Felix case study 1 Building a brand in newspapers from the 1980’s to the present day

In the 1980’s Felix was a minor player in UK cat food market. Whiskas had 50% market share versus Felix at 6%. By 1989 the brand was in crisis and facing de-listing. Quaker (owners of Felix) decided to re-launch the product with three new flavours, a new can and support of Felix’s first ever advertising campaign. Felix’s budget for year one was £250k compared to Whiskas £10m a year spend. Whiskas was spending the equivalent of Felix’s annual budget every eight days. The aim was to increase market share to 10% in two years and stop de- listing. The advertising needed to work very hard to achieve the brand’s growth targets in face of such intense competition. Felix’s ninth life… Background and objectives Source: summarised from case history written by Les Binet and Richard Butterworth of BMP DDB

The persistent advertising image was of the “perfect”, spoiled, pedigree cat. Research uncovered the gap between the perfect Whiskas cat and how people really felt about their pets: –“He's an absolute nutter, he terrorises other cats.” –“They're mischievous, aren't they? Whatever you're doing they'll come and mither you.”... And so, Felix the cat was born. 3 The birth of Felix Strategy

Quaker’s creative agency BMP DDB decided that newspapers were the most efficient medium: –TV saturated with cat food ads and nobody was using newspapers – Felix would therefore achieve stand out. – Stand out would be enhanced by the cartoon style and look very different to the usual cat food glossy photos. – The low cost of advertising versus TV allowed for year- round coverage Why national newspapers? Media and creative rationale

Small, mono spaces enabled flexible positioning so the ads could pop up in unusual places reflecting the brand’s personality. Low production costs made it possible to run many executions keeping the campaign fresh and giving it big brand feel. Newspapers allowed Felix ‘hitch a ride’ on topical issues of the day. Why national newspapers? Media and creative rationale

As soon as first newspaper ads appeared, sales began to rise and keep rising: –60% sales increase over the first two years, making Felix the fourth fastest growing grocery brand in any category. –the target of 10% share was met eight months ahead of schedule. –econometric analysis showed that advertising reduced price sensitivity so Quaker were able to increase price of product. –de-listing threat removed and Felix achieved increased shelf space. Instant and rapid sales increase Results

Product and packaging changes played a role in Felix’s success but analysis showed the greater impact of newspaper advertising: –The timing of the sales growth matched the timing of ads to the month, whereas the new can and flavours launched months earlier –Econometrics showed newspaper advertising was the biggest factor in driving sales and distribution growth. Newspapers the most important factor Econometric analysis

Higher sales revenues provided extra advertising budget to extend the campaign to more newspapers, TV and posters. Sales quadrupled and Felix displaced Whiskas as number one brand. …and Felix climbed all the way to the top! Longer term results

Consistent presence in newspapers over the years...

10 …and Felix is still making headlines in 2013