I know what you’re thinking,  ”Who are these elusive Influencers everyone’s always talking about anyway?  What makes them special? How do you know one when you see one?”  And most importantly, ”How can I get them interested in my cause?”

Ted gives us the three key Influencer personality traits to get started:

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What qualities do the Influencers in your tribe possess?

CATAGORY: MOMENTUM – Word of mouth program to juice existing products/services.

TITLE: REFUEL WITH CHOCOLATE MILK

WINNER - BRONZE WOMMIE

The American Dairy Association (ADA) of Ohio wanted to sell more milk. AcrossAmerica, milk consumption had dropped by half since the 1970s and Ohio was no exception. Milk simply had become less and less a part of peoples’ daily lives. It was old-fashioned. There were newer, flashier alternatives. The ADA decided to make a change. Study after study has shown that today’sconsumers are cynical; they just don’t trust commercial messages like they used to. Whatever was to be said had to be “real.” Instead of relying on broadcast media, the ADA turned to word-of-mouth marketing and asked Fizz to help them sell more chocolate milk. So what could be done to revitalize the milk sales? 

The first step for Fizz was to immerse itself in the client’s business. Nine boxes full of almost everything imaginable–posters, T-shirts, presentation materials–arrived at Fizz from the ADA. Within one of the nine boxes wasa study by the University of Indiana. Researchers and nutritionists at Indianafound that chocolate milk, the drink of little kids, was the perfect beverage to drink after strenuous activity. It was, in reality, a better for you, high tech sports drink.

Next, Fizz traveled to Ohio for ethnographic field research. Fizz knew going in that over 65% of Ohioans live in cities under 50,000 people; 22% live in towns under 10,000. During its research process, Fizz discovered that in addition to being the local sports guru, high school football coaches are the de facto source for nutritional and performance information across Ohio. This knowledge dovetailed perfectly with the Indiana research. Few garner such esteem and respect by young adults as “coach.” These men are Influencers across Ohio from small towns to large metro communities. As such, coaches are one of the few groups addressed according to their honorifics (“Coach Smith says…”) by even the most skeptical high school teenagers. The strategy became obvious: Win over the support of the high school football coaches and the rest will follow. 

Fizz and the ADA decided to have conversations with coaches wherethey naturally convene–football clinics. Every year, high school footballcoaches attend intensive training clinics to gain a competitive edge on the field throughout the season. During these sessions, coaches learn and share valuable information to improve their team’s performance. Fizz and the ADA positioned themselves at these clinics to facilitate conversations about chocolate milk. Fizz mailed high school football coaches throughout Ohio with the valuable information they’d found, as well as an invitation to discuss it and to find out more. How does direct mail relate to word of mouth marketing? Coaches are accustomed to receiving poorly executed and cheaply printed marketing material, so Fizz designed interesting luxurious high-end mailers. They were not only cool, they were packed with information about chocolate milk’s benefits. It worked. The coaches were so delighted by these mailers (some brochures “mooed” as they were opened, others used luxe printing techniques)that after reading the information inside, they shared it with their whole staff.  The mailers were so successful at generating conversation among coaches that they brought these mailers with them to the clinics with yellow Post-it note questions attached.

 To drive the message home, Fizz found NFL and MLB alumni and state championship athletes (who we called the “We Won a Ring” gang) who read, digested, and believed in the chocolate milk story. The gang, armed with this remarkable information, attended football clinics across the state interactingwith coaches at all levels. They sent a strong nonverbal message; the bright gold rings these former athletes wear needed no explanation, they tacitly convey that the wearer knows what it takes to win the championships. Some of the noted athletes included Mark Inkrott, 3-year NFL veteran, Pete Shier, former MLB player with the Orioles and the Phillies, and Tyson Yirak, Ohio State basketball champion. Their presence supported the verbal message that chocolate milk is the drink to drink after strenuous physical activity. In fact, many coaches shared their own chocolate milk story (see ADA video)with other coaches.

