Coca-Cola, Unilever, Chiquita Brands, and Dr Pepper Snapple Group received marketing awards at the fourth annual LEAD Marketing Conference held Oct. 1-3 in Chicago. The LEADER awards, sponsored by IBM, acknowledge outstanding achievement in Loyalty, Engagement, Analytics and Digital solutions. Also receiving awards were four retailers: GameStop, Lowe's, United Supermarkets and Kum & Go.
Coca-Cola was recognized for the sustained excellence of MyCoke Rewards, a customer loyalty marketing program for Coca-Cola soft drinks. On a website, customers enter codes found on specially marked packages of Coca-Cola products. These codes are converted into virtual "points" which can in turn be redeemed by consumers for various prizes or sweepstakes entries.
Unilever received the award for two intertwined initiatives for the Hispanic-American community - one focusing on store-based marketing (Disfruta la Pasion de la Vida, or Enjoy Life's Passion), and the other emphasizing online communications (Vivemejor or Better Living).
Chiquita Brands' award was for a mobile sweepstakes campaign and application called FanFun that drove foot traffic to retail partners, raised awareness of a new partnership with Little League Baseball, and provided users with a fun, engaging mobile experience that kept users engaged and informed.
Dr Pepper Snapple Group was recognized for deploying advanced software to generate store-specific shelf sets for its high-velocity products and reducing planogram production time from 600 hours to only 40 hours.
United Supermarkets operates 51 grocery stores in Texas under three banners: Market Street, Amigos and United Supermarkets. Over the last year, the chain has launched a new customized website for each of these three banners, launched an iPhone app for shoppers in all three banners, and enhanced the year-old Smart Rewards loyalty program in its Market Street banner.
GameStop Corp., the world's largest multichannel video game retailer, operates the PowerUp Rewards loyalty program which debuted two years ago. The program appeals to gamers and parents, and offers points, discounts, merchandise and sweepstakes available exclusively at GameStop. Members of the program average three times the spend of non-members, enabling GameStop to reward the most engaged customers.
In terms of engaging shoppers, it's been a busy year for Lowe's, the home improvement retailer. It introduced an online tool called "myLowes" that enables consumers to access information and advice about their home improvement preferences via the internet, customized to fit their needs. "myLowes" also makes the shopping experience more user friendly, allowing customers to consult with store employees online as they plan out home improvement projects. The retailer also distributed 42,000 iPhones to employees for in-store use as means of searching products and ringing up sales.
Kum & Go operates over 400 convenience stores in 40 states. With increased competition in the marketplace, Kum & Go was looking for capabilities to generate new insights and make informed, data-driven decisions on product mix and placement with the overall goal of increasing revenues. The company has taken the right steps for successfully achieving that goal by deploying an advanced analytics solution to gain better intelligence and a deep understanding of customer behaviors, preferences and desires.
"All of these companies have distinguished themselves by successfully leveraging technology to connect with their customers and enhance the shopping experience," said John Karolefski, executive director of the Shopper Technology Institute (STI). He administers the awards program for IBM, the sponsor.
