Case studies at the Center
Continuing series...
Subject:
Case Study: Simply Orange Juice
Build a Web site that is brand-appropriate as well as consumer-appropriate
October 4th, 2000
Premise: Simply Orange Juice, a new product line from Minute Maid, tapped Sharpe Partners to launch a website that would promote and provide information about the brand.
Why this one matters
"It's a great example of how a marketer can build a Web site that is brand-appropriate as well as
consumer-appropriate without having to spend $1 million, or even close to that," says Marlena Schwarz,
director of client strategy at Sharpe Partners. "Forrester Research recently did a study asking
consumers what they look for on packaged goods web sites and then looked at what the sites are actually
providing, and there is a disconnect going on."
Goals
"The brand, Simply Orange Juice, is all about simplicity, purity, freshness and being close to
fresh-squeezed, so we felt that the site, in order to be truly integrated, not only had to have
pictures that are evocative of the television spots but the right tonality," says Schwartz.
"The commercials are very lush and beautiful, and we wanted to not only reflect that visually and in
the very structure and offerings and the content of the site."
The site lacks chat rooms, message boards, nightclub listings and e-commerce offerings found on other consumer packaged goods (CPG) sites. Instead, consumers will find relevant product information, a store locator, a "tell a friend" viral marketing component and a low-key "simply fun" section. Adds Schwarz, "In the Forrester study, lifestyle content was one of the last items on the consumers' want list and one of the top items in what consumer packaged goods sites are actually delivering."
To entice consumers to visit the site, they were offered a chance to "win a trip to an unspoiled destination." This allowed Sharpe to collect demographic information about Simply Orange Juice's online consumers, a much-needed component when sending a new product to the market. Simply Orange Juice had two goals for utilizing the internet, according to Bobby Patton, the company's marketing manager. The first, says Patton, was "to create awareness and excitement about the brand prior to its launch." Simply Orange started shipping the product 1 May but launched the site 15 April. This helped build excitement among the retailers who would be stocking the product.
"The second aspect is that it's an extension of creating this brand promise to our consumers," says Patton, who tapped Sharpe Partners to create a place on the internet where consumers can go to "experience the brand, understand what it stands for and what promise it is making to them."
Sharpe Partners' track record
"We are a small company, but all of us here at Sharpe Partners are from the industry names that you've
heard of," says Schwarz. "We all are a highly experienced team." Schwarz, owner Kathy Sharpe and
others there have been involved with web marketing since 1995, in the days of Netscape 2.0, essentially
in the Jurassic era of e-marketing.
Results
The site was promoted in a televised spot that showed the URL for a few seconds. There were also links
on some sweepstakes sites, but Schwartz notes, "The site was launched in the Northeast US with very
little support." The sweepstakes landed nearly 15,000 entries, and roughly 50% of participants opted
in to receive more information about the product. "We want to make sure that people who are interested
in our products get the information they want, and we want to find out who they are," says Schwarz.
"This has been extremely successful, especially for the first program that this brand has gone out and
done."
The bigger picture
An Information Resources survey from February 2001 helps to further illustrate the disconnect to which
Schwarz referred. CPG sites tend to offer games and lifestyle information, but consumers seek free
samples, coupons and special offers.
If you could do it all over again, would you do it any differently? Schwarz wouldn't change a thing. "I think it went beautifully," she says. We couldn't be happier. We really are pleased with the way it went, the process and the people we worked with. Everything has gone very smoothly." Simply Orange's Patton would have liked a larger budget. "Here's how I would do it differently. I would do the same exact things with Sharpe, including the timing and everything," he says. "If I had some additional funding, I would have utilized more vehicles to create even more pull to the site." Patton would have promoted the brand on other websites to at least raise awareness about the sweepstakes.
What's next
Sharpe Partners is planning more for Simply Orange Juice and focusing on what lies ahead in 2002. For
their client Fujifilm USA, they just added an online gallery where people can share images and
thoughts about 11 September and the aftermath. Simply Orange Juice is learning from the research
conducted on consumer packaged goods. "As we continue to be successful in the Northeast and hopefully
have the opportunity to take the product elsewhere, we'll use the internet as a critical element
within that expansion," says Patton. The company will also continue communications with consumers who
requested updates after entering the sweepstakes.
Article by David Berkowitz
Source: eMarketer.com
(Click here to read the definition of what exactly is an Intranet and how does it differ from an Extranet).
The General Center for Internet Services can carefully design and build a flexible and powerful Web site that will be brand-appropriate as well as consumer-appropriate for any industry. Upon contact, your GCIS technical representative will be more than happy to visit you and propose the best Web solutions for your company or organization.
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