Rarely does an integrated marketing campaign that spans multiple channels - including content, email newsletter, website, social media and public relations - go as smoothly as the one that I developed for Rockpool Bar & Grill’s Rare Breed Steak Tasting dinner series.
I developed and implemented this integrated marketing campaign during my time at Hunter St. Hospitality, when i was the Director of Marketing and PR.
Culinary Director Corey Costelloe and Chefs Santiago Aristizabal and Brendan Owens created a fantastic dining experience: a chef-hosted dinner showcasing rare beef breeds produced by renowned Victorian Farmer, David Blackmore, that were exclusively supplied to Rockpool restaurants.
When you have a culinary concept and dining experience that is this unique to work with, it means there is plenty of meat on the bones (excuse the pun) to help pull off a multi-faceted integrated marketing campaign.
But, we still had to promote it across multiple venues, in several cities, at a time of increasing economic uncertainty, with a fairly steep price tag. We needed to communicate the unique format of the dinners, the exclusivity of the experience, and the rarity of the beef breeds that diners would get to enjoy - which few people outside of farming and cheffing had ever heard of.
There were a lot of boxes to check to ensure a successful ongoing marketing campaign, including:
1. Campaign artwork - it needed to be eye-catching, on-brand, and on-message
2. A full package of artwork assets rolled out in multiple print and digital formats for in-venue and digital exposure
3. Strong supporting photographic and videography materials that captured the essence of the dining experience
4. Thoughtful & knowledgable written content with strong messaging, to repurpose across all channels, including:
- Website What's On listing and blog post - optimised for search engines
- Reservations platform
- Email marketing newsletter
- Internal employee newsletter - Social media accounts: Instagram, Facebook and YouTube
- Press materials, including press release and targeted pitches
5. Consistent messaging included in all content - all channels telling the same story, in a format/voice tweaked for the relevant audience
6. A thorough content schedule - all channels ready to go live on the same day, with regular content updates throughout the campaign
7. A strong PR kit including well written press release and images
8. Multi-pronged PR approach that also included targeted pitches, interview opportunities and a media dinner
I was at the coalface of this campaign – from art direction, photography & videography direction, writing and scheduling content, internal and external communications, and full-blown public relations – delivering a consistent and compelling message that resonated with the target audience.
The result? The first dinners sold out, and then the next dinners sold out. And they are set to run again throughout this year.
Kudos to some clever cheffing … and integrated marketing!
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