The Disruptive Octopus: Tentacle 8

Future-Forward Brand Communication and Experience Testing

This is the final part of a multi-part article that details how Seed Strategy leveraged the 8 tentacles of disruptive innovation to help the Ball Corporation launch the Ball Aluminum Cup^®. Please click here if you want to begin at part 1 of the article.

Tentacle 8: Future-Forward Brand Communication and Experience Testing
Challenge: Messaging is critical to the success of any new product launch, but the Seed team had to create and place communication that would accomplish multiple critical objectives. This included: building awareness, increasing trial, driving sales and educating consumers on the proper way to use the product and the sustainability benefits of switching from single-use plastic cups.

Action: The team knew it had to develop a compelling commercial idea to achieve this challenging multi-faceted communication objective. Leveraging Seed’s proven process for creating campaignable ideas, our team of strategists, writers and visual creatives worked together to identify the key insights and business objectives and then develop a central idea (including copy and imagery) that fit the strategy and could deliver the desired results.

Specifically, this central idea used the context of parties to mitigate barriers (premium price, reluctance to recycle the cups and buy new ones, etc.), convey an energetic and fun tone, and relay a clear, memorable message (enjoy, refill, recycle) that communicated both how to use the product and its sustainability benefits.

The team then developed the various creative elements that would bring the campaignable idea to life. This included writing the script, creating the storyboard, casting talent and directing/composing a custom soundtrack for the television spot and web videos, plus developing complementary banner ads and social media marketing components. All these elements became part of a customized media plan that Seed designed to maximize the impact of the messaging and the spend.

Results: Seed’s media plan and creative execution significantly increased both exposure and sales. The media plan resulted in 850MM impressions and tripled website traffic. Promotional videos were watched to completion over 50% of the time—far exceeding industry averages—while both Amazon and brick-and-mortar sales grew steadily following media investment.

Key Tools/Processes:
-Brand Activation
-Campaignable Idea Development
-Brand and Campaign Creative Development
-Package Design
-Traditional and Digital Advertising
-Media Planning
-Social Media Content Creation
-Shopper Marketing

At the end of the day, Seed helped Ball turn a unique product idea into a disruptive innovation and purpose-driven brand that was successfully introduced at professional football’s championship game—all within eight months. Less than a year later, the product rolled out to 18,000 stores across the country and in 2020, Fast Company recognized the Ball Aluminum Cup^® as a “World Changing Idea.”

Click here to go to the full-length version of the article.

Contact Sean Smyth to learn more about how Seed can help with your next disruptive innovation effort.

Written by Eric Scheer and Adam Siegel.

Eric Scheer is President, Chief Strategy Officer at Seed Strategy where he leverages his rich experience as an entrepreneur, designer and strategist to expertly lead the agency and help clients achieve meaningful growth.

Adam Siegel is the Editor of The Accelerator and VP, Creative at Seed Strategy where he draws upon his diverse experience in advertising, research and innovation to craft breakthrough creative and winning copy.

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