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Jazz Apples

Joining Impact in June 2009 I was put to work on the Jazz Apples account, a client we’ve worked with since February 2008. “Jazz Apples” is the brand name for the apple variety Scifresh, owned by Enza of New Zealand but licensed out to English growers through Worldwide Fruit. A new and premium variety of apple, the initial brief was to raise consumer awareness of Jazz and position the apple in line with active pursuits, healthy living and as the ‘Apple with Bite’. 12 unusual recipes, designed to stand out from traditional apple dishes, were produced by the Agency (e.g. an apple and chilli ice cream). These targeted the appropriate consumer magazines, “foodie” websites and newspapers generating coverage reaching a readership in excess of 7 million. Impact developed a new, content managed website to replace the original and limited site, enabling the Agency to control the layout, style and copy to fit Jazz’s profile. Since starting I’ve continued to maintain and update the site, posting news, events and organising competitions through it. Being able to immediately and continually edit the site has been very important in keeping the site fresh and reinforcing Jazz’s media campaigns. The website has also been supported by a monthly newsletter detailing competitions, offers and news which has helped increase footfall to the website. Devising apple related questions and apple trivia has also been great fun. In addition to the website we’ve also established a Jazz Apple presence on YouTube with the Jazz Apple Book of Records channel. The channel hosts a series of apple related stunts and feats of brilliance such as the ‘60 yard Jazz Apple Dash’. Members of the public have sent in videos of their own attempts and there’s been some great interaction. To help Jazz build a reputation as an active and energetic apple, Impact created a scheme to search for ten talented young athletes who would receive financial support from Jazz. Jazz already sponsored Tim Emmett, an extreme athlete, so the Agency used his sports-star status to launch the Team Jazz campaign. Coinciding with the run up to the Olympics, the Team Jazz scheme generated media coverage reaching in excess of 10 million while being the perfect tool to position the brand. The chosen athletes ranging from snowboarders to cyclists have achieved some superb results in their disciplines which have helped us gain valuable coverage for the brand. I’ve really enjoyed following their careers and keeping the press informed of their results. In terms of consumer events, for the last two years the Agency has arranged for Jazz to exhibit at the Taste of London and we’re looking forward to setting up stall again at this year’s festival, taking place between the 17th and 20th June in Regent’s Park. The festival is attended by Britain’s top chefs and suppliers and the perfect place to introduce Jazz to a public increasingly interested by and knowledgeable about food. In November we attended the BBC Good Food Show Birmingham. The show is ideal in that it coincides with the launch of the UK Jazz Apples season. We were joined by proud British growers who were on hand to talk to the public about their produce, handing out slices of apples and running our ‘guess how many apples in the picking bin’ competition (there were 3448!). March saw a health focused consumer stand at the Vitality Show, the UK's largest health, beauty, fitness, healthy eating and wellbeing event. Here we challenged members of the public to a speed apple slicing contest (much safer than it sounds I assure you.) As well as Taste of London this summer we will also be attending a National Heritage picnic concert at Kenwood House, giving guests a refreshing slice of Jazz to go with their picnics. With sales of Jazz Apples currently up 40% on 2008 and brand awareness up from 10% to 15% we’re looking forward to building on these successes in the forthcoming campaign.

Staff Profile: Patrick Wilkinson