In February earlier this year Accolade Wines launched an omni-channel digital campaign in Australia, targeted to those who planned to travel through Sydney Airport and who lived or were staying within 100km of Sydney.

 

To launch the digital initiative ‘Hardys Hero’, sixth generation family member, Alix Hardy was on hand to host an intimate tasting event with ‘key digital media influencers and stakeholders’ at the airport.

 

Created exclusively for the travel retail market, the #HardysHero Sweepstakes aimed to complement Heinemann’s category stage – a high profile promotional area – with active daily sampling, targeting a steady flow of travellers over the Golden Migration and Chinese New Year period.

 

“This was our first ever digital campaign aimed solely at travellers, so it was a very important time for the company,” says Rupert Firbank, Accolade Wines Commercial Director.

 

“We would like to thank both Heinemann Tax & Duty Free and Sydney Airport for getting behind the campaign and for contributing to the feature, advertising and execution in store. We saw a significant sales uplift, so we are thrilled with the campaign.”

 

The campaign, deployed in English and Mandarin, “celebrated the narrative of the Hardys brand story and created a dynamic customer experience platform aligned with the Aspire Higher ATL campaign and the act of travel,” says Hardys.

 

BRINGING RARER WINES TO A LARGER AUDIENCE

“The campaign goal was to drive recognition of Hardys iconic premium wines, educate connected consumers about The Journey – Hardys travel retail exclusive Shiraz and Cabernet Sauvignon wines, and to increase online engagement with the brand through quality travel-related prizes and in-store offers.”

 

Firbank adds: “When Heinemann first opened its Sydney store last year, it listed some of Hardys rarer and more premium wines, we wanted to bring these to a wider audience.

 

 

“Recognising the ever-increasing use of digital media, we felt a digital campaign that would complement in-store features and have a wider reach than just the airport was clearly the best way. Working with both Heinemann and Sydney Airport allowed us to bring a truly integrated campaign to life that benefited all three stakeholders.”

 

Advertised online, the cross-channel campaign encouraged people to engage in a quiz microsite prior to travelling to determine which Hardys Wine best suited their personality, life stage and wine preference.

 

TARGETED MARKETING

Asked to choose five images that best defined his/her personality, an algorithm based on data points rendered a recommendation and encouraged players to trade up and try something new.

 

Naturally, all the recommended wines were available in Heinemann Sydney. The web visitor was then prompted to accept an invitation to taste Hardys wines at Sydney Airport through the mobile wallet on both IOs and Android devices.

 

Leveraging IoT (Internet of Things) physical web technology deployed by Mighty Media Group, the web visitor received a notification to their device as they came in range of the category stage delivered through Ibeacons strategically placed throughout the Heinemann Tax & Duty Free store.

 

Once the consumer had purchased a Hardys product, they then had the chance to be entered into the HardysHero Sweepstakes – either through scanning a QR code or following an entry URL – that gave them the opportunity to win from a pool of 730 fantastic prizes.

 

THE PRIZES…

The prizes included: a luxury weekend for two to McLaren Vale with domestic flights, accommodation, meals, wine-tasting at Tintara Winery and a helicopter ride; a revolutionary app-controlled Bluesmart cabin size suitcase and limited edition Hardys / SYD luggage tags from BagTag Design.

 

Additional online activities included an Instagram photo competition, where travellers were encouraged to follow the HardysHero Instagram account and take a selfie of their raised glass with the “#HardysHero. salute”.

 

The most liked images each week won a limited edition Hardys SYD luggage tag or a Bluesmart suitcase. Deployed in both English and Mandarin to maximise reach, digital advertisements were published on WeChat, Weibo, Baidu, YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.