptive and aware of traditional marketing goals than ever before. To truly engage with them a brand has to be presented to them at the appropriate time and in the right environment.

EDUCATE

Educate them about the brand. A good experiential campaign will not only be informative but also create an emotional attachment using creativity to break through the clutter.

EVOLVE

Evolve their perception. Experiential marketing connects the advertising message and brand values in an interactive manner, reaching the consumer at a time when they are most receptive to the message. This 2 way communication aids in changing the perception of the brand in the mind of the consumer.

EFFECT

Effect their behaviour. Once consumers have tried the product, they are more likely to purchase as well as spread the word to their peers, utilising the golden word of mouth strategy. The end result is an emotional alignment which stimulates consumer consideration and adoption.

Are you looking after your brand ambassadors?

Firstly a definition: "A brand ambassador is an appointed representative of your brand that animates or brings to life your brand to your potential audience."

Brand ambassadors aren't merely promotional staff being paid a few dollars an hour to hand out samples. They are staff selected to represent the brand at the primary point of contact between your brand and the consumer. Whether this is at a tradestand, sampling in a train station or the check out person of your nearest supermarket they have a large influence on the perception of a brand.



Celebrities are often referred to as brand ambassadors however their main concern is not the profile of the brand. Celebrities accept endorsements either for the money or to increase their own profile or both. Whilst some celebrity endorsements can be very successful they have also been known to screw up on occassion, potentially damaging the brand.

Given that brand ambassadors can be so influential they should be shown respect and treated accordingly. By providing relevant training and explaining the brand objectives they will be better prepared to represent the brand. When given the correct tools they can have a very powerful and successful influence over the perception of the brand. If they don't meet the brand standards however they should be replaced immediately as you would with any other part of the marketing mix.

Supermarkets spend millions of dollars each year encouraging consumers to visit their stores. They publish weekly specials, discount vouchers and a raft of other initiatives to get consumers to buy from them yet the entire experience can be derailed by an unfriendly (perhaps untrained) check out person. Seriously, how hard is it to teach them to pack a bag? It is a frustration that could easily be eliminated and turned in to a positive experience.