Winner
Lippe Taylor and IKEA: IKEA "Bag the Plastic Bag" Program
When IKEA learned that Americans throw away approximately 100 billion polyethylene plastic bags per year, with 70 million from IKEA, the home-furnishing company decided to take action.
In March 2007, IKEA became the first major US retailer to stop distributing free plastic bags with purchases. The store now charges customers 5 cents per bag and donates 100% of the proceeds to American Forests, a nonprofit that conserves the wilderness in the US.
As part of its "Bag the Plastic Bag" campaign, IKEA cut the price of its blue reusable shopping bags from 99 cents to 59 cents to encourage shoppers to stop using plastic bags.
Prior to launching the campaign, Lippe Taylor gathered insight from store managers and visited various IKEA locations to understand the potential consumer reaction. The team reached out to the Environmental Protection Agency and to NGOs for data regarding the known negative impact of plastic-bag use.
The agency engaged store managers through a beta launch in one store after which they shared the positive results and key lessons to all stores. They also created a consumer-friendly message through use of the blue bags as an easily grasped, media-friendly symbol of the program.
Prior to launch, the team planted media placements to communicate the program's rationale. It also used core facts and statistics to educate media and consumers, including "Single-use bags made of high-density polyethylene will persist on our planet for up to 1,000 years" and "Each year, plastic bags in the world's oceans kill millions of birds and an estimated 100,000 sea turtles and marine mammals."
Lippe Taylor secured environmental NGOs and key opinion leaders as supporting partners, whose members also acted as media spokespeople. They anticipated potential issues, and therefore message-trained IKEA representatives, while providing store managers with Q&As. Finally, the firm leveraged statistics surrounding plastic-bag use to drive rationale for the 5-cent "fine" by showing the importance - and potential positive impact - of the blue bag program.
The program achieved all its goals, none more impressive than changing customers' behavior at the checkout counter by cutting the stores' plastic bag consumption by 50% in just six months. Sales of the reusable blue bags have been re-forecast for 2007 from 300,000 to 3.4 million. The campaign also raised $150,000 for American Forests through its first six months.
Judges applauded the campaign. "Excellent results, messaging, and tactics. Good strategy," said one. "Excellent in-store research and informed strategy led to impressive success," added another judge. "Very, very well done throughout."
Honorable Mention
Weber Shandwick and MAC AIDS Fund: MAC Cosmetics: Philanthropy Is the Best Promotion
Since its inception 22 years ago, MAC has relied on word of mouth and successful philanthropy through the MAC AIDS Fund to make it Estee Lauder's top-selling brand. MAC is the largest corporate, non-pharma HIV/AIDS donor, but executives wanted to push its philanthropic message even more. Weber Shandwick told the company's story outside of traditional beauty/retail space by targeting philanthropy and health reporters. In six months, MAC saw more than a dozen substantive media hits - more than in the previous two years combined - in outlets including AP, Reuters, BBC World, and Forbes.com. International and regional outlets ran wire stories, as well, helping to spread the integrated message. Monthly sales topped $1.3 million for its VIVA GLAM lip products, the proceeds of which go directly to the fund, and MAC emerged as the nation's fifth-largest corporate donor supporting HIV/AIDS. "The campaign showed tremendous activity to promote the cause," said one judge.
Finalists 2008
DeVries Public Relations and Proctor & Gamble Skin Cancer Takes Friends: Protect, Detect, and Love the Skin You're In
GCI Group and Payless ShoeSource A Breath of Fresh Air: Payless Helps Create a Memorable Summer Camp Experience for Inner-City Kids
Lippe Taylor and IKEA IKEA Bag the Plastic Bag Program
Weber Shandwick and Campbell Soup Co. Go Red with Campbell's
Weber Shandwick and MAC AIDS Fund MAC Cosmetics: Philanthropy is the Best Promotion
Sponsor: Kwittken & Company (KCO) is an independent, employee-owned public relations and marketing services firm headquartered in New York City. With specialized expertise in corporate reputation management, consumer marketing, executive communications coaching, and investor relations, KCO helps clients in a broad range of industries achieve critical business goals through the use of intelligently designed, results-oriented communications campaigns.
