Download IRN-BRU if v FINAL

Marketing Excellence Awards 2009
2. Communications Excellence
B. Advertising Excellence
Title:
“If” only the sun would shine in summer
Authors:
David Amers
(Planning Director)
WORD COUNT: 2,035
-1-
Background
IRN-BRU is made by AG Barr, a Glasgow based soft drinks company. Whilst the Barr’s
brand portfolio is increasing year on year, the company’s jewel in the crown remains
IRN-BRU. It accounts for two thirds of Barr sales and most of this is generated from
sales in Scotland.
For 2008, AG Barr set us and IRN-BRU a major challenge: grow the brand by 4% in a
market in decline.
The summer is the key sales period for soft drinks so a strong performance from IRNBRU in summer in Scotland is a commercial imperative. However, with four out of the
last six summers being a damp squib, IRN-BRU needed the support of strong
marketing and advertising to ensure that it could meet its ambitious sales targets.
(Met Office / Mintel, Premium Soft Drinks, UK, January 2008)
-2-
A big ask
Growing IRN-BRU was going to be extremely difficult for a number of reasons.
Firstly, the traditional carbonated soft drinks market is losing share of throat to other
soft drinks.
100%
90%
80%
Alcohol
14 14 15 14 14 15 15 15 14 15 16 15 15 16 17 17 15 15 15
8 7
6
6
5 5
5
6
5 5
4
5
5 5
5
6
6 6
6
70% 18 18 19 20 20 20 20 19 20 20 19 19 18 17 16 16 16 16 17
Other Bev
Coffee
Tea
50%
43 41
47 45 44
51 50 48
30%
9
7 8
6 7
4
4
4 5
8
8
8 9
8
8
8
8
5
9
8
9 10 11 11 10 11 11 12 10 9
7
2007
6 7
8
3
2000
5
3 3
6
4
1996
2
6 6
1988
6
1984
1975
0%
6
5 5
1 1 2
4 5 5
1980
10%
Mineral Water
1992
20%
1 2
1
7
1 1
7 7
7 7
4 5
4 4 4
2
33 34 32 33
34 33
2005
40%
36
38 36
41 39
2003
%
60%
Squash
Juice/Juice Drinks
Carbonates
(Source: TNS / National Drinks Survey, drink units to end of September 2007)
As the above chart shows, drinkers are moving away from traditional carbonates
towards perceived healthier options such as water and fruit juices or drinks which offer
functional benefits such as sports and energy drinks. IRN-BRU is an ‘Other Flavoured
Carbonate’ (OFC) within the traditional carbonates sector. And it is the OFC category
which is really struggling at the moment. As of summer 2008, the OFC market had
1
shrunk by 7% in volume terms across the UK .
1
Nielsen Scantrack, MAT 14/06/08
-3-
This decline in OFCs is driven by health and behavioural trends, as mums, concerned
about additives, flavourings and sugars, increasingly turn to drink options they
consider to be healthier. In short, it’s harder for the likes of IRN-BRU to sustain their
relevance to modern consumers.
The soft drinks market is also increasingly competitive. In the year to May 2007, there
were 73 launches in the carbonates sector but by May 2008 this figure had almost doubled
to 1292. More choice has created less brand loyalty, as drinkers’ repertoires extend.
The average drinker’s repertoire contained 5.2 brands in 2007 but this figure had
3
increased to 5.4 brands for IRN-BRU drinkers by 2008 .
“IRN-BRU used to be the one that everyone drank at school, but that was 3 - 4 years ago.
Now there are lots to choose from, it probably isn’t as popular as it used to be.”
Respondent, Out of the Box qualitative research, December 2008
IRN-BRU still has to work hard to maintain consumer adoration. As the following chart
shows, its arch rival Coke had significantly more loyalists than IRN-BRU prior to the
2008 summer campaign.
2
Marketing Week / Mintel, 31 July 2008
3
LVQ brand health tracking research, March 2008
-4-
Scotland
Brand Loyalty - Standard Drinks - 2008
Product
Rejectors
Concept
Accepters
4
16
1
11
10
6
2
3
31
10
3
4
18
12
Occasional
31
16
29
Adopters
8
11
Regular
19
19
27
25
10
1
Fanta
13
30
Rejectors
24
23
Available
29
Accepters
25
43
Loyal
11
26
Adorers
10
10
Staunch
Base: All (243)
7
7
Irn-Bru
Coke
5
Dr Pepper
1
Lucozade
6
2
1
Orangina
Adopters
Adorers
Coke has significantly more adorers and regular adopters than Irn-Bru. High
rejection of Dr Pepper.
