Promotional marketing agency Cat Among The Pigeons has announced the launch of a major on-pack campaign for Aunt Bessie’s, the UK’s No.1 Yorkshire pudding and roast potato brand.

‘Win Gifts’ launches nationally in October for ten weeks and is timed to support families in the build up to Christmas and the huge growth in roast dinner occasions. The on-pack promotion will feature on more than eight million packs of frozen Yorkshire Puddings and Roasties across all major supermarkets and convenience stores.

The ‘Win Gifts’ promotion has a huge prize fund, believed to be Aunt Bessie’s biggest ever. Each promotional pack features the chance to win an all-inclusive holiday with Jet2holidays every week; a Tower air fryer every day or 1 of 20,000 ‘£1 off Aunt Bessie’s’ coupons.

Cat Among The Pigeons negotiated the partnership with Jet2holidays, the UK’s favourite package holiday brand, to add even more value for families. For the price of a bag of Aunt Bessie’s Yorkshire Puddings or Roasties, every entrant can also claim £65 off their next Jet2holidays booking.

In recognition that Aunt Bessie’s Yorkshire Puddings and Roasties can now be air fried quickly the prize fund also features Tower air fryers which use less energy and time to cook a roast dinner than a conventional oven.

Cat Among The Pigeons designed the Yorkshire Pudding and Roast Potatoes promotional packs to have huge impact and stand out within the category, where display can often be hidden behind freezer doors. The promotion will also be supported by a six figure investment in shopper marketing, freezer category point of sale and social media to build further awareness and excitement.

Cat Among The Pigeons created the new microsite (AuntBessiesGifts.co.uk) to allow easy entry to the promotion. Simply scan the QR code on pack and shoppers will be directed to the site which validates purchase, showcases prizes and provides full terms and conditions.

Charlotte Vause, assistant brand manager at Aunt Bessie’s, said: “the last 12 months have been challenging for many families with growing energy costs and the cost of living crisis. We wanted to bring some excitement back to the category in the run up to Christmas and reward shoppers with added value for choosing Aunt Bessie’s for their next roast.”

Paul McGann, founder of Cat Among The Pigeons added “shoppers are increasingly looking around for better value and this new on pack range promotion certainly delivers. We know families still want to enjoy a holiday in 2024 and so these amazing prizes with Jet2holidays should really appeal. With lots of chances to win and a guaranteed reward for all entrants, we hope ‘Win Gifts’ makes shopping frozen a bit more fun this Autumn.”

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London, 12^th January 2022: Impero today announces the launch of its Veganuary campaign for Future Farm, the plant-based protein producer. Titled “Choose the Tastier Future”, the creative is picking a fight with all things ‘tasteless’ by showing the UK that the future isn’t all doom and gloom, but is in fact amazing, delicious and tasty.

The creative campaign aims to command national attention at a key calendar moment for the category. It sets out to empower meat reducers, flexitarians, vegans and anyone toying with the idea of giving Veganuary a go and get them to “Choose the Tastier Future”.

Using hilarious characters to callout tasteless issues within our everyday lives, the creative takes aim at, all talk no action climate change politics, animal cruelty, over-processed food, righteous food fads, and boring diet options. All whilst offering a simple solution; take the future into your hands (quite literally) and choose the tastier future – by eating Future Farm’s delicious plant-based range of products. The work will be run across OOH, TFL, social, digital and print ads in national and free-sheet publications.

Pedro Zuim, Marketing Director, Future Farm said: “After the success of our launch campaign in the summer, we wanted to continue this creative approach which demands the attention of our target consumers.

Our intent is to stand out within an undoubtedly busy Veganuary with award-winning creative that brings Future Farm to life, showcasing our full range, and the team at Impero are never short of ideas that cut through the noise and resonate with consumers, which is a necessity during the busiest time of year for the category.

Our goal is to capture the imagination of meat reducers, and anyone just toying with the idea of giving it a go for Veganuary.”

Michael Scantlebury, Impero’s Founder and CEO adds: “Young people in the UK would be forgiven for thinking that the future looks pretty bleak right now.  And they’re, quite rightly, pissed off. All they see is empty words, and little action of our politicians and big business.  This campaign tackles that head on and puts young consumers in the driving seat of the change they want to see by asking why trust the failed status quo, when we can all choose a tastier future.”

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How Systems Thinking can help brands more meaningfully connect on social media

It’s ironic that, despite our name, social media specialists have long worked in isolation.

