{"id":706,"date":"2018-01-09T17:07:26","date_gmt":"2018-01-09T15:07:26","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/2017.liberty.ua?p=706"},"modified":"2018-01-09T17:38:51","modified_gmt":"2018-01-09T15:38:51","slug":"maxwell-house","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/liberty.ua\/en\/library\/pr-campaigns\/maxwell-house\/","title":{"rendered":"Maxwell House creates the American dream"},"content":{"rendered":"

Maxwell House Coffee Company<\/strong>
\ntogether with the Ketchum agency
\nSilver Anvil Award for 1999.<\/p>\n

Overview<\/strong>
\nFor coffee lovers, even a single cup of coffee is a true pleasure. For over 100 years, Maxwell House has sought to maintain this \"good to the last drop\" feeling through advertising featuring characters drinking coffee at home with friends and family. Staying true to its tradition of true American coffee, the recent ad campaign positions the company as a natural part of the American landscape, inherent in all of America and evoking a warm sense of home for every American.
\nHowever, in 1996, the company faced great difficulties in positioning its brands when new coffee shops began to appear on almost every corner, and the number of coffee brewing devices and locally produced coffee beverages on the shelves was growing. In order to maintain its position in the market, the company invited Ketchum PR agency to create an integrated marketing programme that would strengthen the company's image to stimulate demand and maintain its market niche.<\/p>\n

Research.<\/strong>
\nThe agency believed that having a partner with similar interests in the market could revive the individuality of the Maxwell House brands, influencing consumer feelings and ultimately increasing sales. The research confirmed this assumption.
\nEvent marketing strategy. In 1997, the Cone\/Roper Report confirmed that event marketing strategy helps to strengthen customer relationships and customer loyalty. In 1996, the Roper Starch Study concluded that two out of three customers pay attention to the place of production when choosing a brand. The following important conclusions were drawn: 1) trust in products is formed under the influence of events in the life of each customer; 2) customers become \"victims\" of an advertising campaign only when the impact is visual and local; 3) integration of marketing efforts only contributes to greater coverage and impact on the audience. Experts have studied the main social and charitable programmes, including the Charge Against Hunger programme, which influence sales and shape the emotional perception of customers.
\nThe individuality of Maxwell House brands. In searching for a suitable partner, we studied archival materials and other research on the individuality factors of the company's brands. The company took into account the traditions of the Nashville brand and the contribution it has made over the hundred years of its existence to shaping the image of America, family and home.
\nAudit of the company's charitable activities. Ketchum's experts studied the activities of 14 US charities and other non-profit organisations and grouped them into the spheres of influence of Maxwell House and the Habitat for Humanity mission. This charity, like Maxwell House, is based in the South and helps families in need to build homes by recruiting local volunteers to take part in construction work. Cooperation with this organisation could make a significant difference to the lives of American families, helping them to realise the American dream of owning a home, which is one of Maxwell House's priorities.<\/p>\n

Planning<\/strong>
\nObjectives.\u00a0<\/strong><\/em>The study of market conditions and research results allowed us to formulate three objectives: 1) to win the trust of customers by creating an image of a company that cares about the needs of American society; 2) to increase the attractiveness of brands in order to increase demand; 3) to maintain the company's existing market share.
\nTarget audiences:<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0coffee consumers aged 25 to 54 with lower income and education levels than the national average.
\nStrategies: 1) to develop a programme to attract consumers and create a sense of belonging to the life of their hometown; 2) to develop a fundamentally new programme to ensure and maintain public awareness of the company's products; 3) to combine the efforts of PR, advertising and marketing services.
\nBudget. When approving Maxwell Home's budget, include in the budget items related to the company's participation in the activities of the organisation \"Abode of Mercy\". The company allocated $2 million to the organisation to build 100 houses. Maxwell House spent several million dollars on a PR campaign, although the exact amount was not disclosed.<\/p>\n

