Heineken Hosts Holiday 'Gift xChange'

White Plains, N.Y. — Heineken USA offered a digital twist to the traditional “White Elephant” gift exchange during the holiday season, inviting beer purchasers to play with three of their friends. Based on external studies showing that 90% of shoppers use their smartphones in stores to engage with deals and that 44% of Millennials are willing to promote products over social media in exchange for rewards, Heineken targeted primarily twentysomething males and Walmart shoppers.The “Heineken Holiday Gift xChange” required one person to purchase Heineken to be able to start a game session with the receipt verification. They texted “XCHANGE” for instructions on how to play and invited three friends to log in to HeinekenGiftxChange.com using any device. The first player began play by opening a virtual gift, ranging from Heineken swag and $5 gift cards at popular retail stores and restaurants to digital downloads. Each person in succession then either opened their own gift or “swapped” with another player, the same way “White Elephant” is played offline. One grand-prize winner received a trip for four to Amsterdam and Heineken’s brewery.The Gift xChange “was conceived by Heineken to drive product sales during the important holiday retail season,” says Beth Freeman, commercial marketing manager, Heineken USA. “Digital engagement is becoming increasingly important to the path-to-purchase. … Our opportunity is to leverage Heineken’s digital expertise with our national accounts by creating an activation that engages consumers and drives traffic to stores during the key holiday selling season.”Although it did also activate the Gift xChange program in the grocery channel, Heineken concentrated on its partnership with Walmart, Freeman says. “Their shoppers are expecting more from them than ever before, and we recognized this as an opportunity for us to help them drive loyalty with their shopper,” she says. “Especially during the holidays, shoppers want the confidence that the brands they purchase to serve and share reflect the spirit of the season and shows their friends and family how much they care.”Armed with knowledge that 90% of shoppers use their phones in stores, per research by SessionM, Heineken also knew that 58% of Millennials use their phones to check user reviews, 57% compare prices and 24% seek opinions from their social networks, according to a study by PunchTab.“This presents a huge opportunity for brands to engage with customers who are already constantly on their phones, and brands that are able to offer exclusive mobile offers in retailers like Walmart are seeing huge success in driving sales,” says Camille Kennedy, senior director of marketing at Washington, D.C.-based Snipp Interactive, which handled the receipt scan technology and instant digital rewards for the campaign. “Millennials, especially, use their mobile devices to interact with other consumers, which shapes their brand experiences.”“Shoppers are looking for brands that connect with them through experiences,” adds Jill McCaffrey, account supervisor at IN Marketing Services, Norwalk, Connecticut. The agency handled concept development, digital strategy and creative execution. “These experiences could be driven by a unique experience, flavor or innovation.”A study by Aimia revealed that 44% of Millennials are willing to promote products or brands through social media in exchange for rewards, Kennedy says. “What we are seeing across the market is that consumers want value and instant rewards from promotions, especially delivered over mobile,” she says. “Programs like the Holiday Gift xChange deliver this to consumers in a fun and engaging way.”In-store materials for the campaign included shelf danglers at Walmart and shelf banners in grocery stores; standees that highlighted the Gift xChange and examples of the prizes; tuck cards and cornerboards with similar information designed to capture shoppers’ attention within eight seconds, as well as mail-in rebates and instant redeemable coupons, Freeman says.“It was critical that we didn’t just focus on displays since the modular/shelf is where the majority of category volume comes from,” she says. “We made sure we had a variety of POS elements to ensure success across small- and large-format stores.”Heineken hoped to move 100,000 cases during the holiday period and drive sales lift for 3,000 of Walmart’s top-ranking stores, she says. The campaign lasted from Nov. 30-Dec. 31 and had a larger budget than previous holiday activations due to the greater digital engagement.In addition to IN Marketing and Snipp Interactive, agency and vendor partners included Barrows, New York City, on in-store execution; News America Marketing, Rogers, Arkansas, in-store shelf signage and digital media; Crisp Media, New York City, targeted digital mobile media; and AMP, Boston, pre-shop and real-time targeted digital media.

Heineken Hosts Holiday 'Gift xChange'

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