Ilford B&W Photo
Headline: Inventive. Irrepressible. Illuminating. Ilford. Nobody sees more into Black&White than we do.
Result
From zero to 3% market share in first six months. Ten percent by end of year. Elevated shareholder value (Purchased by International Paper one year after this campaign).
“Jan is a seriously creative person - genius, really. At Ilford Photo he turned our fortunes around by helping us compete head on with Kodak.”
— Laurie Macomber, Blue Skies Marketing, former Global Head of Marketing, Ilford Photo
Business Challenge
Introduce Ilford, a maker of black-and-white photography film and equipment, in Kodak-dominated U.S. market. Launch with $1MM budget, 0% of US market vs Kodak’s $200+MM, 80+% share of market. Increase shareholder value, gain acquisition interest.
Customer Insight
Customers purchased from Kodak out of habit and familiarity. They expressed a level of resentment for the dominant brand’s pricing and inventory control. And, listening between the lines, Jan heard that, on a deeper, emotional level, they felt Kodak regarded itself, the brand (!), as the “artist.” This was the arrogant rub…and opportunity for Ilford, which was culturally and operationally all about the customer first.
Ilford’s CEO, at the start of my work, stated that their brand was “…in the business of Photography Film, Paper, and Equipment.”
But, after listening, really listening between the lines to customer, I presented the Q: “What Business Are You Really In?” and answered that Ilford was really in the business of “Serving the Artist” which was gold to photographers.
Brand Position/Strategy
Tool of the artist. Not “Brand as the artist.” Ilford is the expert in Black and White, the True Tool of the Artist, not the artist themselves, nor the art. This empathy for the customer earned their Trust first, which then opened the door to a more studied respect for the competence of Ilford’s technology and products.
Brand/Marketing Creative
Unprecedented in category’s history. Iconic black-and-white imagery in ads seen as B&W art exhibits in their own right, without the use of any photography.
Headline: Interactive. Introspective. Inseparable. Ilford. Nobody knows the philosophy of B&W like we do.
Headline: Intriguing. Involving. Indelible. Ilford. Nobody’s wilder about black & white than we are.
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