Blue Bunny Mobile Marketing

Client/BrandWells' Dairy, Inc.'s Blue Bunny Lead AgencyBarkley Evergreen & PartnersOther AgenciesAeorostar (Inflatable)Azure Vehicle Graphics (graphics production)BRG Precision (countdown clock)Joanie Loves Chochkies (prizes)PromoWheels (prize wheel)Rob Ivers, Inc. (graphics application)Time FrameSummer 2005ObjectivesDrive awareness, trial and excitement for the Blue Bunny brand.Create an emotional connection between the Blue Bunny brand and consumers.Establish and differentiate Blue Bunny from other ice cream and yogurt brands.Drive sales performance/merchandising activity within Wal-Mart stores.Target AudienceWal-Mart Supercenter shoppers nationwide, especially women 30 to 49 and households of three or more people.StrategyWe created the Blue Bunny "Free-ze Patrol," a mobile marketing initiative purposefully named to give away free ice cream and exciting prizes all summer long. The branded events were designed to deliver a one-to-one experience between the consumer and the brand. By taking Blue Bunny to consumers, we allowed them to experience it -- to smell it, touch it and, most of all, taste it. The program consisted of two teams. Each toured the U.S. holding events outside of Wal-Mart Supercenters. Blue Bunny "owned" the parking lot for each four-hour event with an engaging display. Initially, consumers were drawn in by the large inflatable Blue Bunny Free-ze Patrol logo and signage. The countdown clock provided a sense of urgency to participate, as the event would only be at that Wal-Mart for a limited amount of time. The inflatable sat on top of an H2 Hummer with a 12-foot freezer trailer, both completely wrapped in Blue Bunny graphics. The graphics were the canvas that brought the program to life and included images of chocolate chunks, strawberries, bananas and cherries. These were designed to illustrate the breadth of products Blue Bunny has to offer. In addition, a prize wheel featured all of the products available to sample, inviting consumers to spin the wheel for a guaranteed prize including Blue Bunny-branded MP3 players, digital cameras, re-usable freezer bags, tattoos, lunch totes, etc. Important FactorsOther factors important to the success of the Free-ze Patrol initiative include the H2 Hummers wrapped in Blue Bunny graphics. Consumers were drawn to these vehicles, increasing the perception of Blue Bunny as a modern, inspirational brand. Once consumers were drawn to the event, the prize wheel added to the experience, guaranteeing that each person would win one of eight free prizes. All the prizes were Blue Bunny-branded for brand recognition and recall, including a reusable freezer bag for storing ice cream while shopping and driving home. The biggest factor that aided in the success of the program was the continuous interaction with Wal-Mart consumers. The Free-ze Patrol teams visited nearly 300 stores while on the road for more than five months. They were able to stay on the road due to state-of-the-art routing software allowing us to efficiently plot and plan each event location. In addition, we utilized a black box mounted in each vehicle to accurately track and manage each team. ResultsBlue Bunny generated more than twice the anticipated trial, creating a significant presence with consumers.Hosted 292 events in 220 cities.Sampled for 1,244 hours. Distributed 233,734 samples.Logged nearly 57,000 miles.Free-ze Patrol events affected individual store sales:Day-of-event average sales swung 43 points when compared with the prior week.There was a halo effect, as average daily sales maintained a 12-point gain for three to four weeks post-event when compared with the week prior to the event. Thus, each event paid for itself in four weeks.Stores that held events had an 11% increase in weekly sales compared with stores in the same market that did not host events.Evaluation based on average sales vs. prior year:The Free-ze Patrol program increased in-store merchandising within Wal-Mart locations.An estimated 1.7 million people were exposed to the Blue Bunny brand via direct interaction, brand exposure, indirect interaction and road impressions.

Blue Bunny Mobile Marketing

P2PI MEMBERS

JOIN P2PI

Related Images

Business Topic

Company

Market Segment