#SPCSUNDAY

Title#SPCSUNDAY
BrandSPC ARDMONA
Product / ServiceFMCG FOOD (TINNED FRUIT, BAKED BEANS AND SPAGHETTI)
CategoryA04. Crisis Communications & Issue Management
EntrantLEO BURNETT MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA
Entrant Company LEO BURNETT MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA
Advertising Agency LEO BURNETT MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA
Advertising Agency 2 OPEN HAUS Paddington, AUSTRALIA

Credits

Name Company Position
Linda Drummond Linda Drummond Media Creative
Jason Williams Leo Burnett Melbourne Executive Creative Director
Andrew Woodhead Leo Burnett Melbourne Creative Director
Chris Steele Leo Burnett Melbourne Community Manager
Tim Shelley Leo Burnett Melbourne Digital Art Director
Callum Fitzhardinge Leo Burnett Melbourne Senior Copywriter
Matt Peters Leo Burnett Melbourne Digital Designer
Nicole Ross Leo Burnett Melbourne Executive Digital Producer
Ari Sztal Leo Burnett Melbourne Group Account Director
Kenneth Chow Leo Burnett Melbourne Account Manager
Jon Manning Open Haus General Manager
Nicole Schulz Open Haus Senior Account Director
Seon Peberdy Open Haus Senior Account Executive
Peter Kelly SPC Ardmona Managing Director
Bronwyn Powell SPC Ardmona Marketing And Innovation Director – Australia/International
Mark Connolly SPC Ardmona Head Of Brand Marketing
Mike Murray SPC Ardmona Senior Brand Manager

The Campaign

SPC is Australia’s largest fruit processing company. Almost 100 years old, we all grew up eating it. But cheap imports were flooding the market and Australia’s beloved brand was under threat. Thousands of jobs were on the line and even the Prime Minister refused to help. We were monitoring the situation closely, waiting for an opportunity to act. Among all the debate, one everyday Australian got our attention. On Thursday 6th February Linda Drummond tweeted about #SPCSunday, encouraging her friends to eat SPC on Sunday in support. We knew this could be easily embraced by the nation, but we only had a few days. So we immediately formed a partnership to help turn her hashtag into a corporate Australian success story. We connected Linda with the media, establishing her as the face of the campaign, and began amplifying the conversation. Our social media response team reached out to key influencers and retail partners, and as the campaign gained traction in mainstream and social media we responded with hundreds of real-time interactions that touched a patriotic nerve. In three days we’d reached the majority of the nation. Families all over Australia sat around their tables on #SPCSunday, rekindling their love for an iconic brand. SPC fruit sales went up 60%. Twitter impressions totalled 14.9 million. Best of all, SPC was granted a $100 million rescue package, plus a 5 year deal with the biggest supermarket chain in the country, saving 3000 jobs and the future of an iconic Aussie brand.

The Brief

SPC has been a part of Australian life for a long time. Everybody in Australia grew up with SPC in their pantries, lunchboxes and camping trips. It’s a much-loved Australian brand, up there with the likes of Qantas and Vegemite. In order to help SPC back on its feet we had to rekindle the country’s love for this proudly Australian company. Our goal was to ignite passion and pride in Australian-made produce. We had to convince people to stop shopping with their wallets and start shopping with their hearts.

Results

Australians refused to let the last fruit processing company in the country go under. Thanks to the #SPCSunday campaign an iconic brand was saved, along with the fates of 3000 workers in the Goulburn Valley region. All within a week. It has gone down as a remarkable corporate Australian success story. • 14.9 million Twitter impressions in 4 days. • $5 million earned media with only $2500 paid media. • 82% of all #SPCSunday tweets were retweeted. • SPC fruit sales up 60%. • New deal with Australia’s largest supermarket chain, worth $70 million over 5 years. • $22 million Government funding. • 3000 jobs secured. • And #SPCSunday lives on. Every Sunday since, Australians continue to show their support.

Execution

We immediately recognised the potential for the campaign and employed speed, key influencer outreach and volume of communications as our prime tactics to drive it forward. Within minutes of Linda’s tweet our social media response team began executing our plan by activating the #SPCSunday hashtag with an emotive brand message. Then we started reaching out to key stakeholders through a barrage of public tweets, direct messages, Facebook posts and Linkedin. As we brought the campaign to the attention of more influencers, big businesses and celebrities with big Twitter followings, we ignited more fervour through strategic and paid Facebook advertising, media kits to key social stakeholders and delivered #SPCSunday to the media as a hot topic to exploit. The execution phase continued almost non-stop for 96 hours. We knew to help rescue this 100 year old company, there could be no lull in comms over the campaign period.

The Situation

SPC is a proud 100 year old Australian company. The largest fruit processer in the country, they are a vital part of the economy, employing over 3000 people in one Victorian region. With cheap imports flooding the market this iconic brand was under serious threat. After the recent closure of local operations by Holden and Ford, this spelled disaster for the future of Australian industry. SPC was in desperate need of support, yet nobody was willing to help. The Prime Minister of Australia flatly refused to provide SPC a lifeline, leaving the company languishing.

The Strategy

At the time, this was a sensitive topic for SPC. So we were monitoring political debate closely, waiting for an opportunity to act. Upon seeing Linda’s tweet, we quickly recognized her idea could be easily embraced by every Australian. But we only had a few days to galvanise the nation. So we immediately formed a partnership with Linda to turn her hashtag into a corporate Australian success story. We knew a campaign like this would be far more effective with a human face at the forefront, so we connected Linda with PR to get her in front of Australia’s major news media, establishing her as a spokesperson for SPC. She represented a nation’s love for the brand – and we needed to amplify it. We worked tirelessly alongside Linda, monitoring the debate and steering the conversation so that a big brand movement still felt like a spontaneous grassroots movement.