20
(LVQ brand health tracking research, March 2008)
An ever growing competitive market meant that IRN-BRU was no longer automatically
front of mind in Scotland; spontaneous brand awareness of IRN-BRU had fallen 13%
4
from 79% in 2007 to 66% by March 2008 .
The advertising objectives
The advertising was not expected to work in isolation. It was planned to be a leading
part of a ‘weather proof’ summer marketing campaign which also included a glass
promotion for two litre IRN-BRU bottles.
The client set clear brand advertising objectives:
1. Enhance the brand’s stature and the audience’s affiliation in Scotland
2. Reinforce loyalty and win over lapsed users who have drifted into other drinks
categories
3. Build desire for the product itself (achieving at least 60% agreement with the
statement “I really fancy an IRN-BRU”)
4
LVQ brand health tracking research, March 2008
-5-
The strategy and target audience
Historically, AG Barr's hard working marketing budget has dictated that every IRN-BRU
ad has to be able to work in two distinct regions – Scotland and England.
In 2008, we had the opportunity to change our approach dramatically. Limited
exposure to our previous summer ad (“Goth”) south of the border meant that running
it in England only was an option. This meant that, for the first time in over 15 years,
we had an opportunity to make a TV ad solely aimed at a Scottish audience. In other
words, we could make an overtly Scottish ad and tap into the emotional connection
Scots had with a genuine fabric brand.
To begin with we changed the audience targeting. Previously, IRN-BRU advertising had
sought primarily to win over a largely younger audience, who purchase the brand from
impulse outlets (i.e corner shops and newsagents). However, when we interrogated the
sales data further, we unearthed a surprising fact: it was the 22 to 44 year olds who
deliver the volume sale for IRN-BRU in Scotland.
The importance of winning over this audience became even clearer when we looked at
the latest 'brand health' tracking. The biggest falls in brand adoration from 2007 to
2008 was in the 22 – 34 year old age range, followed by the 35 – 50 year olds.
It became clear that our advertising had to work hard to build an emotional connection
across a very broad age range. Our new advertising had to have adult appeal as well
as appealing to a younger audience.
-6-
The message
Research showed that, in Scotland, IRN-BRU gives people a little lift, either as a drink
or in the likeable and distinctive way it markets itself.
"Refreshed, galvanised, ready to go on"
"Yes, when I'm a wee bit tired, it gives me a lift"
Respondents, Out of the B ox qualitative research, D ecember 2006
The tracking research showed that IRN-BRU scored more highly than Coke when it
came to being ‘a brand that makes you feel good’ and a brand that ‘has really
5
6
enjoyable advertising’ More than any other soft drink, IRN-BRU is felt to be “ours” by
Scots.
We wanted to celebrate the way that IRN-BRU uplifts Scotland and reinforce the feel
good factor in being a Scottish IRN-BRU drinker.
We encapsulated our strategy in the advertising proposition:
“IRN-BRU: Uplifting Scotland”
5
6
The Leith Agency qualitative, Jan 2005
-7-
Managing “Scottishness”
We knew that ‘Uplifting Scotland’ was going to lead to ideas which played the Scottish
card very strongly. This posed another challenge.
Just because an ad for a Scottish audience is very Scottish doesn’t mean that it will
automatically win hearts and minds. Being too stereotypically Scottish (all tartan and
clichés) can backfire. We needed to tap into how Scots feel about themselves, and
IRN-BRU, in a way that prompted identification and approval.
Research showed that our audience felt that IRN-BRU advertising was very Scottish.
And yet, most of the last decades' ads don't feature Scottish accents or settings. The
fact is that the advertising was liked because it seemed Scottish at heart. It appealed
to the way that Scots liked to see themselves – independent, don’t take themselves too
seriously, funny, enjoy a laugh and down-to-earth. These characteristics formed the
basis of the brand personally we wanted our new advertising to convey.
The creative breakthrough
Initially, we were inclined to put the desire for brand ‘stature’ and ‘Scottishness’
together to develop big “we’ll be coming down the road…” production numbers. They
were big on nationalism but lacked the wit and cleverness at the heart of a great IRNBRU ad.
We re-looked at how IRN-BRU is central to life in Scotland. As a genuine fabric brand
it is drunk by many types of people on many different occasions. What we needed was
a device to tie all these people and occasions in a compelling way. We explored the
potential of tapping into Scotland's rich heritage of emotionally rousing verse. This
was the breakthrough we needed. In fact, the verse which seemed most promising
came from south of the border.
