2. What was the problem/opportunity faced by the client?
Established by Dr Alan Howard in 1984, The Cambridge Diet revolutionised weight-loss, offering men and women across the globe a new way to shed weight quickly and, most importantly, keep it off in the long-term. The concept was simple – consume the number of calories your body needs to sustain itself, based on your metabolism and lifestyle. The Diet, categorised as a Very Low Calorie Diet (VLCD), comprises a range of nutritionally balanced meal replacements, giving slimmers an easy-to-follow and convenient eating plan.
The plan is delivered through a network of ‘Counsellors’ – mentors who have all been on their own weight-loss journey with Cambridge and successfully maintained their weight ever since. Unique to Cambridge, each customer works with a Counsellor who they meet with face-to-face, on a one-on-one basis to receive ongoing support and motivation and to purchase their Cambridge products.
Following an MBO in 2005, with renewed focus the new management team recognised the potential in the market and set about growing the business further. To put themselves in a position to capitalise they invested heavily in machinery, infrastructure, people, research and trademarks, putting the foundations in place that would allow them to expand. However, as the market became saturated with heavily marketed ‘lifestyle’ diets, The Cambridge Diet failed to communicate its difference and maximise its potential.
The management board realised that they needed external advice in order to regain their position and fully leverage their market opportunity. They needed to reconnect with the market and their audience, regain the successful ground they once owned, better communicate their difference and be ready to capitalise.
3. Brief project background
The Cambridge Diet approached Propaganda for professional direction to help resolve their unique issues, based on our ‘knowledge before assumption' approach. Our recommendation was to undertake a Discovery programme – to delve deep into the issues that faced the brand. Due to the complexity of the direct selling business model, we needed to speak to everybody that had a touch-point with the brand. The following were areas of consideration in the development of a robust recommendation for future change:
Supply chain
As a direct selling business, the product and one-to-one support was delivered through a network of Counsellors. These Counsellors ran their own businesses – with Cambridge Diet as their offering to consumers. Cambridge head office has no interaction with (or visibility of) their end customer, so the direct relationship and brand experience was delivered by the Counsellors through weekly face-to-face consumer contact. Therefore, we needed to give careful consideration to Counsellors' thoughts and opinions on all aspects of the brand and the market.
Consumers
Including a mix of successful and unsuccessful Cambridge customers in our research was important, to understand what they thought of the Counsellor experience, the brand, and what made it different. We needed to understand whether a direct relationship with Cambridge head office would be welcomed, and if so, how head office should communicate with them.
Medical community
Any weight-loss company will recommend that you consult your doctor before commencing a plan. The regulations associated with a VLCD mean that additionally, a doctor’s signature may be required prior to commencing the Cambridge weight-loss plan. Clearly the medical community plays an important role in the brand and consumer relationship. It was important to increase the levels of acceptance by the medical professionals to eliminate potential obstacles and encourage approval.
Brand experience
The packaging was a critical touch point of the brand. To enhance the brand experience it was important to understand if the product range fulfilled consumer expectation, and if the packaging design reflected current consumer wants and needs.
Competition
It was key to gather an insight into the competition, to understand how their plans were delivered. To do this we spoke to competitor customers and identified what they ideally wanted from a weight-loss brand, whether or not they were receiving it from their current brand, and what originally triggered them to choose that brand.
Overall, a 360° Discovery audit of the brand was carried out, taking the Counsellor base on the journey with us. This was conducted in a way that ensured they felt involved in the development, which helped us achieve their buy-in, but avoided the programme becoming a “decision by committee”. This insight was then used to rebrand and reposition The Cambridge Diet as a desirable, compelling and relevant weight-loss solution, then launch the new brand internally to the entire network of Counsellors and externally to the nation.
4. Consulting activity
4.1 Knowledge before assumption
The 12-week programme included:
Internal audience (one-to-one and telephone interviews)
• Cambridge directors, head office employees
• A representative sample from the Counsellor network
External audience (focus groups)
• Consumers
• Successful and unsuccessful Cambridge customers
• Competitor VLCD users
• Serial dieters, not on a VLCD
• Media
• Medical professionals (NHS Psychologist, dieticians and health professionals)
• Desk research to identify market trends and challenges
The result was a true 360° audit of The Cambridge Diet brand and its category challenges and opportunities.
4.2 Issue resolution
The process identified the following key internal and external issues, for which, in conjunction with the Cambridge board, a strategy has been developed and implemented:
4.2.1 The heart of the brand
Discovery highlighted that what Cambridge did it did very well, eliciting an almost ‘evangelical’ response from those who had successfully completed the diet. Feelings towards the brand were incredibly powerful; it was seen as a freedom giver – something that transformed people’s lives and made them feel liberated.
The human aspect, delivered through the one-on-one Counsellor support, was a key element in this, and was the reason people felt so connected to the brand. However, insight revealed that there was a stigma attached to the term ‘Counsellor’ and that the title was off-putting. Consumers felt the title was inappropriate and that it didn’t fully represent what the Counsellor delivered, resulting in little positive attachment to the name.
By talking to Counsellors and current customers we discovered that not all Counsellors delivered a consistent brand experience, and it was clear there were some that needed to ‘raise the bar’. We needed to ensure there was a consistent level of delivery from the Counsellor base.
Cambridge also identified that they had no relationship or visibility of the Counsellors' customers i.e. the end user. The idea of Counsellors sharing their customer data with Cambridge polarised opinion. For long-standing Counsellors this was something very new to them, and there was a concern that Cambridge would use the data to sell directly to their customers.
