Kellanova, a company that markets snacks and international cereal brands, recently faced a challenge with its Special K cereal in the U.K. Despite being a well-known brand, Special K was experiencing declining volumes and market penetration. To address this issue, Kellanova turned to LiveRamp for a clean room, a technology that allows marketers to collaborate on various data sets while protecting privacy.
Louise Cotterill, Kellanova’s global senior director of insights and intelligence, explained that the company wanted to improve its targeting by going beyond demographics and understanding consumer behaviors and interests. By unifying postcode-level data with addressable records, Kellanova was able to identify two distinct groups of Special K consumers: loyal buyers and price-conscious consumers.
The company tailored its marketing approach to these groups, crafting specific messages and deploying them across various social channels. The results were impressive, with a 9% sales lift among price-conscious consumers and a 36% sales lift among loyalists. Additionally, a consideration impact study showed a three-times higher lift in consideration compared to the industry average.
The success of the Special K campaign highlighted how Kellanova could leverage clean room technology to improve targeting and drive business results. By combining in-house data scientists with external tech and data partners, the company was able to speed up the campaign process significantly. What used to take months now only takes three or four weeks.
To ensure that insights drive outcomes, Kellanova works closely with agency partners to apply data to decisions around creative and media. In the case of Special K, the creative team had to adjust the call to action in the campaign, while the media team changed the advertising platform based on the clean room data.
Overall, the success of the Special K campaign showcased how leveraging data and technology can lead to significant business results. By using clean room technology and collaborating with agency partners, Kellanova was able to revitalize its Special K brand and drive sales in a competitive market. Kellanova, a leading marketing agency, has been revolutionizing its approach to data analysis by bringing data scientists in-house. This strategic decision has proven to be incredibly beneficial, as it has allowed the agency to gain a deeper understanding of the data and how it can be leveraged for future marketing strategies.
The agency’s CEO, Sarah Cotterill, emphasized the importance of having data scientists closely connected to the data. She stated, “It’s very much a partnership, but it’s been amazing having the data scientists in-house, because you just learn a lot more… The closer they are to the data, the closer they are to understanding how the future marketing is going to work.” This hands-on approach has enabled Kellanova to develop more effective and targeted marketing campaigns for its clients.
Furthermore, Kellanova has extended this data-driven strategy to other brands in its portfolio and across different markets. However, the agency acknowledges that a one-size-fits-all model does not exist, especially considering the variations in data availability and privacy regulations in different regions. Interestingly, the more stringent the data rules, the more applicable the agency’s work becomes globally.
Cotterill highlighted the importance of testing the agency’s strategies in challenging markets to ensure scalability. She explained, “Can we do it in one of the more restrictive, still very important markets, and is that going to work? If so, then I know that I’ll be able to take that to any other key markets outside of that. We intentionally choose more challenging markets so that we know we can scale it.”
In conclusion, Kellanova’s decision to bring data scientists in-house has proven to be a game-changer in the world of marketing. By closely aligning data analysis with marketing strategies, the agency has been able to unlock new opportunities for growth and success, both for its clients and its own brands. This innovative approach sets Kellanova apart in the industry and positions it as a leader in data-driven marketing.
