“Distell recognise the importance of internal communications when taking new products to market,” says Fresh Brand Activation's MD, Natasha McClymont. “You need to convert your sales force into brand ambassadors which means that everyone needs to be on the same page. We take our role in this process seriously.”

As with the Savanna Can launch, Fresh conceptualised and developed oversized, high quality trade presenters which proved successful in taking the product to the market.

“Trade presenters are quick reference guides for the sales team with all the details they need to know about the new product including packaging, pricing and available promotional support material,” explains McClymont.

Using the creative rationale from an above the line agency, Fresh developed promotional material for the retailers and taverns that will sell Savanna Dark.

Liezl Dippenaar, marketing manager for Distell, says that the internal launches organised and facilitated by Fresh were a great success. “The success of taking a new campaign to the consumer starts with our internal communications. By getting all the basics right, Fresh has helped set Savanna Dark up to excel.” The Fresh team used a desk drop to build anticipation for the internal launch.

People’s email inboxes are crammed. Simply sending an email is not enough to guarantee a read, so to activate the announcement of the internal launch events, a dark toffee apple desk drop was used. The apple hinted at the cider and the dark toffee hinted at the essence of the new product. This created a sense of anticipation for the save-the-date that was then emailed.

At the internal launch, Savanna staff were shown the new TV ad and tasted Savanna Dark.

Launch events were dark-themed with food including beef fillet, sushi topped with caviar, liquorice macaroons and strawberries dipped in dark chocolate. The venue decor included stanchions and a black carpet to create the feeling of indulgence that Savanna Dark implies.

“Staff were given strikingly designed goodie bags containing the new Savanna dark product, information on the new product and dark treats such as chocolate, biltong & droëwors, all of which pair beautifully with the new cider.”

About Fresh Brand Activation

Fresh Brand Activation is a full-service marketing agency which specialises in design, advertising, sales promotion, brand activation, event management, customer relationship management and trade marketing.

For more information, visit www.freshba.co.za or phone 021 556 3867.