VICTORIA-based café chain, Degani has successfully orchestrated a dramatic boost in franchisee enquiries – signing 10 new ones in other markets – and customer engagement through its new digital and social media strategy.

For three months in late 2014, the company focused its marketing on digital, social and online media including utilising Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, to drive its key messages and hone in to its target market. The most spectacular result among several positive outcomes was the signing of 10 new franchisees in the first three months. 

Degani’s main goal, through engaging digital and social media as a platform, was to create a voice for a brand that really – other than in Victoria – in early 2014 had no market relevance in Australia. Facebook was a key driver in turning this around and allowed Degani to focus on geographical targeting to potential new franchisees in markets that were unbeknown.

Living and operating in a digital age is something businesses must start to do as part of their normal practices said Clementine Scott, marketing manager for Degani. 

“Progressing our strategies into the digital space was an absolute must and it began when we turned to online sources to learn more about our audience,” Ms Scott said.

“From this, we identified that our core audience, which is potential franchisees, were aged between 30 and 54, were professional managers, frequented cafes and coffee shops regularly and had at least $100,000 in savings. We therefore had to develop our strategies to suit this.

“Once this profile was shaped, we tailored our communications to ensure we were speaking to this core group with the right messages and information. We launched a modern campaign to suit this profile audience, drove it heavily through social and online media and, as a result, we attracted 10 new franchisees who came on board in the first three months.”

A combination of organic engagement and advertising allowed the franchisor to tap into an online audience that was as close to its created profile as possible, in turn, creating more relevant enquiries for the business.

Ms Scott said launching a new campaign – and using hashtags for the clever ‘For the Love of Coffee’ promotion includinf #mydegani and #fortheloveofcoffee – helped propel the company’s Twitter feed to more than 500 followers and encourage re-tweets and brand awareness.

Ms Scott said Degani’s research showed its audience was consuming 80 percent of their daily information via online channels, which reinforced the company’s decision to ensure more messages were being displayed through its own online channels.

According to the June 2014 report from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS), 26 percent of all businesses have a social media presence now, including a presence on blogs, micro-blogs such as Twitter and content communities such as Facebook and Linkedin.

Ms Scott said the propensity for a business to have a social media presence increased in alignment with staff growth and this was a trend she saw as as a growing one.

“It makes sense that the bigger a company grows, the greater the need for social media,” Ms Scott said. “What was once utilised to communicate key messages is now being used for attracting the right employees and partners and that’s exactly what we see the benefit in for Degani.”

Degani was founded by Melbourne-based entrepreneur George Pezaros in 1999, starting with a single bakery café in Victoria’s Clifton Hill, and has grown to 70 stores renowned for their individual, chic interior fit-outs and featuring exceptional coffee and fresh food.

www.degani.com.au

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EXTRA >>

EVERY MARKETER knows that, occasionally, you have to do something spectacular to give your brand a boost.

How do you do that if your brand is made up of super heroes? Mattel’s answer is its Extreme Toy Travel campaign – which is currently sending Superman into space, with the help of RS Components and the electronics engineering community DesignSpark.

Mattel’s Extreme Toy Travel marketing campaign takes its action figures to exotic and extreme locations all around the world and engages children in these ‘adventures’ through modern communications and social media. But they had to do something special for Superman, after all.

Inspired by Felix Baumgartner’s record-breaking freefall from the edge of space in 2012, Mattel Italy, together with La Scatola dei Giocattoli, a support project for Mattel customers, approached RS to replicate this jump with one of its Superman action figures. RS teamed up with Rlab, a peer run community hackspace, card modeller Jude Pullen , and high altitude balloonist Dave Akerman , to send Superman to space and back in a custom-built capsule.

A team of makers, hackers and engineers on the DesignSpark community designed and built a capsule that is attached to a weather balloon. The craft, packed full of electronics and 3D printed components designed for the mission using DesignSpark software, travelled to a height of around 39km at the edge of space, where Superman then freefell back to Earth.

The capsule included a Raspberry Pi to capture mission data, as well as a specially designed tracking unit to locate and retrieve Superman.

The launch took place on September 12, from Ross-on-Wye in Herefordshire, the UK.

During the flight, the mission data was collected along with HD videos and images. Both Superman and the capsule were monitored through a radio connection and a GPS.

At the end of the mission, RS posted the video footage and all the design files, bill of materials and design notes on the DesignShare section of DesignSpark under an open source licence so others could build their own.

Both Mattel and RS shared with their communities a video to show Superman’s flight to space and back, enhancing their brands to new audiences through a most unusual project.

“I wanted to personally follow the launch of the spaceship with Superman,” Mattel South East Europe associate digital marketing manager Andrea Ziella said.