For too many years, social media departments have been relegated to weaving the mysterious dark arts of social in shady corners, while the ‘real’ marketers get a seat at the brand table. Sure, we might get a sneak peek of a marketing plan or be on the receiving end of new brand assets that refuse to squeeze into a thumbnail but, for the most part, we’ve operated in a social vacuum that stands apart from the wider brand ecosystem.

This approach flies in the face of Systems Thinking. Rather than look at a brand world as an interconnected whole, the reductionist view of many social media practitioners focuses on social media in silo, reducing it to its most basic parts – likes, impressions, posts, and channels. This approach may have worked for a while but given social’s increasingly important role in brand discovery and consideration, it’s time for the boundaries between ‘brand’ and ‘social’ to be removed. Instead, we need to explore how social media can become an extension of the wider brand world.

To find out more download 1HQ’s Cue magazine, All Systems Go, here.

Credit: Tom Wrigley, Digital & Social Communications, Strategy Director, 1HQ UK

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Birds Eye Green Cuisine is revealing a new integrated campaign to support its role as the official plant-based sponsor of Team GB for the upcoming Tokyo Olympic Games. The push was developed in partnership with creative agency ELVIS.

To promote its first sponsorship of this size, Birds Eye selected its digital and social agency of record ELVIS as the lead creative agency for the partnership. Green Cuisine has worked with the agency to develop a sponsorship platform in order to boost brand awareness and drive sales amongst flexitarian families, with a focus on its taste credentials.

“Powered by Plants – proud to power Team GB” aims to bring Green Cuisine’s “Plant Power” proposition to life by combining imagery of Team GB athletes with exaggerated Manga-inspired illustrations to highlight their movement, in a nod to the Tokyo location of this year’s Olympic Games.

Running across OOH and social channels including Facebook, Instagram and TikTok, the push features impactful action shots of Team GB’s athletes, including Max Whitlock, Cheavon Clarke and Laviai Nielsen, with Manga-style illustrations amplifying their ‘plant power’. Using a bold art directional style, the campaign showcases the athletes propelled from a Manga-style plant-powered world into their kitchens, where they cook and enjoy Green Cuisine meals.

This activity is supported by a series of online recipes inspired by Tokyo 2020, featuring Japanese meals made with Green Cuisine, along with shopper marketing, PR, and an always-on reactive social strategy. ELVIS also developed the storyboard and voiceover for an updated version of an existing Green Cuisine TV spot as part of the campaign, with editing and playout managed by Hogarth.

Media planning and buying for the campaign is by Zenith, talent management is by Publicis Sport, PR is by Cirkle and shopper activity is by Juice.

Sarah Koppens, Marketing Director, Birds Eye, said: “We are hugely proud that Green Cuisine is the plant-based sponsor at this year’s Olympic Games. Partnering with ELVIS, we have created a dynamic, exciting campaign to celebrate the sponsorship and demonstrate that our products are packed full of powerful nutritional good stuff, giving athletes, and normal people like you and me, plant power. If it’s good enough for Team GB, it’s good enough for families across the nation!”

Rob Griffiths, Creative Director, ELVIS, added: “With so much noise around the Olympic Games, we wanted to create something out-of-the-ordinary to support Green Cuisine’s sponsorship of Team GB. Taking Tokyo as our inspiration, we’ve developed a brave and bold creative platform which positions the brand as a challenger, creating real stand-out for our audience of flexitarians.”

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The key finding of an Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) report, published yesterday (Thursday 5th September), reveals that people struggle to identify when social media posts by influencers are ads and confirms that the ASA’s current approach of requiring influencers to use a prominent reference, such as #ad, is necessary as a minimum.

The ASA’s findings dispel any argument that labels aren’t needed and re-emphasise the importance of influencers being upfront and clear with their followers about when they are advertising.

Over the last 18 months the ASA has conducted a comprehensive review, including research with the public and a broad look at existing academic literature, into how and what kinds of labels and other factors help people understand when social media posts by influencers are advertising. The ASA undertook the project to gauge whether its regulation is in the right place and as part of its ongoing work to provide guidance and clarity to influencers, brands and agencies on how to stick to the ad rules so that consumers aren’t misled.

