These days, with personalised packaging having demonstrated its effectiveness time and time again, the real question is how do you start a personalised promotion, not can you start a personalised promotion.
Ogilvy & Mather and HP started something big with Share a Coke. The campaign that printed the most popular names on bottles and cans of Coke in 2011 was an immediate success, lifting sales for the first time in a decade, according to the Wall Street Journal. Personalised packaging became a hit. More than 250 million personalised Coke bottles were sold in Australia alone.
Other brands copied the idea, and personalisation won them new fans and allowed them to sell products at premium prices. It also helped cement the bond between brands and consumers, creating loyalty in a world that’s brimming with choices.
But despite the fact that it has been successful for Nutella, Oreos, Budweiser, Smirnoff, Heinz and many others, there’s still a myth that it’s too difficult, too risky or too expensive.
In fact, each new campaign has added to the technological expertise that has minimised difficulties, risk and expense. What’s possible keeps bursting its banks. Last month Ogilvy & Mather and HP created 7 million different Nutella jars from 1 algorithm in Italy. Each jar was stamped with its own unique code so it can be authenticated by collectors. The jars sold out within one month.
So the more important question becomes how do you start a personalised promotion, not can you start a personalised promotion.
PKN asked Jason Beckley, Business Development Manager at HP South Pacific, for some pointers:
The first thing to know is exactly what you’re aiming for, he says, whether it's promotion participation, product awareness, consumer insight, or trial of a new product. Or is it simply to boost sales? And how will you measure success?
Next up, your project team needs to know who you are talking to. What resonates with them? Are they local or global? Which products would turn them on?
What do you want from them – new customers, rewarding regular customers, getting a new product extension trialled or injecting new life into an older product?
How are you going to fund the project? You’ll need a budget. People will pay a higher price for personalised items. Do you want to offset your costs this way?
Now you can get down to the creative part. Choose how you’ll personalise your packaging. Remember it has to fit with your brand and appeal to your audience. Is it part of an advertising campaign? Then it should be relevant to the campaign message.
Choose your product. Will you use one of your products or something your customers want? Yes, put yourself in the shoes of your target audience but also consider brand relevance, costs, stock availability and opportunity to personalise, plus manufacturing and supply calendars.
How will you present your personalised product? If you're not simply putting it on the shelf, make sure the mechanics are easy to understand and carry out. Have you factored in delivery costs?
And how are you going to get the word out? Advertising, in-store campaign, retailer marketing, PR, social media?
Then there’s making your promotion happen. Never forget that people – and that runs from product suppliers to promotion creators – are more enthusiastic about an idea if they feel that they're part of it. Take the people you depend on with you from the start. Also ask, “What could go wrong?” and know what’s legal.
Lastly, plan for success. Try not to run out of stock.
