Last year, Fort James Corporation introduced Dixie Rinse & ReUse Disposable Stoneware, a revolutionary new disposable plate and asked BSMG Worldwide to help build awareness of the new plates and encourage trial and purchase.  To do so we had to overcome several challenges.  First of all, we needed to clearly define the benefits of a disposable plate that is strong enough to stand up to the microwave and dishwasher, yet affordable enough to throw out after use.  Second, we needed to find a way to obtain national media attention for the new plates.  Our creative solution was to conduct a town trial and survey of the product in Liberty, NY and follow up with an aggressive media relations campaign.  We exceeded our media goals and had people across the country talking about Dixie Rinse & ReUse.

CHALLENGES/OPPORTUNITIES

Generate nationwide media coverage for Rinse & ReUse via a local event in Liberty, New York.  However, Dixie Rinse & ReUse was a revolutionary new product like no other disposable plate on market.   

RESEARCH

To grab the media’s attention for the consumer launch, we needed to find a town that would rally around a six-week town trial.  We identified Liberty, NY, which is located 90 miles from New York City and has an approximate population of 2,000 people.  The goal was to have 100 families participate in the trial.  Advertisements were placed in the local Liberty paper and flyers were posted around town.  In addition, we visited Liberty twice to recruit families and excite them about the trial and donated money for their time to their local United Way.

OBJECTIVES: 

To build awareness of Dixie Rinse & ReUse Disposable Stoneware and encourage trial and purchase of the new product line

To obtain 40 million media impressions

STRATEGY

The strategy was two-fold.  For the trade launch, the strategy was to give key trade media an exclusive introduction to new Dixie Rinse & ReUse Disposable Stoneware.  The consumer launch strategy was to conduct a town trial to provide a real-life example of how new Rinse & ReUse can save time during clean up in the kitchen.

EXECUTION

To overcome our challenges, we conducted a town trial and survey of the product in Liberty, NY.  We worked very closely with the Liberty Mayor and townspeople during the planning phase of the consumer launch. We also worked with Connie Cox, time-saving expert and author of 30 Days to a Simpler Life, in developing the trial materials.  

After recruiting 100 families to participate in the six-week trial period, we held a kick off meeting to give the families Rinse & ReUse product to use during the trial, as well as a handbook which explained how the trial would work. Cox served as the host of the kick off and finale meetings with the town and was Dixie’s spokesperson for media interviews.  During the meeting, families were asked to fill out a pre-trial survey about their current dish-doing habits.  Then each week during the trial, families would complete and send in journal pages, which explained their experience using Rinse & ReUse and calculated the time they saved by using the product.  At the end of the trial, they were again asked to fill out a survey about their dish-doing habits and the results were included in the consumer launch media materials.  As you can see, we were in constant contact with the participating families to follow their progress and use of Rinse & ReUse.  The mayor of Liberty, also a participant of the trial, was instrumental in encouraging and exciting the townspeople.

TACTICS:

Conducted a teleconference with nearly two dozen key new product editors at publications like Wall Street Journal, Crain’s Chicago Business, Ad Age, Supermarket News, The Food Industry Newsletter and Product Alert

Conducted a six-week trial of new Rinse & ReUse with 100 families in Liberty, NY, where participants logged time saved in kitchen by using the new product.  The trial included both a kick off meeting and a finale celebration

Distributed b-roll footage to television stations nationwide introducing Dixie Rinse & ReUse Disposable Stoneware by highlighting town trial and testimonials

Conducted local radio DJ drops in Liberty with spokesperson Connie Cox, time-saving expert and author of 30 Days to a Simpler Life

Distributed eye-catching press materials, along with a sample of Dixie Rinse & ReUse and the “Simplify Your Life – Time Saving Tips by Connie Cox” brochure to newspapers nationwide

Produced the “Simplify Your Life – Time Saving Tips by Connie Cox”  brochure and offered it to consumers via a hotline number

Conducted an aggressive media relations effort

RESULTS: 

The campaign generated more than 40.7 million media impressions, which exceeded the goal of 40 mm media impressions

The launch of Rinse & ReUse proved to be an excellent business story by garnering more than 11 mm media impressions via 29 placements including articles in Wall Street Journal, Crain’s Chicago Business and Ad Age

Television coverage included 169 placements in strong markets including Washington D.C., Cleveland and Nashville  totaling nearly 10 mm media impressions

Rinse & ReUse deliveries to local radio DJs resulted in 3 placements and garnered 40,000 media impressions
Print coverage was tremendous due partly to two wire placements on Reuters and Gannett Services and 93 newspaper articles in papers like Newsday, The Dallas Morning News and The Arizona Republic, all of which introduced new Rinse & ReUse and most offered the “Simplify Your Life” brochure to its readers