Where an influencer is posting about a brand because they’ve been paid to do so (either in money or ‘in kind’ e.g. with free goods), the post must be obviously identifiable as an ad.  Both the ASA and the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) recommend upfront disclosures, such as #ad.  Labelling a post clearly as an ad allows people to know when they’re being sold to, enabling them to make an informed judgment about the commercial intent behind it.

A finding consistent across the ASA’s research was that for an influencer post to be obviously identifiable, a label must first be noticed and then understood. Crucially, a visible and well understood disclosure, such as #ad, increased the likelihood of participants in the ASA’s research identifying influencer adverts as ‘definitely an ad’.

While the research also indicated that other presentational factors may be important to ensure influencer ad posts are obviously identifiable as ads, the ASA’s focus will be on ensuring influencers and brands are being upfront and clear with #ad. The ASA, alongside the CMA, is active in ensuring transparency in this area. Influencers and brands who don’t disclose ads are not only treating their followers unfairly, they erode trust in the wider and legitimate influencer community and run the risk of potential investigation and enforcement action.

The ASA will now consider carefully the outcomes of this work. It will follow-up on the themes and issues brought to light by its research and target those parties involved in influencer advertising to make sure they’re following the rules. This includes hosting an influencer training event on 1 October with the CMA at which they will further explain when a post counts as an ad and how and when they should be labelled. The ASA will also share the findings of this new, original research with other regulators, both domestically and internationally, to facilitate ongoing discussions about how best to make sure ads are obviously identifiable as ads.

Guy Parker, Chief Executive at The ASA, says: “The research tells us that all of us can find it hard to identify when an influencer is advertising, so it’s crucial that ads are labelled clearly. Our message to influencers and brands couldn’t be clearer: be upfront with followers, for example by using #ad.”

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PSPA, the national Progressive Supranuclear Palsy (PSP) and Corticobasal Degeneration (CBD) charity, this week launched its #UNMUTE social media campaign, created by strategic brand consultancy Brandpie. The campaign is going live to tie in with the start of PSP & CBD Awareness Week.

The objective was to create a social media campaign that engages and retains core supporters earlier with a more active brand idea and a clear call-to-action. Working closely with the team at PSPA, Brandpie developed the idea for #UNMUTE. The social campaign encourages and enables supporters to upload videos of themselves shouting, releasing their frustrations, and standing up to PSP and CBD by being as loud as they can, then nominating someone else to do the same using the hashtag: #UNMUTE. Participation doesn’t just stop with those recording videos – by exploiting the mechanics of social media platforms, the campaign requires viewers to actively engage by unmuting the videos to hear the voices of those affected.

Brandpie conducted significant research amongst those with the condition, their families and support networks to inform the campaign idea, discovering that they felt silenced and ignored. #UNMUTE is all about speaking up, making some noise about these silent diseases and giving a voice to all those affected.

The goal of #UNMUTE is to raise awareness of PSP and CBD, and to encourage those affected by PSP/CBD to feel more motivated and inspired to join and support PSPA’s cause, while also creating a wealth of user generated content to inspire a movement.

The campaign will spread awareness about PSP / CBD to friends, and health or social care professionals across Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Brandpie developed all video collateral to launch the campaign, including a launch video that will be aired via the charity’s page, introducing the #UNMUTE campaign and pre-made videos to demonstrate how the charity envisions people getting involved.

Dustin Lawrence, Brand Strategist at Brandpie, said: “Working with PSPA was equally inspiring as it was heart wrenching – seeing the hope that people possess in the face of such a tragic and terminal condition, we worked with the charity to define the core brand idea – transforming PSPA into Champions of Hope. We want those seeing the #UNMUTE campaign to hear those affected by PSP and CBD, those participating to be loud for who can’t be heard, and for all those affected by the condition to know that PSPA is giving hope a voice.”

Andrew Symons, Chief Executive of PSPA, said: “PSP & CBD robs affected people of their voice. Through this campaign, we want to give those voices back. We need to focus more attention on these ignored, but devastating, conditions. Due to the lack of awareness and information surrounding them, people are deprived of a timely diagnosis and then, once diagnosed, have to contend with the fact that most professionals involved in their care have no knowledge about their condition. This needs to change and why we need to be loud about PSP & CBD.”

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‘God’s Plan’ lyrics become a reality as The O2 changes signage to honour the Canadian rapper.

The O2 has become The O3 for Drake, who is performing seven shows at the venue from 1st April.