The message these champions conveyed to the highschool coaches was simple: Chocolate milk is a terrific beverage for their playersto drink after practice and weight training. It is the equal to higher pricednutritional supplements. And, best of all, it can already be found in the highschool cafeteria. The best sports drink has been there all along: it’s chocolatemilk.

Soon after the clinics ended, Fizz followed up by sending members of the “We Won a Ring” gang to the high schools loaded with chocolate milk and a story. The coaches got the message and they passed it along. Chocolate milk sales skyrocketed. Kroger’s chocolate milk sales in the Cincinnati region increased an incredible 475%. That is a Kroger system-wide record for increase in milk sales; Kroger management could not believe so much milk was being sold. In markets across Ohio, milk consumption increased 12-28% YTD as verified by IRI Scandata. This was 10 times the rate of the rest of the country. The sales rise was so dramatic that concerned convenience store owners even contacted the agency staff about chocolate milk’s possible illicit use because of the unprecedented sales to teenage boys (remember “Whipits?”). Of course, they were quickly reassured that that was not the case. 

Even Big Ten colleges got in on the act as their strength and training coaches heard of the power of chocolate milk. They researched it themselves, agreed with our conclusions and started not only using chocolate milk in their own programs, but began spreading the gospel of chocolate milk too! Players at the University of Minnesota, the University of Michigan and the University of Iowa were drinking chocolate milk after workouts. It has become a sports drink phenomenon. ESPN caught wind of this and produced a four-and-a-half minute feature story on the once unassuming beverage for its “College Gameday”program. It sent a camera crew to the University of Washington for the story. Chocolate milk had, tongue-in-cheek, become the football team’s secretweapon. At the end of the feature, Lou Holtz, the famous college coach andcommentator, turned to camera and said, “Had I known this, my kids would have drank chocolate milk.” 

Throughout the entire campaign, the message stayed interesting, relevant, andauthentic. And the results show. Chocolate milk, once the drink of children isnow the refuel source for athletes at every level.

Some folks at Deutsche Bank say that premiumization in the liquor business is dead. What’s next, finance tips from someone’s Creative Director?  All joking aside we don’t see the era of anything being over. In tough times the stupid and ridiculous get weeded out. Ed McMahon’s premium vodka and silly flavored rums are probably not a good bet now but then they never were in the first place. There was just so much froth in the market that they could get launched and would live a little while before dying. 

 WHICH SELLS MORE? THE ONE THAT CONSUMERS TALK ABOUT.

    vs.   

The long term data shows that quality sells – Tito’s, VeeV, Hirsch bourbon, Bluecoat gin -  and BS smells.  People buy brands that are worth talking about. Right now people are talking about value so brands that over deliver on the category promise are growing. Those that don’t, won’t. A quick look through the recent IRI  data analysis provided below by WSD proves the point that brands with stories passed on by word of mouth are growing.  Those that don’t are not.

VODKA.  Smirnoff, Absolut and Skyy together represent about 30% volume share of the category and for most part are holding steady in the four weeks to June 14.  In terms of volume, Smirnoff grew 0.1%, Absolut grew 2.5% and Skyy grew 2.7%.  Interestingly, Absolut showed much improvement from its 52-week numbers (with volumes down -8%), while Skyy was much stronger in the 52-weeks (up 17.1%).  In recent years Grey Goose was a force to be reckoned with.  However, volumes in the four weeks declined -5.2% and -5.9% in the 52-weeks.
 
RUM.  Bacardi, Captain Morgan and Malibu all took hits in the four week period, with Bacardi declining the most, down -7.5%.  Captain Morgan fell -4% and Malibu Rum declined -1.1%.
 
WHISKEY.  Despite the assumption that Bourbon is doing especially well in the recession, Jack Daniel’s declined -8.1% in the four weeks, while Jim Beam fell -10.8% and Maker’s Mark was down -6.2%.  It’s notable, though, that Maker’s Mark performed much stronger during the 52-weeks (+4.5%), while Jack gained 0.1%.  Jim Beam, however, declined -7.4% in the year period.
 
