California Avocado Commission kicks off pre-Super Bowl campaign
California Avocado Commission kicks off pre-Super Bowl campaign
?We are going to kick off our consumer advertising campaign? for California avocados "right before Super Bowl," Jan DeLyser, vice president of marketing for the California Avocado Commission, told The Produce News Jan. 6.
Consumption of avocados during Super Bowl weekend is traditionally heavy, and since it comes just about the time that the new-crop California Hass harvest gets going in earnest, it is a good time to begin building interest in the new crop.
?We will have four flights of radio this year, each flight running for three weeks," Ms. DeLyser said. In addition to the radio, "we are still going to use outdoor as well in our target markets."
The California Avocado Commission manages three different avocado promotion programs. In addition to the California program, the commission has been contracted by the Hass Avocado Board and the Chilean Avocado Importers Association to manage those programs as well.
?One of the things that we are really excited about this year, and this will come under the Hass Avocado Board moniker, we are producing some in-store signage for holidays where we have never had in-store signage to support promotional activity before," Ms. DeLyser said.
The commission has looked at avocado category sales trends in the commission?s database "and identified the key periods of time where avocados move through the check stand." Among those are New Year?s Day, Super Bowl, Cinco de Mayo and Labor Day. New point-of-sale materials were created for New Year?s Day and the Super Bowl this year, and materials are being developed for other holidays that are big movers for avocados.
But the commission is also looking at some new opportunities on the holiday calendar. One is St. Patrick?s Day. The association of the color green with the Irish and with St. Patrick?s Day "we think ... is a good opportunity to step up the promotional presence of avocados in the supermarket," Ms. DeLyser said. The New Year?s signage was a big hit. "This is the first time we have had New Year?s [point of sale] in a long time. We had over 3,500 pieces ordered in the first week, so there is a lot of receptivity to that kind of support material."
With the availability of California fruit in the marketplace at that point in the season, "that is going to be a good time," she said.
For the California promotion program, the focus for consumer advertising will be on western markets, including the Southwest from Arizona to Texas. The commission will also do "some stepped-up retail activity? in Florida, which is one of just three states that will not be open to Mexican Hass this year.
Other retail promotions for California avocados will be offered nationwide.
The commission will be expanding its Ripe Max retail audits this year. Those are scheduled to run in April and July. Last fall, the commission also did audits in conjunction with the Chilean Avocado Importers Association.
In addition, "we are going to do more audits in more markets? in conjunction with the Hass Avocado Board. "We are going to schedule those in the winter months," she said. "We are going to start including Eastern retailers and the Southeast as well. So it is going to go on a much broader range." For Hass avocados, "basically it will become a year-round program," she said.
Ripe Max will continue to focus on California avocados during the height of the California season, the spring and summer months, Ms. DeLyser said. The audits consist of a survey of about 25 questions. "The focus of the program is on the percentage of ripe, breaking, firm and overripe fruit on the shelf. We also look at the size of the display, the location of the display, how many displays they have, the signage," whether the retailers are indicating clearly where the fruit originated, whether it is stickered, and which labels are in the store.
The data aid the commission in its category management or business reviews with retailers "or just in general meetings on ripe presentations," enabling the commission?s representatives to show retailers "what the real life performance is in their stores."
Retailers already have a sense of that, but "when we capture a number of different real-life scenarios, it really helps bring some to them the opportunities that are out there for them to pursue," she said. "It also creates an opportunity for us to make best-practices recommendations."
During the past year, between the Chilean and California programs, the commission has done close to 5,000 audits throughout the country, Ms. DeLyser said. "We are going to be able to double that? this year. The resulting information "is a valuable tool in working with retailers to educate them on the value of ripe avocados in the retail environment."
The commission will be repeating this year the "highly successful? retail ad contest that it has run for the last couple of years. "We are looking to run that between June 1 and July 31," which is during the peak of the California avocado season, she said.
Due to the demonstrated improvement in category performance from advertising activity and "the increased awareness by retailers as to the profitability of avocados," ad activity has been increasing dramatically. In the accounts the commission monitors, it tracked just over 700 ads during the 2000-01 season. During the 2003-04 season, that soared to more than 1,500, she said.