O2 altered the signage at their London venue, and Drake fans arriving at his shows will notice that The O2 has become The O3 – but for just 11 days – 1st April to 11th April, for Drake’s 2019 residency at the venue.

O2 decided to change the arena’s name in honour of the Canadian rapper’s single ‘God’s Plan’, which spent nine weeks at number one last year where Drake raps: “And you know me/Turn The O2 into The O3.”

Drake this year joins a very select group of artists (including Take That and Prince) to have performed at the venue 21 times. To celebrate, O2 is also running a prize draw for Drake fans who couldn’t get hold of tickets. All they need to do is snap a photo outside The O2 using #DrakeTheO3, letting O2 know why they want to be there, and they could win a pair of tickets to see the man himself perform live.

An O2 spokesperson said: “Live music is an unforgettable experience. And when you’re seeing an artist as big as Drake at the world’s number one venue that experience goes up another level. So we thought we’d do something special for Drake and his fans. The O2 has become The O3 for his April residency, making ‘God’s Plan’ a reality.”

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Fuller, Smith & Turner (FST), the iconic West London brewer of such beers as London Pride, Frontier and ESB, has been brewing besides the Thames since 1845. With no annual celebration, FST worked with ignis to create an annual event to recognise the day that John Bird Fuller, Henry Smith & John came together as business partners to create FST.

173 years later, FST will launch ‘Get Together’ on 19^th November, a day that reinforces the brewer’s heritage and craft. FST is asking its audience to ‘Get Together’ at their local pub to celebrate the day with three pints of any Fuller’s beer, ale or cider for £1.73 each. More than 200 pubs across the South West of the UK will be participating with events on the day. The campaign, supported with social media content delivers a voucher that consumers can download and use in FST pubs. With over 20 brands on offer, the choice will be hard!

To support the day and recognise the incredible efforts of FST employees to deliver the beers and hospitality they are famed for, ignis created a week-long celebration for the employees leading up to the 19th. In the week prior to the day, content and competitions will be delivered daily to FST’s employees intranet site, rewarding them for participating with instant win prizes.

Nick Corden, Head of Retail Marketing at Fuller’s said, ‘Fuller’s pubs have always been at the heart of the community they are in. Our range of beers are award winning and world renowned so what better way to celebrate the anniversary by asking our customers to ‘Get Together’ at their favourite pub with their favourite Fuller’s beer ale or cider and celebrate 173 years with pints at £1.73.’

Nick Peters, Executive Creative Director at ignis said, “Fuller’s has been part of the fabric of London for 173 years. With an extraordinary craft heritage, it has brewed some of the UK’s most iconic beers. We wanted to create an anniversary event that celebrates what has been at the heart of Fuller’s beers, pubs and inns for generations: Bringing people together. The Fuller’s Get Together is that day. An annual opportunity for consumers and employees alike to discover the brewer’s craft and enjoy its wonderful portfolio in a range of their pubs and inns around the SW.”

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With an estimated 22m ‘flexitarians’ in the UK seeking to reduce their meat consumption, there is an increased appetite for healthy, protein-rich alternatives. After years of research, the team behind Meatless Farm have created a range of products that not only deliver on nutrition, they also taste delicious. In advance of the brand’s launch, Media Bounty were brought on board to conduct a social listening and strategy piece to understand the cultural landscape, competitor market and shopper behaviour of the target audience.

From fully-fledged vegans to those taking those first tentative steps towards meat reduction, the research exposed a number of uniting factors – everyone is looking for food that tastes great and offers enough versatility to be incorporated into their day-to-day lives. With this in mind, Media Bounty developed a full digital strategy to deliver the ‘Meat Free, Not Taste Free’ message in support of the launch of Meatless Farms mince and burgers into Sainsbury’s.

Ahead of retail launch, Media Bounty have planned and produced content to be used across Meatless Farm’s owned social media channels, programmatic display ads and partnership content. The initial media phase will focus on A/B testing, trialling creatives and messaging against our key audience break-downs, carrying these learnings into 2019 Q1 activation.

Morten Toft Bech, Founder of Meatless Farm, said: “This is a new and truly innovative category to be operating in. While our products are all lovingly made with plants, what really makes Meatless Farm different is the taste – a point that the team at Media Bounty were quick to pick up on. We’ve developed a really effective partnership based on listening to our audience and delivering on their needs – we can’t wait to see what the future holds for the brand beyond this exciting launch into Sainsbury’s.”

