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April 19, 2004 - Strategy Media Archive
Best Media Plan

Best plan overall: Winner/Best plan for a budget of less than $1 million: Winner
Planners turn meteorologists for Campbell

Agency/media operation

OMD Toronto

Client

Campbell Company of Canada

Brand

Campbell's Soup

Budget

Less than $500,000

Media used

Television

Newspaper

Radio

Internet

Out-of-home

Timing

January to March 2003

Media team

Debbie Salmon, group director of strategy, OMD

Crystal Oxley, strategy supervisor, OMD

Alexandra De La Cadena, strategist, OMD

The background

Toronto had extremely cold weather in the winter of 2003, to the point that it became an editorial preoccupation in the media - as well as a popular conversation piece.

It has always been known that soup has a distinct advantage during the cold Canadian winter. It has a warming effect, and it's comfort food. Consumers also tend to "pantry load" soup, so as a result there is always a can in the cupboard.

But soup is a relatively flat category, so the desired result was to grow its share of hot meal occasion by increasing use.

Based on consumer insights, the best way to increase use was to capitalize on the news value attached to cold temperatures, bolster the association between soup and the cold weather and ultimately encourage consumers to take that can out of the cupboard.

A key challenge was working with a limited budget and providing Campbell's Soup with media exposure throughout an extended winter season.

The plan

This plan was not based on traditional reach and frequency objectives. Falling temperatures triggered all campaign activity. Whenever the temperature dipped below -5°C, guerrilla tactics were deployed, providing brand and product ubiquity. This "pulsed" activity strategy provided great message continuity. Although Campbell was not out there on a daily basis, the soup would have unfettered exposure whenever the temperature reached extreme cold.

Furthermore, media vehicles were selected based on their ability to provide maximum flexibility within a credible weather-related environment, further enhancing the creative message. Any media that could satisfy these qualifiers were placed on the consideration list.

Multiple media was planned to surround the consumer on what was termed "weather-triggered" days. Media planners became meteorologists as they estimated how many days of -5°C or less would occur using historical forecast data. In addition, all media was secured with only 24 hours' advance booking time, ensuring the highest level of weather forecast accuracy. The traffic department at The Weather Network would announce a "weather trigger" 24 hours in advance. All partners, including both media suppliers and agency, would be copied on this information in order to ensure a mutual call to action.

TV

The Weather Network was a key partner in this program as it provided a highly credible weather source, access to its meteorologists and a desirable environment for the cold weather message.

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