Walkers, the UK's No.1 crisps and snacks manufacturer, is putting a massive £27 million marketing investment behind the Walkers brand this year, the biggest spend in the brand's 60 year history.
Walkers is an iconic British brand which is growing at +4.9%[1] and eaten by more than 10 million British consumers everyday. This year Walkers is encouraging consumers to celebrate Britishness with a massive multi-million pound Home Grown marketing initiative. This incredibly powerful campaign will help leverage the loyalty and emotional connection that British consumers have with Walkers, their No.1 Crisps brand and will reinforce the message that Walkers Crisps are made from 100% British potatoes.
NPD, large-scale innovative consumer promotions, sampling, press, outdoor PR and on-line activity are all scheduled throughout the year. The campaign kicks off in a huge way from the New Year with the re-airing of the 2007 award winning television advert.
This light-hearted execution sees brand ambassador Gary Lineker joining a group of farmers to celebrate the mud and rain that help to create the perfect growing conditions for the potatoes that make Walkers crisps.
The television campaign - on air around British programmes from January 7 to February 29, and is just one part of a complete Home Grown media and promotional support package behind Walkers throughout the year.
Throughout 2008 Walkers will also be touring the country with its Hot Crisps van - an experiential sampling campaign to reinforce the 'simple pleasure' of eating Walkers crisps in an engaging way. The vans were popular with consumers in 2007 and Walkers expects to reach three times more consumers during this year's tour.
Walkers Crisps will continue to be supported by extensive in-store execution. All point of sale material will reflect the core look of the TV advertising creative and 100% British Potatoes message, ensuring high visibility in-store and prompting consumers to purchase.
David Biggs, Walkers Impulse Director, says, To maximise impulse sales of Crisps and Snacks in 2008, we recommend that retailers invest time in improving their fixture display, providing space to focus on the best sellers. Approximately 80% of category sales come from the top 20 brands. Research shows that reducing your range by 20% and focusing on the core brands retailers can increase sales dramatically.
[1] AcNielsen latest MAT to w/e 2.12.2007
