Captain Morgan: THE CAPTAIN'S ISLAND

Credits & Description:

Category: Best International PR Campaign

Advertiser: DIAGEO

Product/Service: CAPTAIN MORGAN

Agency: EDELMAN

: The Captain (Buccaneer)

: Russell Jones (Diageo)

: Mark Wheeler (Diageo)

: Ruth Warder (Edelman)

: Marcus Dyer (Edelman)

: Sharon Reid (Edelman)

: Jo Dalley (Edelman)

: Andrew Szwajkowski (Edelman)

: Lauren Lake (Edelman)

: Matt Crowhurst (Edelman)

: Ed Norbury (Edelman)

: Josef Jammerbund (Edelman)

: Selina Robson (Edelman)

: Felicity Harris (Edelman)

Media placement: Facebook Application - - 1 Aug - 20 Sept 2011

Media placement: Consumer PR & Content - - 1 Aug - 13 Oct 2011

Media placement: Product & POS - - 1 Aug - 20 Sept 2011

Media placement: In-Bar Engagement - - 1 Aug - 30 Aug 2011

Media placement: Online Advertising - - 8 Aug - 10 Sept 2011

Media placement: TV Advertising - - 14 Aug - 10 Sept 2011

Media placement: The Captain's Island Event - - 9 Oct - 13 Oct 2011



Summary of the Campaign

Some people think Captain Morgan is a pirate. He’s not. He’s a buccaneer. He’s also the 6-foot-5-inch living embodiment of a global rum brand lauded for sparking legendary adventures.



We were tasked with developing a global campaign that would engage his Facebook fans more deeply, bring on board new ones and sell more bottles of Captain Morgan rum too. Simple. Our starting point was clear: what would excite The Captain’s target market?



His fans across the world love fun, friends and stories of past glories, so we wanted to create an adventure as an incentive that was so legendary they would move heaven and earth to engage with and provide them with stories for years to come.



How about a 3-day trip to Captain Morgan’s private Caribbean island, with a series of Shipwrecked-style challenges, where consumers around the world could compete for a cash bounty? What if we flew in Captain Morgan himself and Hollywood superstar Mena Suvari in to host, and invited all his fans? That’s how we reached The Captain’s Island.



Sadly we couldn’t bring everyone, so we had to select the 42 most worthy crew members from 13 countries. This was done via an interactive Facebook application, where fans collected virtual keys to win the trip. Keys could also be collected on-pack through purchase, in bars and other marketing channels.



The Situation

Captain Morgan is the fastest growing Top 10 premium spirit brand and the 6th largest spirit brand in the world. Over 100,000,000 bottles of Captain Morgan are sold annually and it has the 3rd largest spirits community on Facebook.



The Captain Morgan consumer is typically male, aged between 21-25 and loves his mates. They are the world to him – they share experiences together and spread stories of past adventures.



His world is full of brands vying for his attention so the challenge for Captain Morgan was clear: what can the rum brand to get noticed?



The Goal

All the buzz words you’d expect to see from a brief: drive deeper engagement among existing Facebook fans; increase Facebook fan growth; drive campaign participation; increase sales.



But more specifically:

• Develop 1 multi-discipline idea that can be implemented by 10 markets minimum;

• Increase Facebook fan growth by 250,000;

• Encourage at least 100,000 fans to engage with the new campaign;

• Ensure 10% of Facebook fans interact with the wall;

• Create video content that gets 250,000 views;

• Generate at least 500 pieces of coverage;

• Create one ‘brand owned’ event to excite consumers;

• Increase sales.



The Strategy

Legendary times are so important to the Captain Morgan consumer and they love to share experiences with friends digitally. If we could offer an experience that was so legendary, with an entry mechanism that’s digital, we thought that surely we’re on to a winner.



Captain Morgan is a legend. His life’s pretty cool. His characteristics appeal to his consumers. We used the Captain Morgan character as our strategic starting point. By taking elements of his life, his adventures and his larger than life personality, we were able build a campaign that played out in all the areas that touch and resonate with the Captain Morgan consumer – at pubs, bars and clubs, in the off-trade, at home, when online, and when consuming media (traditional and social).



Execution

Facebook application:

The entry mechanic to make it to The Captain’s Island event - the culmination of the campaign: 5 challenges themed around Captain Morgan’s character, where fans earned 5 keys.



PR and Content:

Mena Suvari brought on board as a spokesperson to communicate key messages via social media communities and in short brand movies, helping drive consumers to the Facebook application.



Product and POS:

Campaign-specific packaging and POS developed with unique codes for consumers to enter into the Facebook app, proving a link to sales.



In-bar engagement:

Campaign-branded POS and experiential activity where Captain Morgan visited accounts, delivering messages directly to consumers.



Online advertising:

Facebook/digital ads helping recruit new fans.



TV advertising:

The campaign name and concept was used in ATL activity in key markets.



The Captain’s Island Event:

A total brand takeover of a Caribbean island, creating a fully-immersive Captain Morgan experience for the 42 consumers from 13 markets.



Documented Results

The key campaign results were as follows:

• 1 multi-discipline idea implemented in 13 markets – 3 more than required;

• 118,000 fans engaged with the Facebook application - 17% over KPI;

• 582,000 new fans acquired over the campaign period – more than double the KPI;

• An increase from 6% to 11% in wall interaction rates;

• 727,000+ views of online content created – nearly 3 times the set KPI;

• Over 800 pieces of branded coverage – almost double the KPI;

• Delivery and implementation of one 3-day branded Caribbean island event for 13 countries and 42 consumers;

• 1 in 5 participants in the German test market bought a bottle of Captain Morgan, proving a link between the campaign and sales.