Booth Fisheries

Situation

Booth fishery was faced with a glut of frozen product in a stagnant market. Processing and storage of this overproduction had put the company's future in financial jeopardy. The company had limited capital to invest in advertising.

Solution

Marketing was focused on point of purchase and strategic partners to help defray the marketing communications cost.

Real Lemon agreed to emboss the Booth Fishery's logo, a fish in motion, on their packaging for a special stack-out in the frozen food area. Booth Fisheries and Real Lemon cross-promoted coupon discounts.

Hand and finger bathtub puppets were developed for children and sold at cost with proof of purchase.

Stack-outs were negotiated with both Jewel and Kroger food stores. Special Booth fisheries chest dividers and wobblers were developed for the point of purchase promotions.

Results

The glut of fish was gone within 45 days. Ongoing sales was increased by 18%. Marketing communications cost was below 3.5% of sales to move the glut.

The Travelers Financial Services

Situation

The Travelers had a high unaided share-of-mind among fortune 50 corporate executives but the account team was not getting an audience with the appropriate people to make sales presentations.

Solution

A strategy and tactics were developed to target the senior level management team in the targeted companies. The mailing was three umbrellas in three weeks sent to the executives in Rose boxes.

The first mailing was a black umbrella that was torn and bent beyond repair with no message.

The second mailing was a clown umbrella with polka dots with no message.

The third mailing was in a rose box that had a simple headline "you are judged by the company you keep". The box contained a red Travelers umbrella with a note requesting an opportunity to set up a meeting.

Results

The senior level executives in the targeted companies stated that they enjoyed the campaign and the account team was able to set meetings with over 80% of the companies. The campaign generated large contracts with PepsiCo, General Motors, Standard Oil of Indiana and Proctor and Gamble within three months. This campaign was later used to acquire many targeted companies like the National Teachers Union.

Grey Poupon Mustard

Situation

Grey Poupon Mustard had stagnant sales, well below corporate ROI expectations. Several attempts by brand management had had limited success.

Solution

Focus groups were held. Contrary to brand management's opinion, the public in general did not like the product. The public felt that some of their friends with better taste for fine foods probably used the product. Results also showed people acquired a taste for the product after four to five exposures.

A new creative strategy for print, POP and electronic medias was developed that focused on a point-of-differentiation " Grey Poupon is a product that you must have in your home for your special guest."

Results

With a change in creative and media, Grey Poupon doubled its sales in less than a year.

Baileys Cigarettes

Situation

Baileys was not able to reach the critical 80% retail market saturation needed in tobacco sales. The product is a Marlboro look-a-like at half the cost. Baileys' sales force had spent a year in the market trying to break it. The poor retail saturation was not due to quality or the products cost but to the retailers refusal to put the product on the shelf.

Solution

Roanoke Virginia was used as a test bed to develop a retail saturation process. Each retail outlet and Tobacco wholesaler was reached my mail or in person to inform them that we were going to drop coupons into the Roanoke market and that they had the opportunity to participate. As expected, no one positively responded.

A $10.00 off per carton drop was made to high propensity customers who flocked to the retailers to redeem the coupons.

Results

80% retail saturation was achieved during the 30 days following the drop. Less than $5,000 in coupons were redeemed.

Lowe's

Situation

Lowe's had built big boxes in competitive Home Depot and HQ markets and were meeting minimum expectations.

Solution

Focus groups were held in Atlanta to determine what the upscale shopper loved about Home Depot and what they hated. The shopper segmentation hated the narrow aisles, low light and Depot's housekeeping. Lowe's was perceived to have high prices, slow service and limited assortments.

Two new stores were on the drawing board in South Carolina, both within a mile of a Depot. The things that the customers hated about Depot were corrected in these two stores and the things they loved were implemented. Assortment was increased and competitive pricing and selection was focused on in the Grand Opening print, outdoor and electronic media.

Results

Each of the Depot stores' sales decreased by two thirds over the next three months. To date, Home Depot has not regained market share in these two markets. These two Lowe's stores continued to set chain store growth and sales records.

Preen

Situation

Lebanon Seaboard launched Preen and Green, which was their first anti-emergent containing fertilizer under the Preen brand. Home Depot and Lowe's were not willing to include the product in their stores despite a large ad campaign, which moved a large amount of the product through independents. The sales force had used all of its tools to no avail.

Solution

Preen entered NASCAR knowing that both Home Depot and Lowe's tend to support companies that support NASCAR. An unheard of deal was cut with Petree Racing for a Winston Cup and Craftsman truck race in Martinsville and The Winston at Lowe's Motor Speedway. Appropriate contacts were made at the track and at the home offices of Lowe's and Home Depot telling them of Preen's entry into racing and potential cross marketing opportunities.

Results

Lowe's ordered a truck load of Preen and Green followed by an order for two truck loads by Home Depot the next week. The Preen car was featured at the Southern States / Agway dealers show.

The Preen Truck with an onboard camera was in an accident that is shown nationally 100s of times a week to advertise truck racing and the speed channel. You see the preen logo clearly visible on the hood as the truck slides into other trucks for 20 seconds.