Perfecting Your Product Launch Campaign
Launching a new product this year?
Of course you want to make a splash. But why not go bigger than that? Here at Papaya Agency we always aim to generate a tsunami load of publicity.
The great thing is that there are endless ideas and creative avenues you can take to catch the attention of the media and potential followers. At Papaya, we’ve had the pleasure of working with an amazing array of different brands and businesses on campaigns to promote products throughout their launch phases, along with existing products simply needing a little TLC.
From digital focused, influencer send out campaigns, to large-scale, media-worthy activations; here’s a roundup of two of the best and most out-of-the-box product PR campaigns we’ve worked on so far!
Bondi Liquor Co’s ‘Bondi Festival of Gin’
Bondi Liquor Co opened its doors in 2021, just 3 days before Sydney’s second lockdown. Tough timing, right?
The company is the first operating distillery in Bondi, with all products made onsite. So they obviously felt the strains of extensive lockdowns, much like the rest of the food & beverage industry.
Fast forward to a few months post-lockdown and Bondi Liquor Co were keen to ramp up the hype around their range of ‘Bondi Original’ gin. The challenge behind this campaign was finding the right PR strategy to market a brand/product that was not technically new, but simply had through no fault of their own, missed the opportunity to maximise on their actual launch period.
The solution? Papaya worked with Bondi Liquor Co to launch the Bondi Festival of Gin. The inaugural festival ran for 10 days and included partnerships with some of the East’s most loved bars, including: Corner House, Beach Road Hotel, Neighbourhood, Hotel Ravesis, Rosenbaum, Hardware, Rocker, Bikini Bar and Curly Lewis Brewing.
The festival was a celebration of local craftsmanship, hospitality venues and the Bondi community. The campaign objective was to establish Bondi Liquor Co as a go-to venue for locals and certify their product as ‘Bondi approved’ thanks to partnerships with other key local hospitality players.
Stand out events included: an epic, ticketed launch party on Easter Thursday featuring Easter egg spiked cocktails and goodie bags including take-home bottles of Bondi Liquor Co gin; a Bondi Liquor Co Gin Garden pop-up at Beach Road Hotel; a gin and food matching dinner at Corner House; and a collaboration with @morningbondi to launch the new Bondi Liquor Co Saltwater Gin.
The campaign was a huge media success, scoring over 35 pieces of high impact coverage in Broadsheet, Secret Sydney, Man of Many, Thrillist, Sydney Social, Time Out, Eat Drink Play, Wentworth Courier, Spice News, 2GB, Yahoo Australia, Concrete Playground and The Sydney Morning Herald.
The PR campaign content was supported by a highly strategic social media advertising plan to reach and engage thousands of locals, encouraging them to try Bondi’ favourite new gin. In total, the Bondi Festival of Gin campaign reached a readership circulation of over 6 million people!
Gold&Green ‘Pulled Oats’
Gold&Green Foods is a sustainable food company based in Finland. They revolutionised the plant-based food industry with the creation of protein packed Pulled Oats, made from golden oats and green legumes.
Healthy, easy to prepare and – most importantly – mouth-wateringly delicious; Pulled Oats experienced great success throughout Europe and the US, quickly becoming the go-to meat substitute for vegans, vegetarians and food lovers around the world.
Papaya worked with Gold&Green to launch their innovative product in the Australian market. As a foreign owned company entering the local market, the key objectives included building brand awareness and familiarity, as well as educating Australia on what Pulled Oats were, as well as how easily they could be used to cook up a whole variety of dishes.
The PR strategy was made up of three major components:
- An influencer campaign to spread the world on social media and showcase a unique range of recipes using Pulled Oats
- A launch media campaign with a focus on product placement
- An educational industry, media and influencer event with speakers, demonstrations and bespoke Pulled Oats menu for maximum impact.
The plant-based event took place at The Sydney Opera House, featuring host Yumi Stynes as MC and a live cooking demonstration by celebrity chef, Tom Walton. With over 100 guests in attendance, including plant-based and healthy lifestyle focused media and influencers; the event was a great success, gaining a whopping total of 662,000 audience reach.
Alongside media opportunities generated from the event, the campaign was successful in generating a big media buzz for its product launch, with coverage featured in publications such as Body & Soul, Let’s Go Vegan!, Inside FMCG, Nourish, Better Homes & Gardens, Who Magazine and Gourmet Traveller.
To round out our Gold&Green campaign, we partnered with over 30 influencers with diverse audiences, demographics and content styles to create and share recipes using Pulled Oats. This included content partnerships with celebrity chef Guy Turland and DJ Tigerlily.
Be sure to get in touch with Papaya today to learn how we can help you to discover the best media and influencer campaign strategy for your product campaign!