Blog

As far as possible, we try to measure the effectiveness of our client campaigns from a hard commercial perspective, rather than just measuring the column inches.  While media coverage is a useful yardstick when analysed intelligently, ultimately our existence is justified by the value we deliver to clients, not the height of the pile of press clippings.  So, how did we measure up in 2010?

For Courvoisier, our brief is to build awareness and interest (and, ultimately, sales) among 28-35 year old ‘new adult’ males.  Working with the client and its other agencies, we focused on supporting the brand’s new positioning of ‘a revolutionary spirit’, developing appropriate events and media angles.  The result was not only a significant shift in consumer perceptions of the brand (from ‘stuffy’ and ‘outdated’ to ‘cool’, ‘experimental’, ‘brave, ‘surprising’ and ‘edgy’), but also a 24% increase in sales value in a flat market (source: Nielsen, year to January 22, 2011).

Maxxium UK stable mate Maker’s Mark also put in a stellar performance last year, with sales growing at 74% (versus an ambitious target of 50%) and brand awareness increasing by three percentage points to 20%.  It was particularly gratifying to see that our Maker’s + The Machine sampling and consumer engagement programme delivered a return on investment twenty times greater than that of the advertising campaign which ran at the same time.

Eileen Livingston, marketing controller at Maxxium made us blush when she said, “Focus PR are truly refreshing as a PR agency – they really understand the brands and work with passion and infectious energy to deliver great results! Focus PR are committed to doing their very best for your brand and they really just get ‘it’ – they know the pressures on return on investment and the challenge in standing out in a world of communication clutter and they succeed in driving the return on investment, brand standout and talkability amazingly well!”