BILLBOARDS TO BAGS

TitleBILLBOARDS TO BAGS
BrandCADBURY
Product / ServiceCOMMONWEALTH GAMES
CategoryA04. Best Use of Sponsorship
EntrantDDB GROUP NEW ZEALAND Auckland, NEW ZEALAND
Entrant Company:DDB GROUP NEW ZEALAND Auckland, NEW ZEALAND
PR/Advertising Agency:DDB GROUP NEW ZEALAND Auckland, NEW ZEALAND

Credits

Name Company Position
Toby Talbot DDB Group New Zealand/RAPP Tribal Group Executive Creative Director
Steve Kane DDB Group New Zealand/RAPP Tribal Creative Director
James Conner DDB Group New Zealand/RAPP Tribal Art Director
Christie Cooper DDB Group New Zealand/RAPP Tribal Writer
Dan Wright DDB Group New Zealand/RAPP Tribal Digital Creative Director
Jason Vertongen DDB Group New Zealand/RAPP Tribal Lead Digital Designer
Dov Tombs DDB Group New Zealand/RAPP Tribal Senior Digital Producer
Tanya Johnson DDB Group New Zealand/RAPP Tribal Senior Digital Producer
Greg Jones DDB Group New Zealand/RAPP Tribal Group Business Director
Sarah Jones DDB Group New Zealand/RAPP Tribal Account Director
Lucinda Sherborne DDB Group New Zealand/RAPP Tribal Planning Director
Amani Peleti DDB Group New Zealand/Mango Event Director
Karina Nisbet DDB Group New Zealand/Mango Event Co-ordinator
Jen Ferguson DDB Group New Zealand/Mango PR Account Director
Julia George DDB Group New Zealand/Mango PR Senior Account Manager
Georgia Wilkinson DDB Group New Zealand/Mango PR Senior Account Executive

The Campaign

Typically, sports sponsorship focuses on the physical prowess of he individual athletes or teams and little else. We challenged that, When Cadbury asked us how best to leverage their support of the Commonwealth Games, we saw a chance to make a real difference to the lives of our athletes and give New Zealanders something meaningful to get behind to well wish them on.

The Brief

For the first time Cadbury were seen as a big multinational company rather than a New Zealand brand. We knew Cadbury’s sponsorship of NZ’s Commonwealth Games athletes couldn’t reverse the fortunes of the brand. But we knew it would start turning the tide if we created an experience that New Zealanders could get behind, one that showed Cadbury committed to New Zealanders and their community. We did this by creating a campaign that truly involved Kiwis at a local grassroots level. We didn’t just go to the big cities: we went to practically every town, no matter how small.

Results

The campaign generated a direct response from 26,800 New Zealanders, enabling them to make a genuine connection with the athletes. We gained more than $600,000 worth of media coverage, reaching over 2 million people. Almost 50% of what people heard about the campaign came from unpaid media. But, most importantly, those who thought Cadbury supported the local community increased by 60%, making 32% of the population feel more positive about Cadbury.

Execution

We directly involved consumers, by creating an integrated campaign that connected them with the athletes. Firstly, as series of experiential events allowed consumers to write messages of support for the athletes directly onto 27 billboards nationwide. We worked with local press and radio to inform each town when and where they could sign the billboards, then through a targeted media relations programme, generated extensive publicity for the campaign. Those who couldn't make it to the events signed our virtual billboards onlnine, creating a digital message that was displayed in the physical world. The billboards were then literally cut up and turned into bags then sent to the athletes. That way every athlete could carry the hopes of the nation with them in Delhi.

The Situation

In 2009 Cadbury made their chocolate bar smaller, added palm oil and worst of all started manufacturing offshore. All the news and CA programmes vilified Cadbury as a greedy, global giant resulting in Cadbury moving from being New Zealand’s most trusted brand for 6 years in a row to the 36th. We knew Cadbury's sponsorship of the New Zealand’s Commonwealth Games athlete couldn’t reverse the fortunes of a brand. But we knew it would start turning the tide if we created an experience that Kiwis would get behind, one that showed Cadbury was committed to New Zealanders and their community.

The Strategy

We wanted to stop New Zealanders actively rejecting the brand and have Cadbury accepted as a local citizen again by getting them to create and make the experience their own. Rather than creating a traditional advertising campaign that talked ‘at’ consumers, we introduced the brand very subtly at the events, letting it take a back seat to the athletes, and making sure Cadbury never appeared too corporate.