The challenge

Rowntree’s Fruit Pastilles were losing their edge. They were no longer fun, modern, playful or exciting and were in danger of becoming old-fashioned.

Rivals such as Haribo were more innovative, both in terms of product development and the way they were communicating.

The result was declining awareness – down from 44% to 35% since 2002 and from 37% to 21% among kids.

Rowntree needed to do something radical to re-connect with families and put the fun back into Fruit Pastilles. In particular the brand needed to get back on mum’s radar, as the custodian of family time.

The solution would be to link up with entertaining family moments, where the brand’s chew challenge could be highlighted.

The TV solution

Rowntree took a leap into the unknown, signing up as the sponsor of the first ever series of Britain’s Got Talent. Although the series had done well in the US there was no way of knowing if it would be a success in the UK as well.

The link covered broadcasts of Britain’s Got Talent on ITV 1, as well as Britain’s Got More Talent and America’s Got Talent on ITV 2.

The programme was used to promote the brand’s chew challenge, with sponsorship credits showing Britons doing amazing things, although the sponsorship also sat at the heart of a much wider message extending across red button, mobile, online and events.

Viewers who pressed red were able to view exclusive clips and those who pressed yellow were taken to a Fruit Pastilles’ world and had the chance to win tickets to the live shows. This enabled Rowntree to communicate its message of “25% more fruit”, as well as directing people online.

ITV’s WAP site also carried Fruit Pastilles branding. Online there were was extensive branding on the ITV website, as well as an exclusive microsite where they could get tips on how to impress their friends.
The campaign went on the road reaching 500,000 consumers at a variety of retail and family locations, such as London Zoo and Bristol Balloon Fiesta, over 10 weeks.

Results

The success of the sponsorship radically altered perceptions of Fruit Pastilles. There were vast increases in the number of consumers who regarded the brand as playful and exciting.

The show reached out to 1.3m housewives with children ratings every night, with the final show hitting 1.8m. Related material attracted more than 30m views on YouTube, while the mobile site was the most popular in Britain during June.

This helped to drive sponsorship awareness to 71%, with a third of those who were aware of the sponsorships saying it had made them more likely to buy Fruit Pastilles.

Sales of Fruit Pastilles also rose by 12% during the weeks that Britain’s Got Talent was on air. For the whole year, Rowntree’s Fruit Pastilles was the fastest growing major confectionary brand in the UK, increasing consumer value 23%.

“2007 was a fantastic year for Rowntree’s Fruit Pastilles, spearheaded by our wonderful association with Britain’s Got Talent, which demonstrated brilliant synergies with the brand’s chew challenge platform, and firmly re-injected some playful and modern qualities into the brand, exciting all the family.”

Cheryl Allen, Brand Manager, Rowntree