Digital Out-of-Home: effective in loading Category Entry Points

Consumers are exposed to more than 350 advertising messages every day. Only 1.3% of those messages stick in our minds. Marketers face the challenge of growing brands and creating distinctive advertising messages. How do you ensure that consumers think of your brand when making a purchase?

Global, in collaboration with advertiser Hero B’tween, media agency STROOM, and Validators, investigated how Digital Out-of-Home contributes to growth in mental market share by reinforcing so-called Category Entry Points.

Building brand associations

We’re learning more and more about the interplay between brand, campaign, and creative. As an advertiser, you can capitalize on specific situations by showing in a creative how your brand can meet a consumer’s needs. The more often we see a creative that links a brand to a situation or need, the stronger that link becomes in our minds. Do you need an energy boost? Then chances are you immediately think of drinking a Red Bull. This is because the advertiser has been capitalizing on this association for years. Capitalizing on a usage moment in the advertising message doesn’t have an immediate, dramatic effect, but in the long term and after multiple touchpoints with the creative, the association will take root in the consumer’s mind. This makes building CEPs typically a multi-year plan. The effect is based on Associative Network Theory, which posits that brand memory is a network of brand associations. By communicating the right purchasing situations and associations, you help the brand grow.

Hero B’tween – the perfect snack

Hero launched a multi-week Digital Out-of-Home (DOOH) campaign for the B’tween brand to promote the CEP “the cereal bar for a tasty snack on the go.” Prior to the campaign, Global, together with the advertiser Hero, media agency STROOM, and research firm Validators, investigated which CEP was most relevant to target. This led to the identification of the CEP “I eat fruit, nut, and/or grain bars as a snack.” According to the target audience, this also turned out to be the most relevant CEP within the entire product category.

‘At STROOM, the foundation of a media strategy is built upon the business and marketing strategy. At Hero B’tween, the business question was examined through the lens of Byron Sharp’s framework, and the media strategy was developed based on Category Entry Points and Distinctive Brand Assets (DBAs) to further grow market share. ‘ Matthijs Kloezeman, Senior Communications Consultant, STROOM Media Agency

First, we worked with the advertiser, Hero, to identify opportunities in the market for the brand to stand out. How is the brand positioned, and how is it perceived? This analysis led to the most promising CEP for B’tween to capitalize on. Choosing the right CEP is crucial, as it must be a logical fit with the product and the campaign strategy. Two creative concepts were deployed, with the main message: “A great moment for B’tween.” The cereal bar for a tasty snack on the go.

“B’tween is a brand that has seen double-digit growth for nine years running. To sustain this growth, the advertiser Hero must ensure that the product is seen by as wide an audience as possible and that the moments of use are clearly communicated to the target audience. One of the strategies within the campaign was to deploy DOOH as close as possible to the point of purchase. This reminds consumers of our B’tween brand one last time while they’re at the store, reinforcing that it’s the go-to cereal bar for a tasty snack on the go.’ Elleke Koren, Brand Manager, Hero B’tween

Increase in market share, both in terms of mindshare and actual market share, due to the CEP

The results of the study show that there has been positive growth in the “snack” CEP. The study examined the difference between the reached and unreached target groups, revealing a 24% increase in the relevance of the “snack” CEP for the B’tween brand. Consideration for this CEP rose from 37% to 44%. This means that B’tween is considered more often as a snack after viewing the campaign. In addition, the DOOH campaign was found to increase purchase intent by 22%. Finally, the study shows that both mental market share and actual market share increased by 2%; this increase came at the expense of competing brands. This confirms the theory that mental market share is a good indicator of actual market share.

“I am very pleased that our chosen media strategy has enabled us to further grow B’tween’s market share and, in doing so, create positive associations with usage moments among our target audience. The results show that DOOH is an effective medium for capitalizing on usage moments.” Matthijs Kloezeman, Senior Communications Consultant, STROOM Media Agency

Digital Out-of-Home in a media strategy to drive CEPs

The study shows that Digital Out-of-Home can influence brand associations, build brand equity, and thereby increase both mental and actual market share.

“DOOH enables brands to be present at exactly the right time and in the right place to plant seeds in the consumer’s mind. Think of an ad for a taxi service near the Ziggo Dome after a concert, or Magnum advertising on a hot day. By consistently communicating CEPs over a longer period of time, these seeds in the mind grow stronger. The stronger these situations are linked to the brand, the more often the brand will be considered in these situations. This drives long-term brand growth and, in this case, enabled Hero to actually grow its mental market share.” Business Manager, Validators

This article was produced in collaboration with Global.

Text: Global | Image: Global

Would you like more information? Please contact: business@validators.nl