Implementation<\/strong>
\nStrategy 1.<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0Develop programmes to engage consumers and create a sense of belonging in their hometown.
\nThe agency's specialists developed a special targeted programme called Build A Home America (BAHA), aimed at building 100 homes for 100 families in 100 weeks. The programme aimed to influence consumers, retailers and the media, and positioned the company as a corporation capable of changing the lives of American families. The houses were built at a great cost, with the participation of volunteers and the families of the homeowners, who worked hundreds of hours on their construction. The agency made a proposal to recruit volunteers and raise an additional $2 million in matching funds on top of Maxwell House's contribution, bringing the total cost of building the homes to $4 million. Across the country, consumers were encouraged to donate their free time, skills and money to the organisation by calling the toll-free Build an American Home hotline. The strategy included a tour of 37 cities where construction was underway. The tour was aimed at the company's key sales markets and providing the necessary support to the branches of the Mission. In addition, to gain the trust of 8% Spanish-speaking consumers of Maxwell House coffee, the agency trained bilingual specialists, adapted materials and focused on Spanish-language media in the key markets for this coffee.<\/p>\n

Strategy 2.<\/strong><\/em>\u00a0Develop a fundamentally new programme of actions to ensure and maintain public awareness of the company's products.
\nOn 8 July 1997, Maxwell House announced a major initiative with the Mercy House Mission to build 100 homes in 100 weeks.
\nKetchum and Ogilvy & Mother were asked to reach out to key media outlets to ensure maximum coverage and impact on consumers. Well-designed information packs and press releases, guide maps, biographies and photos of the families who were assisted were sent to journalists in the US print and broadcast media.
\nTo maximise media attention, all tour events related to the construction of houses in each of the 37 cities were timed to coincide with certain events in the lives of the citizens. Representatives of local authorities were invited to attend, and the activities of construction organisations, regional trade agencies and TV and radio programmes were coordinated. Most often, the most touching moment was the ceremonial laying of the walls, during which the families of future homeowners were joined by VANA volunteers, staff of the \"Abode of Mercy\" organisation, representatives of regional sales agencies and local administrations.
\nSpecial events were also organised in key markets to attract media attention, such as twelve-hour construction work at night in the south-west of the US during the sweltering summer heat, construction work involving only women, and work involving only Maxwell House employees.
\nMembers of the remaining 97 families flew to Los Angeles from all over the country to take part in the construction of the last three houses of the VANA programme and to celebrate the successful completion of the construction work.<\/p>\n

Strategy 3.<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0Combine the efforts of PR, advertising and marketing services.
\nOver the course of the two-year campaign, Ogilvy & Mother produced four touching television commercials that emotionally impacted the audience and explained the essence of the VANA programme. They covered all phases of the campaign, from recruiting the first volunteers to help the mission to the House of Mercy to the stories of the homeowners' families. The popularity of the VANA programme was also boosted by the launch of two mobile cafes, which travelled across the country, stopping at grocery retailers and offering volunteers at construction sites Maxwell House coffee during their breaks. Handing out free coupons and product samples, the mobile cafes served as information centres for the programme, distributing literature and showing promotional videos.
\nMaxwell House's retailers have helped to grow the popularity of the VANA programme by inviting grocery retailers to participate in construction work and donate food, and by inviting them to support the programme and its hotline through in-store promotions.
\nIn order to maximise the information impact of Maxwell House's contribution to the VANA programme, all available external and internal marketing channels were used: sales agencies, the Internet, retail outlets, print and electronic media advertising, radio advertising, additional product positioning, coupons and booklets, and employee outreach. The VANA programme and its toll-free telephone hotline were also widely advertised through information on Maxwell House coffee packaging.<\/p>\n

Evaluation<\/strong>
\nObjective 1\u00a0<\/em><\/strong>- to win the trust of customers by creating an image of a company focused on working with the public and looking after their interests, was achieved.
\nA year after the launch of the VANA programme, consumers rated Maxwell House's \"active role\" in American life as the second most important distinguishing feature. This was four times higher than its closest competitor, Folgers Corporation (in 1998, Millward Brown conducted a study to assess the effectiveness of the VANA programme). Of the 13 factors assessed in the study, the factor \"a brand that cares about people\" was ranked fourth, three times higher than Folgers.
\nIt is clear that the programme has had a significant emotional impact on consumers and has helped to attract 7,000 volunteers from 37 cities across America to participate in construction work.
\nThe hotline received 40,000 calls. This resulted in donations totalling USD 3.2 million, which was USD 1.2 million more than the target. Mayors of 26 cities declared a \"VANA Day\", which demonstrated the recognition of the programme's charitable activities in the cities. Consumer feedback was also positive. For example, one of them said: \"It's great that such a large corporation as Maxwell House is doing such a good thing! I would like to take part in it too.\" A caf\u00e9 visitor bought 18 cans of Maxwell House coffee and said: \"All my family members drink this brand of coffee, and I'm sure they will want to support this programme.\"<\/p>\n

