Cost of a Child: Bigger and Better in 2010

Challenge:

To generate year-on-year increase in media reach and value for the long-running LV= Cost of a Child campaign, first launched by Lansons in 2003, and encourage greater direct consumer engagement with both the campaign and the LV= brand.

The strategic AND the creative solutions:

To provide fresh insight this year, we commissioned research company cebr to review the methodology of the report which looks at the cost of raising a child from birth to age 21 and has been historically updated in-house – this year the total cost topped £200,000 for the first time. We briefed cebr to break the total cost down into age bands and specific cost bases, to provide deeper insight and analysis into the cost of raising a child. We also commissioned a behaviour and attitudes survey of parents to add topical context and further demographic contrasts for the story, and illustrate the very real financial sacrifices that some parents have to make.

Implementation:

A week ahead of the official launch date, we pre-briefed all consumer correspondents on the national press to give them time to review the data and consider the most appropriate news angle. We also pre-trailed the campaign through a range of media websites and portal partners, revealing the headline figure and inviting users to tune in to a live webcast on the day of the launch. Registered LV= customers were alerted to the campaign in advance and invited to participate via an e-newsletter, and we worked with LV=’s web development team to set up a dedicated campaign page with limited content published five days ahead of the launch. In addition, we enlisted Nifa McLaughlin, editor of parenting website Gurgle.com to participate with Nigel Snell from LV= in a half day of 25 regional radio interviews on the launch day, plus a syndicated webcast inviting consumers to submit questions on the different aspects of raising a child. We were also able to maintain momentum across the digital space throughout the whole day by tweeting media coverage and headline findings, ensuring our online profile was high.

Outcome:

The campaign secured 151 items of coverage, included a piece in every national newspaper bar one on the day of the launch. We secured several national broadcast hits, starting with a case study-led packages on GMTV and BBC Breakfast, and spanning across various other BBC channels and programmes throughout the day, including Working Lunch, Radio 2 and 5Live, with Nigel Snell appearing on the BBC 1 O’clock News. The webcast attracted 1,936 visits and there were over 100 Twitter posts on the campaign, including from high profile Tweeters such as Sarah Beeney and the Children’s Society. The campaign delivered 53 million (weighted) opportunities to see, representing a 25 per cent increase on 2009 and equated to a value of £316,205 - 12 times the return on investment.