Recommended action:
To resolve this, Propaganda recommended a new name for the Counsellor base - a title that would more closely reflect the role and the value they added to the consumer experience. With Cambridge’s backing, ‘Cambridge Consultant’ was approved.
In order to deliver the changes consistently to the market we recommended:
• Compulsory refresher training for all Consultants to attend in order for them to remain a Consultant.
• A robust mystery shopper programme to identify Consultants who needed to ‘raise the bar’.
• Development of a system whereby Consultants could feed their client data through to Cambridge head office, to allow them a direct (non-selling) relationship with the end user.
4.2.2 New motivations for weight-loss
With 98% of British women admitting to dieting at some point in their lives and the average woman worrying about her weight every 15 minutes, it's no surprise we are a nation unhappy with its body image!
With this in mind, the research insightfully revealed that consumers' feelings towards weight-loss had changed dramatically since Cambridge’s heyday. Consumers still wanted to achieve fast results, but there was much greater emphasis on doing it in a way that was healthy and sustainable in the long-term – something Cambridge had always delivered within its plan, but not necessarily drawn attention to. Whereas previously the motivations behind choosing a weight-loss solution had been primarily cosmetic, a health-focussed solution was now a much greater desire. Cambridge needed to articulate that it could meet this need.
Recommended action:
Ultimately, the market was demanding weight-loss solutions that acted fast, talked about health and were sustainable long-term. Propaganda identified that the first thing which must happen was a clear move away from the term ‘diet’, which our research showed was perceived as highly negative and represented failure. Secondly, after the research highlighted that it was the one-to-one Consultant support that kept customers engaged, made them successful and made Cambridge different, we needed to ensure that we clearly articulated what Cambridge stood for.
After much discussion we arrived at a proposition that answered consumer demand and relayed our difference. The Cambridge Diet became ‘Cambridge Weight Plan – real people, real support, real results.'
By uncovering the brand proposition, we’d also discovered a big opportunity. Due to the healthy, long-term sustainable nature of the Cambridge Weight Plan, it had the potential to start tackling the UK obesity crisis. The sustainable approach and its scientific base would identify with the medical community and help achieve their support. Plus the Cambridge team had already made strong inroads with the Government and the Health Service. No other brand in the country was in a position to tackle the situation so effectively, or offer such a clear course of action.
4.2.3 Breaking the cycle of despair
Before commencing a weight-loss programme a person’s state of mind is extremely negative. We discovered that being overweight created feelings of helplessness, being out-of-control and trapped. For many people wanting to lose weight, their dieting journey was a continuous cycle of despair, hopping from one diet brand to another in the hope of finding a solution. Whilst they might be able to get the weight off, they found it difficult keeping it off.
Discovery told us that consumers would start their weight-loss journey on a popular, heavily marketed lifestyle diet such as Slimming World or Weight Watchers. They will then yo-yo between these, including fashion diets such as ‘Cabbage Soup’, creating a cycle of despair that could last for years. Consumers told us that they didn’t find Cambridge until very late on in their journey and used it as a last resort. However, the successful nature of the plan saw consumers wishing they had come across this solution sooner.
Recommended action:
Cambridge needed to be found earlier in a dieter’s journey. By raising awareness and credibility of Cambridge as a sustainable solution via an above the line brand campaign, we could ensure people discovered Cambridge sooner and help them avoid yo-yo and fad diets, allowing them to break the so-called ‘cycle of despair’ and achieve long-term results faster. Doing this would also allow Cambridge to achieve their goal of becoming the brand to tackle the UK obesity crisis.
4.2.4 Bringing Cambridge Weight Plan into the 21st century
Research revealed that the brand looked outdated and old fashioned. Whilst consumers told us that heritage was important and the results it delivered were ‘best-in-class’, they also told us that the brand looked like a ‘Ford Escort’ in comparison to its aspirational ‘Rolls Royce’ competitors, which was sometimes an obstacle to consumer trial.
Recommended action:
To compliment the new brand name, new proposition and a new name for the Consultant distribution channel, Propaganda embarked on a new design look and feel for the brand. A fresh, inviting and contemporary brand identity was created, which Cambridge could own and had longevity.
• Logo and strapline designed complete with CVI (Corporate Visual Identity) to police application and the use of brand identity both internally and externally
• Corporate image bank - we established a portfolio of approved brand images for use in all on / offline brand collateral
• Sales collateral
• Packaging design refresh across the full range
• Quarterly customer facing magazine
4.3 Timescales
The Discovery process began in February 2009. After the debrief to the board, the recommendation was then tested with sample Consultants in a series of panel workshops, allowing for refinement to the final strategy. Implementation then began in July 2009, with an internal brand launch to the Consultant network in November 2009 and an external brand launch, including an above the line campaign, commencing in January 2010 for three months. Propaganda continues to support, develop and implement Cambridge’s business and strategic marketing plans.
4.4 Scope/scale of consulting intervention
Discovery was led by a head consultant and supported by a senior consultant, a strategic planner and a creative team. Propaganda also led the implementation of the strategic marketing plan using Cambridge’s internal team for accessing Consultants where necessary. For cost efficiency Propaganda recommended that Cambridge employ an internal junior designer to roll out the new brand look and feel.
5. Success factors and challenges
The success of the strategy can be gauged by:
• Record attendance at the annual November convention, the platform used to launch the brand internally, from 300 Consultants in previous years to 500 in 2009
• Like for like sales up 10% in March 2010 – resulting in the highest sales in company's history
• Record website visits in January 2010, up 60,000 on the previous year
• A shift in customer demographics visiting the website from D and E, towards A, B and C profiles
• National advertising campaign – the first time the company had advertised in 12 years.
