Difficult market conditions brought about by the recession, increasing health concerns among the public and a reliance on promotions to drive sales were putting pressure on the Robinsons Fruit Shoot brand.
To counter perceptions that the drink was unhealthy, and to fuel sales, Britvic Soft Drinks decided to appeal to children and mums by championing 'skills' development.
This was based on the insight that purchasing preferences among mothers were driven by what their children wanted.
Fruit Shoot set out its stall by behaving more like a content creator than an advertiser, developing an interactive experience at fruitshoot.com. A digital learning tool was designed to help kids learn skills, such as playing with a diabolo and doing BMX tricks, via video tutorials.
To grab attention, Britvic seeded these 'wow + how' tutorials on sites popular with children, who then spread them among their audience.
A TV ad featuring the 'Juice Crew' - a group of ordinary children with extra-ordinary skills - also directed youngsters to the site, as well as an advertiser-funded programme developed in partnership with the CiTV channel.
Britvic also launched a nationwide talent search to find the stars of its next commercial. At its peak, the campaign had significant awareness among sevento nine-year-olds and mothers, increasing levels for brand preference.
In 2009, Fruit Shoot bucked the category trend and increased sales.
The judges said: 'A very powerful campaign with a brilliant execution.'
HIGHLY COMMENDED
Anchor Butter (Agency: CHI & Partners)
With category growth stagnating, and sales of Anchor butter declining, owner Arla Foods needed to reignite consumers' love for the brand. It was repositioned as The Original Butter Co, celebrating the brand's heritage and expertise. TV and cinema ads showed 'the Anchor cows' as workers in a dairy, making the butter, while posters that looked like old-style signs on brick walls played on the concept of the heritage.
A Facebook app featured an Anchor cow carrying out each stage of making a cake, before sending the cake to the recipient through the website.
The activity resulted in more than 150,000 views of the ad on YouTube, and attracted more than 20,000 Facebook fans.
Anchor had been seeking just to maintain volume sales, but the campaign helped it post a 9.6% increase.
'Very simple but inspired,' said the judges.
HIGHLY COMMENDED
Mastercrete (Agency: McCann Manchester)
To change perceptions of its Mastercrete cement product and highlight its premium positioning in the market, Lafarge Cement UK conducted extensive research among builders and DIYers.
The findings showed dust and poor packaging were the major issues with cement, and revealed that plastic packaging - something that had never been used with cement before - would encourage people to pay a premium for the product.
The launch campaign, across press, radio, direct and point of sale, focused primarily on the packaging and tapped into the public's obsession with the weather, using the brand concept. 'Whatever bad-weather Britain throws at you, your cement will be safe, if it's Mastercrete.' Later activity focused on the Lafarge name to boost brand awareness.
Since it revamped its packaging, Mastercrete's market share has risen.
Also shortlisted for Brand revitalisation: Capital One, Taking credit in a crisis; The Lake District Cheese Company, Standing out from the herd
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