Pot Noodle came to us with a simple mission - find a cost-effective method to get its Lost the Pot Noodles to as many students as possible before their Christmas break.
From our extensive experience with Fresher’s Week activations, we know students are hyper-receptive to brands during this time. It’s a crucial period when they’re highly engaged. Plus, 76% of students make significant grocery purchases during Fresher’s Week, making it an optimal time to introduce them to new products.
With a tight turnaround to distribute before Christmas, a fast yet effective strategy to maximise reach was imperative.
We selected 177 university and college locations across the UK to reach the broadest market. With social distancing measures in place, the challenge was to devise an effective method for contactless sampling. Our solution? High-footfall areas where students would likely be open to discovering new products. We also wanted to draw attention to the Pot Noodle brand by highlighting the sampling activity through supporting communications.
In line with social distancing measures, we strategically placed samples in communal areas or outside accommodation doors. Visibility was further amplified across campus with bold, eye-catching posters, sparking students' curiosity to find a sample.
We proudly distributed 100k samples - a staggering 90k sampled before Christmas and the remainder between Christmas and New Year.
Post-campaign, it was crucial to gather feedback. We undertook focus groups to gain insights into students’ thoughts on the range and used email campaigns to extend our outreach.