Objective 2<\/strong><\/em>\u00a0- to increase brand awareness in order to increase demand - was achieved.
\nMore than half of consumers of other coffee brands (58%) said they were more likely to try Maxwell House coffee because of exposure to the VANA programme. This is 24% more than the average exposure to previous advertising materials. The programme's advertising resulted in a direct impact on 90% of the target audience and, as a result, more than 1,600 local events.
\nThe intensive coffee advertising campaign reached 300 million consumers. Around 190 million media mentions of the VANA programme were generated by two spots on the Show of the Day programme, a two-minute segment on CBS's This Morning and a report on the Extra programme. Maxwell House's popularity was also boosted by the fact that TV presenter Oprah Winfrey twice praised the company in her programmes, saying that \"the VANA programme is an example of what large corporations should be doing\". She also awarded the company's president with the Oprah Angel Network Award. Three out of four TV channels in the construction sites provided emotional and effective coverage of the construction work. Local daily newspapers did the same.
\nThe New York Times, USA Today, Family Circle, Woman's Day, Country Living, Essens, and other publications mentioned the VANA programme about 110 million times. The advertising campaign targeted at Spanish-speaking consumers resulted in reports on Telemundo and Univision.<\/p>\n

Objective 3\u00a0<\/em><\/strong>- to maintain Maxwell House's market share was achieved.
\nIn a highly competitive environment, Maxwell House has a practice of financing the joint work of PR, advertising and marketing services. This is done in order to maintain its market share in the face of unfavourable market conditions.
\nAccording to AC Nielsen, which researched the impact of the VANA programme on consumers, sales of Maxwell House coffee increased by an average of 2.4% during the week of construction works under the VANA programme. The mobile cafes were visited by 260 small wholesalers, which also contributed to the increase in demand. Sales agents also reported improved relationships with customers as a result of the VANA programme, which helped to increase sales and create opportunities for joint investment.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u041a\u043e\u043c\u043f\u0430\u043d\u0438\u044f Maxwell House Coffee \u0441\u043e\u0432\u043c\u0435\u0441\u0442\u043d\u043e \u0441 \u0430\u0433\u0435\u043d\u0442\u0441\u0442\u0432\u043e\u043c Ketchum \u041f\u0440\u0435\u043c\u0438\u044f \u00ab\u0421\u0435\u0440\u0435\u0431\u0440\u044f\u043d\u0430\u044f \u043d\u0430\u043a\u043e\u0432\u0430\u043b\u044c\u043d\u044f\u00bb \u0437\u0430 1999 \u0433. \u041e\u0431\u0437\u043e\u0440 \u0414\u043b\u044f \u043b\u044e\u0431\u0438\u0442\u0435\u043b\u0435\u0439 \u043a\u043e\u0444\u0435 \u0434\u0430\u0436\u0435 \u043e\u0434\u043d\u0430…<\/p>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":710,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","_seopress_robots_follow":"","_seopress_robots_imageindex":"","_seopress_robots_snippet":"","_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"","_seopress_robots_breadcrumbs":"","_seopress_robots_freeze_modified_date":"","_seopress_robots_custom_modified_date":"","_seopress_robots_canonical":"","_seopress_social_fb_title":"","_seopress_social_fb_desc":"","_seopress_social_fb_img":"","_seopress_social_fb_img_attachment_id":0,"_seopress_social_fb_img_width":0,"_seopress_social_fb_img_height":0,"_seopress_social_twitter_title":"","_seopress_social_twitter_desc":"","_seopress_social_twitter_img":"","_seopress_social_twitter_img_attachment_id":0,"_seopress_social_twitter_img_width":0,"_seopress_social_twitter_img_height":0,"_seopress_redirections_value":"","_seopress_redirections_enabled":"","_seopress_redirections_enabled_regex":"","_seopress_redirections_logged_status":"","_seopress_redirections_param":"","_seopress_redirections_type":0,"_seopress_analysis_target_kw":"","inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[21],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-706","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-pr-campaigns"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/liberty.ua\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/706","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/liberty.ua\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/liberty.ua\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/liberty.ua\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/liberty.ua\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=706"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/liberty.ua\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/706\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":707,"href":"https:\/\/liberty.ua\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/706\/revisions\/707"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/liberty.ua\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/710"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/liberty.ua\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=706"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/liberty.ua\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=706"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/liberty.ua\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=706"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}