Best Incentive Campaign
Best Cause-Based Promotion
Best Use of a Promotion Campaign Executed Outside the U.S.
Best Campaign on a Budget Under $250,000
Agency: Rapport Advertising and Marketing
Campaign: New Zealand Book Month
Client: New Zealand Book Month
Year after year, literacy levels in New Zealand continue to fall and the number of books sold decreases. A bestselling book in New Zealand sells just 5,000 copies in a country of 4.1 million. Book prices are much higher in New Zealand than in the U.S. or UK, putting books out of reach for many. To make matters worse, the earthquake in Christchurch closed 27 book shops.
New Zealand Book Month, a six-year-old non-profit, was created to address these issues and encourage reading. The program has backfired, however, reaching only an elite audience, and often by invitation only.
For the month of March, Book Month 2011 decided to put a book in the hands of every New Zealander, with the tagline “Books Change Lives.” On a shoestring budget, they delivered a NZ$5 book voucher to every family (more than 4 million) and agreed to pay half of the voucher’s redemption value.
A branded website, funded through a grant, was created to encourage community book discussions and entice book activists to put on local events. Book activists bid on a small portion of available funds to help pay for authors’ travel expenses.
Web visitors were asked to vote for their life-changing book. More than 4,000 votes were collected and the results were compiled and showcased on the site. In addition, New Zealanders could connect with Book Month on Facebook.
Major retail chains participated with point-of-sale displays. Major publishers committed to accepting the book vouchers on any book in-store. If this goal were achieved, it would represent a potential industry investment of more than NZ$20 million. More than 80% of booksellers and 90% of publishers agreed to participate.
In addition, sponsors were sought to provide complimentary services for the promotion and in January 2011, a printer agreed to pick up the entire cost of paper and printing for all 4.1 million vouchers. Celebrities made themselves available for interviews.
In the end, nearly 100,000 vouchers were redeemed, including a 2% redemption rate from Christchurch, where mail delivery was sporadic and inconsistent. More than 300 events were registered by 40 book activists, from beach parties to debates, parades and author readings. In March, book sales increased 12% over the same year-ago period.
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