Flying Down in Rio

Forget about playing in Peoria. Will it play in São Paulo?

A campaign for Fiat Automoveis S.A. conducted by Rocha Azevedo Marketing Promocional (now The Marketing Store Worldwide Brazil) earned the Gran Prix award for Best Promotion in the World last month in the second-annual Globe Awards, conducted by the Association of Promotion Marketing Agencies Worldwide, Stamford, CT.

Response to this year’s awards (which were spawned from PROMO’s World PRO Awards of Excellence) set new records for participation, with more than 1,000 entries coming from 24 countries in four regions.

Although the winning campaigns represent a variety of concepts, a multitude of industries, and a plethora of languages, they have some common ground: They’re all based on a “big idea,” all cross over multiple marketing disciplines and delivery mechanisms (integration is the name of the game, here), and all had a significant — and quantifiable — impact on the brands they promoted.

Many of these campaigns also display a sophisticated use of technology and communications media in reaching the target audience. (Think the U.S. leads the way in interactive marketing? Think again.)

Awards were presented at a black-tie affair during APMA’s annual fall conference, held in West Palm Beach, FL. The following is a review of the winners, by category.

Gran Prix
Best Multi-Discipline Campaign
Best Dealer or Sales Force Activity

Marea Impecável

Agency: The Marketing Store Worldwide, Brazil
Client: Fiat Automóveis S.A.

The title of this campaign sums it up pretty well: Impeccable.

Fiat achieved a 20-percent sales lift for its Marea brand with a campaign that introduced a new design and safety upgrades by engaging consumers, salespeople, and dealers using a comprehensive slate of events, TV ads, guerrilla marketing, instant-win games, contests, incentives, Internet marketing, and direct-mail.

The effort was designed to get prospective buyers into Fiat showrooms for test drives. Prospects received packages in the mail containing promotional CDs featuring well-known Brazilian singers Milton Nascimento and Gilberto Gil, who had written special songs to support the promotion’s “Impeccable” theme. The packages also contained information about the car and the promotion, which invited recipients to play the CD while test driving the car: an audio code on the CD was then matched against one on the driver’s seat visor for a chance to win a Marea on the spot or VIP tickets to concerts given by the singers. (A sweepstakes overlay gave everyone another shot at a car.)

Meanwhile, mystery shoppers evaluated the quality of pitches given by Marea sales personnel, while a dealer incentive campaign rewarded those who achieved or surpassed their sales goals with cash — redeemed through debit cards at ATMs.

More than 22,000 recipients visited dealers for a test drive (surpassing the goal by nearly 15 percent), and more than 3,000 purchased a car.

Best Use of Advertising

Mobil Max Bucket-Load

Agency: Wow Rapp Collins, New Zealand
Client: Mobil Oil

Wow used a clear message, simple graphics, and a lot of humor to get consumers to sign up for the Mobil Max loyalty program for a chance to win cash prizes ranging from $250 to $10,000. The agency’s media-driven approach (TV and radio) provided maximum reach and frequency over a four-week period, using images of money being poured into shiny, yellow plastic buckets. P-O-P at gas stations supported the program, which ultimately attracted more than 35,000 new loyalty club members, inspired existing members to spend more than $15 million, and produced an 80-percent lift in total sales (to $27.2 million) compared with the previous four-week period.

Best Use of Direct Marketing

VIP of YES

Agency: Target Market, Israel
Client: YES Satellite Services

YES Satellite Services grabbed the attention of Israeli celebrities, athletes, politicians, and members of the fashion elite with a promotion designed to educate them about the company’s new service. Two thousand VIPs received a sneak preview one month before the service launched, with YES reps hand-delivering to their homes specially wrapped, oversized books containing colorful photos of artsy individuals in unusual poses. Also included in the package were handwritten letters touting the company’s quality of service, and remote controls so recipients would be ready as soon as the service launched. Target Market followed up within 24 hours with telephone calls guaranteeing express installation in 48 hours. Seventy-four percent of recipients said “Yes.”