“It has been very exciting for me to see the Toy Travel in Space project come to life. The whole experience felt like travelling back in time to when I was a kid and dreamt about going to the moon with ships I had built myself.

“We are delighted to be partnering with La Scatola dei Giocattoli and RS Components to create this unique journey that demonstrates their innovation and technology expertise.”

Ms Ziella said the Toy Travel project also aims to enrich children’s learning experience and inspire their competitive creativity by engaging them to build their own spaceship and posting the design on the La Scatola dei Giocattoli website. La Scatola dei Giocattoli is a project born in 2013 with the purpose to engage both adults and children in a different point of view on the world of toys, promoting creative exchanges, social medialinks, online entertainment and by developing real-world events.

www.lascatoladeigiocattoli.it/viaggiodeigiocattoli/ .

www.rs-online.com/designspark/electronics/eng/blog/hack-superman-launch-day

www.mattel.com

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PUBLIC relations, social media and experiential agency, Red Agency, is expanding operations in Queensland with local independent group Graymedia announcing it will join its Brisbane office.

Founded in 2009, Graymedia is well regarded on the Brisbane PR scene and brings key strengths in healthcare, mining and resources, travel and tourism, education, sport, technology and finance. 

Owner and founder, Yasmine Gray is a former president of the Public Relations Institute of Australia (PRIA) in Queensland and will become the principal of Red Agency Brisbane.

James Wright, the managing director of Red Agency Australia and its owner group Havas PR Asia-Pacific, said the move was part of a strategic investment plan to increase its profile and footprint in Queensland.

“Our Brisbane office has always been a very tidy operation but the introduction of Graymedia will help scale up and increase our footprint,” Mr Wright said. “I believe the timing for growth is right and the qualities both teams bring will make for an increasing compelling offer to clients.

“From the outset there has been an alignment of ideas and approach from both agencies, we are forward thinking companies with a strong creative slant, a focus on attention to detail and a commitment to evolving the role PR can play for our clients.

“It is great to bring in someone of the quality of Yasmine, who is a well respected industry leader known for her strategic approach, energy and dedication, into Red Agency.”

Ms Gray said the merger was a sound progression for Graymedia, which has forged a strong niche in Queensland.

“We are extremely pleased to be joining such an award winning team as Red Agency,” Ms Gray said.

“We have always been very proud to be a Queensland born and bred company that has focused on quality and results. Now, together with Red Agency, we have a fantastic opportunity to grow and develop. The future for us all is very bright.”

Red Agency has offices in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane and is part of one of the world’s biggest business communication groups, Havas PR.

Mr Wright said Red Agency focused on offering strategic public relations and communications for clients across consumer, corporate, technology and government practice areas. I also has specialist teams in experiential and activation, Red Guerilla, and social strategy and community management, under #RedSocial.

www.graymedia.com.au

www.redagency.com.au

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EXTRA >>

FACEBOOK and other social media groups for mothers are overtaking the traditional ‘mums-and-bubs’ and playgroup environments as a source of trusted advice – and this presents a largely untapped marketing environment for businesses wanting to sell their products, an Australian study has found.

Queensland University of Technology (QUT) educationalist Rebecca English and University of Canberra marketing expert Raechel Johns have found word-of-mouth in mothers’ online groups and communities had fast become a major influence in mothers’ buying habits.

Their study, Mothers influencing mothers: the use of virtual discussion boards and their influence on consumption, was published in the International Journal of Web Based Communities.

Dr English said where mums’ primary source of sharing information used to be face-to-face at mothers groups or playgroups, the growing popularity of virtual communities specifically for mums, was opening the door to a new trusted source of information.

“Our study found that mothers trust mothers and that mothers tend to trust the opinions of other mothers when they recommend a product,” Dr English said.

“It is not surprising that social media makes a contribution towards the buying behaviour of its users, but what is surprising is the strength of these non-face-to-face opinions in online mothers groups and communities.

“Repeated interactions with the community and the accumulation of trust make the effect stronger still, as the community matures.

“The study found the effect is strongest among mothers with the same number of children who are the similar ages.”

Dr English said in terms of implications for advertisers and marketers hoping to increase sales, fostering word-of-mouth was essential in these online environments.

“Recommendations from other mothers are more powerful than any other structured promotion,” she said.

“Organic promotion, for example using free product trials by well-connected or influential mums, is one way to tap into this market.”

But Dr English warned there were dangers for businesses.

She said although there were benefits of positive word-of-mouth, bad reviews could hold as much weight against a product as a positive review.
www.qut.edu.au

www.canberra.edu.au

The full study is available here

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