Magnum creates ice cool Facebook page

Campaign Magnum's Facebook launch
Client Unilever
PR team GolinHarris
Timescale February-May 2011
Budget Around £100,000

Since its launch in the 1990s in Europe, Magnum has become one of Unilever's best known ice cream brands. But Unilever was concerned the brand still did not have a global social media presence. This was seen as crucial to reaching the brand's target audience of 25- to 35-year-old women. Where social media activity had taken place, Unilever felt the campaigns were too disparate and failed to engage audiences. A global social media presence was also needed as Unilever sought to launch Magnum in the US in 2011. It hired GolinHarris to help.

OBJECTIVES

• To create the first global social media strategy for Magnum

• To attract one million fans on Facebook, particularly among 25- to 35-year-old women

• To promote its launch in the US as a luxury product.

STRATEGY AND PLAN

GolinHarris' London office, which co-ordinated the campaign, decided to focus on Facebook because of the site's global reach, although a Twitter group was also created.

Facebook was also seen as a good platform on which to create global messages that could be altered for different markets, particularly in terms of language.

To attract a global audience, GolinHarris drafted in the designer Karl Lagerfeld to create eye-catching content for the new Facebook page. This included the creation of a suite in a Parisian hotel with the decor made entirely from 10.5 tonnes of Belgian chocolate. He also created a series of short films featuring the actress Rachel Bilson.

GolinHarris used Buddy Media to create a content management system to customise the page depending on the location and language of the user.

Meanwhile, the US team focused on promoting the short films, which included a run at New York's Tribeca Film Festival.

The Facebook page was launched in February and over the next two months unofficial fan pages and local Magnum fan pages were introduced. In April the hotel suite was ready to launch and became the focus of content on the Facebook page.

MEASUREMENT AND EVALUATION

The chocolate hotel suite story and films generated 550 pieces of coverage globally, including a picture-led article on mirror.co.uk under the headline 'Hotel suite made out of 10 tonnes of chocolate'. Marie Claire also covered the story online in May under the headline 'Karl Lagerfeld designs Magnum Suite'.

The story was also covered by media including Reuters TV, the Daily Mail, Vogue, Glamour, Grazia, Channel 4 News, Elle and Sky News Australia.

RESULTS

The Facebook page now has 2,197,117 fans, with 853,105 monthly active users. Of these, 65 per cent are female. Magnum's Twitter page has 37,000 followers. GolinHarris continues to manage the social media PR for Magnum. So far content is targeted at 20 countries.

SECOND OPINION - KATY HOWELL, MD, IMMEDIATE FUTURE

The numbers alone testify to the fact this campaign impressively met its aim to attract Facebook fans. Based on a well-thought-through brand-led strategy there was a clear campaign plan that ensured fans were met with a Facebook wall blazing with interaction.

There was some clever thinking too. The amalgamation of non-official fan pages quickly established the page. The personality of the profile fits with the luxury messaging, although consumer responses definitely centre on the taste.

Breaking out the campaign into more assets would encouraging sharing: ultimately generating more awareness of the content over a longer period. A slightly sharper SEO and linking strategy might have widened the reach too, making the campaign discoverable in YouTube, search and other consumer touchpoints.

Looking to the future, Magnum should consider evaluation metrics that go beyond fans and engagement, to assess the value of its fans and followers and their contribution to the brand.

This article was first published on PR Week UK