-8-
IF you can keep your head when all about you
Are losing theirs and blaming it on you,
If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you,
But make allowance for their doubting too;
If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,
Or being lied about, don't deal in lies,
Or being hated, don't give way to hating,
And yet look too good, nor talk too wise
As an embryonic idea, “if” sounded very interesting. The hard part was to do the idea
justice by selecting the right scenarios and associated words. IRN-BRU ads are always
witty and research had confirmed that getting the nuances right was going to be
crucial to “If's” success.
“IRN-BRU ads make Scottish people proud – especially when the humour has a localised feel”
Out of the B ox research (March 2007)
After many re-writes, and discussions about what it is to be a Scot who loves their IRNBRU, the following re-working of 'If' became the agreed script.
-9-
Screen grabs from TV ad:
- 10 -
TV script
- 11 -
- 12 -
- 13 -
Integrated activity
The campaign launched on 12 May on STV and Channel 4 and a week later, in cinemas
throughout Scotland. A media package was created to maintain brand saliency
amongst a broad audience and reinforce the emotional connection with IRN-BRU’s
heartland. So the media agency (phd north) aimed for populist programmes like the
Saturday Night Project, Ant and Dec’s Saturday Night Takeaway and the Champion’s
League coverage. TV gave us the reach we needed and cinema and online advertising
were chosen to ensure that we reached as many as possible of our core, more affluent
25 – 44 year olds.
The brand advertising was also supported by a 2 litre bottle 'glass' promotion using a
10 second ad which also utilised verse.
- 14 -
Advertising and 'brand health' results
The “if” advertising worked as intended. Independent tracking (by LVQ) showed that
for spontaneous content recall, the two most popular references were ‘makes you
7
proud to be Scottish’ and ‘makes you feel phenomenal’ .
When cross-referenced with verified ad awareness, over 70% of those who had seen the
ad agreed that it ‘made you proud to be Scottish’. The ad was also felt to have a much
broader appeal than previous recent IRN-BRU advertising.
Enjoyment scores for “If” were significantly higher than for the previous summer’s
Goth ad. And in terms of stand out, “If” scored more highly than any IRN-BRU
campaign since the year 2000.
The number of people claiming to be more interested in the brand after having seen
the advertising stood at almost twice the previous highest score, recorded in 2007.
And the number of people who felt they were more likely to drink the product having
seen the advertising exceeded the previous highest score recorded in 2005 for the first
‘phenomenal’ ad, ‘Bobby’.
The ad made IRN-BRU more front of mind; a small but significant shift in spontaneous
brand awareness was recorded in the wake of the campaign (75% to 77%).
When it came to propensity to drink, the tracking research showed that we had
exceeded the 60% target measure of “I really fancy an IRN-BRU”. (We reached 62%).
The research also showed a significant increase in those who had drunk IRN-BRU in
the last 4 weeks from 69% in May to 74% in July. This shift was most pronounced
amongst less frequent soft drink drinkers.
7
LVQ advertising tracking research, July 2008
- 15 -
Importantly, the tracking research shows that there was a significant shift in the
number of “adorers” and “adopters” in the wake of the TV ad.
An impressive achievement.
Sales success
Despite a terrible summer weather-wise, IRN-BRU managed to buck market trends in
terms of sales.
By December 2008, IRN-BRU was one of the only ‘other flavoured carbonates’ not in
decline whereas traditional brands such as Lilt, Sprite, Dr Pepper and for the first time
8
ever, Fanta, were in decline. This when the overall category continued to decline .
In fact, by October 2008, IRN-BRU had already recorded the largest absolute growth of
9
carbonates brands in Scotland .
8
9
Nielsen Scantrack data, December 2008
Nielsen, October 2008
- 16 -
Looking at the three month period from July, August and September 2008, IRN-BRU
recorded a massive 13% increase in sales in Scotland versus a measley 1.1% from
Coca-Cola.
In 2008 as a whole, with a powerful combination of the summer TV ad, “If”, the glass
promotion and the repeat of the well-loved Snowman ad at Christmas, achieved an
10
overall brand value growth of 8% versus a target of 4% in a market in which value
11
was absolutely flat . Moreover, AG Barr achieved their highest ever market share of
12
the carbonates market .
Conclusion
Despite extremely tough market conditions and particularly dismal weather during the
crucial summer sales period, IRN-BRU managed to enhance its fortunes in Scotland
due to its powerful “If” TV advertising.
This ad, a strategic and creative departure from preceding summer campaigns,
captured the public's imagination and strengthened their connection with the brand.
10
AG Barr Internal sales
AC Nielsen Total GB Total Flavoured carbonates MAT to 27/12/08 vs 29/12/07
12
Nielsen Scantrack data, December 2008
11
- 17 -