Beyond utilises Internet interactive games for Wrigley's brand-building

<p>Beyond Interactive claims it has successfully utilised all the </p><p>strengths the Internet has to offer to create an effective </p><p>brand-building campaign for Wrigley's chewing gum without having to </p><p>resort to traditional advertising at all. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Beyond, part of Grey's global advertising network, created a purely </p><p>brand-building site for the FMCG company with banner and other types of </p><p>ads placed in sites frequented by Hong Kong youngsters. It also rented </p><p>an email database list of youngsters to initiate an email marketing </p><p>campaign. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Kenny Wong, Beyond's general manager, said, "We're not using the Web to </p><p>inform people about how chewing gum is manufactured. Neither are we </p><p>asking them to buy online." </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>At www.wrigley.com.hk, people learn about the core values of the four </p><p>main sub-brands belonging to Wrigley's - Juicy Fruit, Doublemint, Extra </p><p>and Spearmint - through playing games online. For instance, consumers, </p><p>learn that Doublemint can rid them of bad breath and Extra can help in </p><p>the fight against tooth decay. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>The target market of the campaign was 15 to 25 year olds, a group </p><p>described by Mr Wong as treating the Internet as a lifestyle. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>"Attempting to reach them through traditional media was in our view not </p><p>viable. Because they are more likely to be on the 'Net looking for </p><p>information or chatting with friends, we knew that our ads had to be on </p><p>sites they are likely to be on. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>"In addition, we had to make it interesting and compelling for them to </p><p>click onto Wrigley's website by telling them that they could compete </p><p>against each other in online games and that great gifts could be won by </p><p>the most outstanding players," Mr Wong said. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Beyond regional co-founder and CEO Viveca Chan said one of the important </p><p>insights that was built into Wrigley's site was that young people are </p><p>very competitive. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>She, however, stressed that the real power behind the website was the </p><p>tracking systems at the backend that could determine whether a certain </p><p>strategy or site was effective. If not, then the style of an ad or its </p><p>placement could be changed in real time so that traffic to Wrigley's </p><p>site could be optimised. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>"You can see how the campaign is progressing. With just a click, you can </p><p>see how many people have registered and even how far people have gone </p><p>into the game. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>"But our biggest asset is being able to optimise the media and creative </p><p>strategy on the fly and for the Internet this is important because most </p><p>campaigns are very short, maybe just a couple of weeks," said Ms </p><p>Chan. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>A viral marketing mechanism is also incorporated into the site so that </p><p>if people are impressed with the games, they can tell their friends </p><p>through a convenient email facility. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>The results speak for themselves. In the first three weeks of the </p><p>campaign, 36,000 players were registered. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>However, Beyond is not resting on its laurels. Ms Chan said, "We're </p><p>still on the learning curve up. The Internet is a medium that is always </p><p>changing. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>New technology can make obsolete what was cutting edge very quickly. So </p><p>we have to remain on our toes." </p><p><BR><BR> </p>