Winner
Ketchum and IKEA: Man Lives in IKEA: Citizen Marketer Becomes IKEA Brand Evangelist

IKEA gave control of its brand to a comedian for a week in early 2008, when he lived in the Paramus, NJ, store from January 7 to 12. Mark Malkoff documented his adventures and posted webisodes of his time in IKEA, offering a different perspective to the well-known furniture retailer. After collaborating with Ketchum and weighing the pros and cons of relinquishing the brand's messaging to a comedian, IKEA decided to take the plunge and work with Malkoff.
 
The campaign's goals included increasing sales, boosting traffic to IKEA-USA.com, and promoting two key brand messages: “IKEA has everything you need to live and make a home” and “Home is the most important place in the world.” The latter was recently added as a brand message and supported by a multi-year campaign.
 
Malkoff, a fan and customer of IKEA, was entrusted with spreading this message, but still retained creative control of his work. His videos would not be produced or screened by IKEA. He would also be allowed to do media outreach on his own.
 
IKEA hoped the viral nature of the videos would attract a key audience of potential younger, tech-savvy customers, and the constant filming would demonstrate and display IKEA's products and its unique in-store shopping experience.
 
Malkoff, who did a similar project when he visited all 171 Starbucks locations in New York City, handled some media on his own, including the initial announcement of the plan. Meanwhile, Ketchum and IKEA secured interviews with store executives and planned the week's schedule, which included a goodbye party featuring singer Lisa Loeb. Malkoff and his team documented Malkoff's interactions, including those with security guards and customers relaxing in his “home,” and posted 25 videos throughout the week.
 
Working with a budget of $13,500, the campaign got “lots of bang for the buck,” one judge said.

MarkLivesInIKEA.com received more than 15 million hits and home-related IKEA blog coverage rose 356% from January 2007 to January 2008. IKEA calculated that the effort generated more than 382 million positive media impressions. Coverage highlights included the Associated Press, Today, Good Morning America, CNN, and ABC World News. Sales at the Paramus store were up 5.5% compared to January 2007, while traffic to the IKEA Web site was up 6.8%.
 
By allowing Malkoff to live and document his time in the store, IKEA was able to offer a third-party perspective of the retailer, which one judge described as a “very clever approach to corporate branding.”

Honorable Mention
Burson-Marsteller and Hormel Foods Corporation: Hormel Foods Corporate Communications Program

Best known as the maker of SPAM, Hormel Foods found its reputation to be an obstacle to broadening its corporate image. In hiring Burson-Marsteller, Hormel sought to focus on its strengths, tout the company's portfolio, and rally employees around one mission. The team reached out to media, analysts, employees, and consumers, focusing on corporate enhancement, brand support, digital overhaul, and internal communications. Hormel and Burson set up speaking dates for the company's C-suite, developed a Hunger Summit cause-related program, and released a CSR report. Hormel launched a new brand mark and a mobile tour targeting Hispanics. Burson launched several Web sites, including HormelFoodsRecipes.com. An internal program called “Our Way” helped align the company around one mission. Post-campaign research found that consumers and media gained better knowledge of Hormel, while employees' understanding of the company's vision also improved.

Finalists

• Burson-Marsteller and Hormel Foods Corporation: Hormel Foods Corporate Communications Program
• Burson-Marsteller and Thomson Reuters: Introducing Intelligent Information
• Coyne Public Relations and Medco Health Solutions: A Prescription for Leadership: Medco Forges a Path to Transforming Pharmacy Care in America
• Fleishman-Hillard and AmerenUE: AmerenUE Connecting Missouri
• Ketchum and IKEA: Man Lives in IKEA: Citizen Marketer Becomes IKEA Brand Evangelist