Most Innovative Communication Strategy

Cellcom Amazes

Agency: ProMarket-J. Saar Agency, Israel
Client: Cellcom

Having traditionally relied on conventional media such as events, trade journals, and direct mail, Cellcom was looking for a way to excite prospective corporate clients for its cell phone services. Some 3,000 prospects received a recorded phone message from the company’s president requesting a face-to-face meeting and an address to which a gift could be sent. Some 2,880 recipients — a 96-percent response rate — called back to schedule a meeting. Twenty Cellcom reps were dispatched around Israel carrying mysterious silver suitcases and an apology that the president himself would be unable to attend. The suitcase contained a bottle of quality wine (along with glasses and corkscrew) to make sure no one was disappointed, and the sales pitch was made through virtual reality headsets.

Best Use of New Media

V2397 Launch

Agency: Zipatoni, U.S.
Client: Motorola

Also a winner of PROMO’s PRO Awards (the exclusive U.S. point of entry to the Globes), this campaign sought to make Motorola’s latest cell phone hip with teens by tying into MTV’s Total Request Live and its host, Carson Daly, for a holiday effort. Daly appeared in ads offering an MTV gift bag containing exclusive music with phone purchase. Private launch parties in major markets generated excitement with retailers. An online component let phone-users send text messages to Daly and enter a sweepstakes for a chance to win a trip for two to the TRL set. Some 28,000 consumers entered the sweeps and 15,000 sent missives to Daly. Phone sell-through beat the target by 17 percent.

Best Use of Illustration

Win A Blast Scooter with Kraft

Agency: The Marketing Store Worldwide, Australia
Client: Kraft Foods

Kraft Foods Australia wrapped a back-to-school promotion around outstanding creative that succeeded in motivating moms to stock up on Kraft products for the chance to win one of 200 Blast Scooters and safety gear for their kids. Independent grocery stores across Australia carried kid-friendly P-O-P displays which showcased the prize and got kids lining up to fill out entry forms. Wobblers, talkers, bin cards, and magazine ads supported the program, which generated a 30-percent sales lift over the same period the previous year, surpassing client expectations ten-fold.

Best Activity Generating Brand Volume (Tie)

Axe Cinderella

Agency: Lowe Porta & Partners, Chile
Client: Unilever

An on-pack promotion developed for Unilever’s Axe brand featured peel-off stickers on the bottom of deodorant sticks carrying codes and a toll-free number consumers could call to see if they’d won. The grand prize was a fairy tale experience, complete with a five-day holiday in a five-star hotel, 24-hour use of a luxury car, and up to one million Chilean pesos ($1,400) that had to be spent in 24 hours. Window-dressing contests in drug stores, print and radio ads, and aggressive p.r. supported. Sales increased 19 percent and brand awareness jumped 50 percent.

Million Dollar Cash Grab

Agency: Capital C Communications, Canada
Client: Hostess Frito Lay and Pepsi

Frito Lay capitalized on the summer-time popularity of salty snacks and soft drinks with a promotion that tied into The Simpson’s 10th anniversary. Frito Lay secured permission from Fox TV to place characters on product packaging in a new and exciting way, and encouraged consumers to collect packages for a chance to win $1 million. Giant gondola displays in stores, TV spots, Internet advertising, and p.r. supported the program, which succeeded in boosting volume 19 percent over the previous year.

Best Program Generating Brand Loyalty

1,2,3 Pampers

Agency: DBM, Israel
Client: Procter & Gamble

P&G more than doubled Pampers’ market share (to 22 percent) by teaming with Fisher-Price and Shilav, a leading Israeli chain, to bring a loyalty program to pregnant women in their last trimester. Moms-to-be could collect Teddy Bear icons from Pampers’ packages and redeem them for discounts of 75 percent or more off Fisher-Price toys at one of 330 Shilav stores. Launch events educated women about what to expect at the hospital, and included a make-shift emergency room. New-mom kits were distributed at the events, through hospitals, and via direct mail after the births. More than 27 percent of participating moms made a toy purchase at Shilav.