Canadian Whiskey’s darlings in the U.S., Crown Royal and Black Velvet, also had a rough 4-weeks, with both declining -4.5% in volume.
 
Johnnie Walker Blended Scotch showed volume increases of 5.7% in the four weeks but only 0.7% in the 52-weeks.  Dewar’s declined -5.1% in the month but grew 9.1% in the year.  And finally, Clan Macgregor Blended Scotch grew 1.2% in the four weeks and 3.9% in the year.
 
Jameson Irish Whisky continues to grow amid the recession, with volumes in the four weeks up 21%, slowing from the 52-week results (30.7%).
 
TEQUILA.  Mega-brand Jose Cuervo declined -3.3% in the four weeks but gained 3.1% in volume in the 52-weeks.  Sauza, meanwhile, declined -0.2% in the four weeks and -0.6% in the 52 weeks.  Lastly, Patron grew above and beyond the latter two, up 11.3% in the four weeks and 14.1% in the 52-weeks.
 
GIN.  The top three representatives from the gin category declined in the four weeks but we’re not too surprised given that gin has had problems mounting a resurgence in recent years.  Tanqueray was down -6.6% in the month, followed by Seagrams (-0.6%) and Bombay Gin (-13.9%).

So you want to hire some influencers to build some buzz and word of mouth for your brand, huh?  At Fizz, we’ve done this a time or two and have perfected a process that finds the right people, the first time around.  Here are a few tips to keep in mind as you head out on an “influencer hiring adventure”.

First things first: Admit to yourself that this is not a traditional job and you’re not looking for a traditional person.  You’re looking for an influencer who is going to spread word of mouth about your brand and the values your brand stands for.  Staffing this position is a completely different task than any other role you’ll need to fill.

Sifting through the stack of resumes:

Before you start looking at resumes, jot down some things you want to see on the resume.  For example, if you’re looking for someone that can build some relationships with local politicians or the city counsel, then you will want to see something on their resume about community involvement or a passion for local politics.  Think of the resume as a keyword search, and if you see one of those keyword on the resume, they get an interview.  No matter what the rest of the resume says.

Interviewing, 1^st Round:

Because the best influencers are almost always going to be better in person than on paper, we believe in conducting a lot of interviews.  But who has time for 25 two-hour interviews?  Neither do we.  That’s why conducting a 15-minute interview is plenty of time for the first round.  15 minutes is enough time to figure out if they can carry on a conversation and it’s not too long if they can’t.  When scheduling the interview, set expectations with the interviewee and tell them that it’s going to be a quickie so they don’t feel awkward when you tell them their time is up.

 Interviewing, 2^nd Round:

The second round of interviews should be conducted where the position will be spending most of their time.  Is this person going to be talking to consumers in bars?  Then do the interview in a bar!  Are they going to be interacting with sports fans?  Do the interview at a stadium!  This will help you find out if they’re comfortable in the most important of environments.

The Final Hiring Decision:

Now you’ve narrowed it down to a couple of outstanding candidates and you’re stuck on whom to go with.

·         Do they both have an authentic interest in your category/brand/audience? Check.

·         Are they both comfortable out in the field? Check.

·         Are they both smart, knowledgeable, personable and fit the company culture? Check.

The remaining “X factor” is: Can they walk into a room where they don’t know anyone and walk out with a couple new phone numbers programmed in the cell phone?  This is what separates the person who’s passionate about a brand from the INFLUENCER who lives on word of mouth.  You want the person who has that natural thirst for connecting with new people.  If you have the opportunity, put your candidates in a tough social situation like this, do it.  And if they both thrive in that environment, find a home for both of them.

That’s part the process of how we hire our influencers here at Fizz.  If you’re in the market to hire some of your own, we hope some of these tips will help your selection process.  And of course, if you ever need some assistance with the daunting job of finding, staffing and managing the right people to talk about your brand, you can always call your friends here at Fizz.  We’d be happy to help.