(For more on avocados, see the Jan. 24 issue of The Produce News.)
Consumption of avocados during Super Bowl weekend is traditionally heavy, and since it comes just about the time that the new-crop California Hass harvest gets going in earnest, it is a good time to begin building interest in the new crop.
?We will have four flights of radio this year, each flight running for three weeks," Ms. DeLyser said. In addition to the radio, "we are still going to use outdoor as well in our target markets."
The California Avocado Commission manages three different avocado promotion programs. In addition to the California program, the commission has been contracted by the Hass Avocado Board and the Chilean Avocado Importers Association to manage those programs as well.
?One of the things that we are really excited about this year, and this will come under the Hass Avocado Board moniker, we are producing some in-store signage for holidays where we have never had in-store signage to support promotional activity before," Ms. DeLyser said.
The commission has looked at avocado category sales trends in the commission?s database "and identified the key periods of time where avocados move through the check stand." Among those are New Year?s Day, Super Bowl, Cinco de Mayo and Labor Day. New point-of-sale materials were created for New Year?s Day and the Super Bowl this year, and materials are being developed for other holidays that are big movers for avocados.
But the commission is also looking at some new opportunities on the holiday calendar. One is St. Patrick?s Day. The association of the color green with the Irish and with St. Patrick?s Day "we think ... is a good opportunity to step up the promotional presence of avocados in the supermarket," Ms. DeLyser said. The New Year?s signage was a big hit. "This is the first time we have had New Year?s [point of sale] in a long time. We had over 3,500 pieces ordered in the first week, so there is a lot of receptivity to that kind of support material."
With the availability of California fruit in the marketplace at that point in the season, "that is going to be a good time," she said.
For the California promotion program, the focus for consumer advertising will be on western markets, including the Southwest from Arizona to Texas. The commission will also do "some stepped-up retail activity? in Florida, which is one of just three states that will not be open to Mexican Hass this year.
Other retail promotions for California avocados will be offered nationwide.
The commission will be expanding its Ripe Max retail audits this year. Those are scheduled to run in April and July. Last fall, the commission also did audits in conjunction with the Chilean Avocado Importers Association.
In addition, "we are going to do more audits in more markets? in conjunction with the Hass Avocado Board. "We are going to schedule those in the winter months," she said. "We are going to start including Eastern retailers and the Southeast as well. So it is going to go on a much broader range." For Hass avocados, "basically it will become a year-round program," she said.
Ripe Max will continue to focus on California avocados during the height of the California season, the spring and summer months, Ms. DeLyser said. The audits consist of a survey of about 25 questions. "The focus of the program is on the percentage of ripe, breaking, firm and overripe fruit on the shelf. We also look at the size of the display, the location of the display, how many displays they have, the signage," whether the retailers are indicating clearly where the fruit originated, whether it is stickered, and which labels are in the store.
The data aid the commission in its category management or business reviews with retailers "or just in general meetings on ripe presentations," enabling the commission?s representatives to show retailers "what the real life performance is in their stores."
Retailers already have a sense of that, but "when we capture a number of different real-life scenarios, it really helps bring some to them the opportunities that are out there for them to pursue," she said. "It also creates an opportunity for us to make best-practices recommendations."
During the past year, between the Chilean and California programs, the commission has done close to 5,000 audits throughout the country, Ms. DeLyser said. "We are going to be able to double that? this year. The resulting information "is a valuable tool in working with retailers to educate them on the value of ripe avocados in the retail environment."
The commission will be repeating this year the "highly successful? retail ad contest that it has run for the last couple of years. "We are looking to run that between June 1 and July 31," which is during the peak of the California avocado season, she said.
Due to the demonstrated improvement in category performance from advertising activity and "the increased awareness by retailers as to the profitability of avocados," ad activity has been increasing dramatically. In the accounts the commission monitors, it tracked just over 700 ads during the 2000-01 season. During the 2003-04 season, that soared to more than 1,500, she said.
(For more on avocados, see the Jan. 24 issue of The Produce News.)