Best Business-to-Business Campaign

Prize Club

Agency: The Sales Machine L&Z, Mexico
Client: Multiple

More than 2,200 wholesalers sell their merchandise at Central de Abastos, Mexico’s largest commerce center. Retailers buy from the wholesalers, then distribute their merchandise via traditional stores throughout Mexico. The Prize Club is a loyalty program that rewards retailers for making the initial purchase and for selling through to customers. Wholesalers pay a $1,500 monthly fee for category exclusivity, then determine the payback they want to offer retailers, who are then encouraged to trade their cash incentives for trucks, T-shirts, CDs, and other merchandise. P-O-P materials, flyers, and newspaper ads support the on-going campaign, which to date has enlisted nearly 5,000 retailers and 37 sponsoring brands.

Best Retail Account-Specific Campaign

Drive-In Movies

Agency: The Marketing Store Worldwide, U.K.
Client: ASDA Wal-Mart

ASDA scored with an old-fashioned American pastime, drawing more than 50,000 families to 24 parking-lot events across the U.K. Shoppers could purchase tickets in advance for an evening filled with food, product sampling, football, car-washing, premium giveaways — and the movie. While attendees watched the film from their cars, rollerblading usherettes sold snacks and clean-up crews offered to wash windshields. Britvic, Mars, Cadbury, Trebor Bassett, Walkers, Nestlé, and other manufacturers sampled product. P-O-P, local radio spots, and p.r. supported. Tickets sold out within 24 hours, £50,000 ($73,000) was raised for local charities, and ASDA generated unprecedented levels of p.r.

Best Activity Generating
Brand Awareness & Trial
Best Idea or Concept
Best Copywriting

Win Seven Nights in Kenya

Agency: Saatchi & Saatchi, U.K.
Client: COI/The British Army

The U.K.’s Army showed it had a sense of humor last January in a street-marketing campaign created after budget cuts ended the service’s direct-response TV efforts. Army personnel stood on busy streets, distributing leaflets containing edgy copy that enticed potential recruits with a sweepstakes for a trip to Kenya. All recipients were eligible to send in an entry form. Other copy played on familiar legal wording to dramatize the Army’s unique challenge. More than 16,000 entry forms were submitted as the Army succeeded in generating the same number of inquiries a TV spot would — but without the high cost.

Best Art Direction

Juddermania

Agency: BD, U.K.
Client: Bacardi Martini

BD’s campaign created a recognizable theme that was communicated consistently through all of Bacardi’s marketing materials. Centered on the made-up verb “to judder” and an animated character called “Judderman,” the effort positioned the liquor brand as being able to awaken consumers’ taste buds with just one swig. The look and feel of the promotion complemented a corresponding ad campaign to create more impact with the trade. On-pack, the character enticed shoppers to play an instant-win game dangling a trip to Iceland. TV spots, on- and off-premise P-O-P, and trade incentives supported. Trade volume rose 16 percent and ROI increased 39 percent compared with the previous year.

Most Effective Long-Term Campaign

Coffee For All

Agency: Magnesium, Belgium
Client: Sara Lee Douwe Egberts

In 1998, Belgian coffee maker Douwe Egberts launched Coffee for All, a cause-related campaign that brings free coffee (two cups for every 250 grams purchased) to homeless people during the holidays. The program’s goal has remained the same: tap into consumers’ heightened sense of compassion during the holidays. In 2001, the effort expanded to include a partnership with a local food bank, as well as an overlay that got consumers to volunteer to help with the distribution. In four years, the campaign has delivered more than 42 million free cups of coffee to more than 80,000 people, and the brand’s market share has skyrocketed from 8.3 percent to 36.8 percent. More than 2,000 consumers signed on as volunteers.

Best Use of Photography

Tetley’s Bitter Cup: Live it Live

Agency: IMP, England
Client: Rugby Football Union

Improvements in TV coverage were contributing to a decline in attendance at Tetley’s Bitter Cup Finals, one of the most watched games on the club rugby calendar. Tetley’s challenge was to revive the live game. The promotion used action photos of players and a “Live it live” tagline to encourage fans to buy tickets. The message was delivered through direct-mail packs, media inserts, and billboards. The campaign did the trick: one Bitter Cup semi-final sold out completely, and 56,000 fans came out to the finals in Twickenham, a significant improvement over the previous year’s totals and much higher than the client’s expectations.