Media Bounty’s Account Director, Charlie Bennett, said: “There are so many benefits to long-term meat reduction and this is a cause close to the hearts of many in our business. Meatless Farm operates in such a refreshingly reactive and honest way, genuinely putting their all into developing products that deliver on taste and ethics. We couldn’t be more excited to be working as their launch partner and look forward to a long and fruitful relationship with the brand.”

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Chris Baldwin, Director of Consumer Promotions and Loyalty at Sodexo Engage, details the keys to success when running consumer promotions.

There are hundreds of thousands of brands out there, all fighting for the attention of the same key audience: loyal and dedicated consumers. It’s a tall order to be at the forefront of these customers’ minds 24/7, but many brands have learned that creative, well-timed consumer promotions can certainly help.

There’s one important caveat to remember though: a brand can only run a successful promotion if it has a solid, consistent identity. And it’s easy to see why. It’s much easier to develop a sense of loyalty among consumers if a company has a well-established image and ethos. Just think about the reverse for a second: a brand that’s constantly changing its look and feel will clearly struggle to retain the same audience time and time again.

Know your audience

Building a strong brand is only half the battle when it comes to successful promotions though – companies also need to keep up with their customers’ fast-changing preferences and demands. Today’s consumers are far less predictable than they used to be and now expect much more from the brands they interact with. This combination means that businesses have to work harder than ever before to create promotions that resonate with their target audience.

On top of this, the astronomical rise in social media adds yet another element to the mix. Over the last five years alone, the number of Facebook users worldwide has jumped by a huge 1.14 billion. With this rapid growth comes huge opportunities for brands to develop new kinds of promotions. For example, it’s now easier than ever for customers to enter competitions via social media. This shift not only gives the customer a chance to win a prize that they value, but also encourages them to share the company’s social media content far and wide; a win-win for both sides.

Brands should be careful of going exclusively digital though. There’s still a lot to be said for simple on-pack and money off promotions. It goes back to knowing who the company is trying to target. Older generations are often more likely to go for promotions that offer them a high value reward, but far less chance of winning. By contrast, smartphones have conditioned younger generations to expect immediate gratification, so they’re more likely to go for an easy entry, instant win option.

Know your promotion

Even with all of this knowledge to hand, implementing a successful promotion can still be a tough nut to crack. Consumer behaviour will continue to change and evolve at a rapid pace, so it’s essential to stay on the front foot. By constantly gathering and updating information about their customers, brands can make sure they have the information they need to offer engaging experiences that keep customers coming back for more.

 For their part, brands need to be very clear on the purpose of the promotion itself. Is it to increase customer loyalty, change buying habits or to boost sales? The answer to this question will have a major impact on how the promotion is run. For example, encouraging customers to share their own content via social media may help to boost a brand’s followers, but offering a discount for this activity could influence buying behaviour more directly.

Whatever promotions retailers choose, in today’s market there’s no room for bland and boring. Consumers can be a fickle bunch and lose interest in the blink of an eye. The good news is that brands can keep them engaged by making the whole process quick and easy and by making the vast majority of promotions ‘win-able’ in order to draw the highest amount of attention.

Know the latest trends

The more a brand knows about its target customer, the more it’ll be able to create a promotion that hits all the right notes. Engaged and happy customers click more, buy more and shout louder about a good deal. These are the people who will really sell the promotion and boost the brand – often without even realising it.

In an increasingly digital world, this means exploiting social media and the smartphones that are seemingly glued to every customer’s hands. When people have come to expect instant replies and answers, immediate gratification is an attractive prospect when it comes to promotions too. If a brand knows its customer inside out and makes promotions relevant, engaging and easy to enter, they can’t go too far wrong.

Founded in 1966 by Pierre Bellon, Sodexo is the global leader in services that improve Quality of Life, an essential factor in individual and organisational performance. Operating in 80 countries, we serve 75 million consumers each day through our unique combination of On-site Services, Benefits and Rewards Services and Personal and Home Services.

Part of the Benefits and Rewards division, here in the UK Sodexo Engage specialises in employee and consumer engagement, with over 50 years’ heritage in creating award-winning experiences. From growing employee culture and inspiring success in workplaces, to driving consumer engagement with brands, Sodexo gives businesses the tools to create lasting change through transforming behaviours, engagement and performance in people. They believe in bringing people and business together through creativity and excellent service, with their long-standing mission of improving the quality of life of everyone they work with.

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