We can all appreciate the UPC for reducing wait times in checkout lines, but as the barcode celebrates its 57th patent anniversary, Kraft’s Tassimo is paying homage with its most modern capability – an augmented reality (AR) ad.
The Tassimo coffeemaker stands out from other brewers because of its ability to read a barcode stamped on beverages and boil just the right amount of water to the exact temperature required by makers like Nabob or Starbucks. Because of this ability, demonstrating the product at store-level is a powerful tool for the brand, says Luke Cole, product manager, Tassimo.
‘People see it and they have this moment where they realize they have to have this machine,’ Cole tells MiC. ‘We had to think of other ways to amplify this demonstration for everyone to see it, and AR really allows us to reach a much larger number of people at a much more affordable cost.’
In the campaign from Ogilvy & Mather with media handled by MediaVest, the AR ad features a barcode which can be held up to a webcam. A coffee brewing demo then pops up on a microsite. The product and site is being promoted through a sponsorship of Citytv’s Breakfast Television and about 300,000 door hanger flyers distributed through the GTA.
The site is also a driver to an event that will be held in Toronto on Nov. 7 called Smart Talk, where HGTV’s Sarah Richardson and Nik Manojlovich (pictured) will talk about entertaining at Christmas. Consumers can apply for tickets to the event online, and those who get to attend will each get a free Tassimo and enter a draw to win one of two $10,000 kitchens from Bosch.
It’s an experiential form of marketing that gives customers, who they consider advocates for the brand, a nice coffee break, says Karen Miyauchi, associate product manager on Tassimo. ‘Even if you didn’t get one of those 1,000 tickets you can still watch the event online,’ says Miyauchi, adding that ‘the event is targeted to Toronto and it’s more of a test campaign this year, so hopefully, should it be successful, we’ll roll it out in more markets.’
Other components of the campaign, which is targeting 35- to 45-year-old professionals, include a PR push where about 300 coffee makers were sent to bloggers who are known to write about coffee. ‘Our current customers are great advocates for the brand and we really try to leverage the WOM component, and the web is a great way to do that,’ says Cole.
