STOCKTON, Calif., March 13 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Fueled by an aggressive consumer campaign that included an ad on the 2006 Super Bowl, retail sales of Emerald snack products manufactured by Diamond Foods, Inc. increased 22 percent during the four weeks ending Feb. 19 as compared to the prior four-week period. For the week of the Super Bowl promotion (Jan. 30 - Feb. 5), Emerald retail sales grew 36 percent in the U.S. Food channel versus the prior week. Cornerstone of the campaign, which also included print and online components, was the release of three new 30-second television commercials. The first two aired during the national telecast of the Emerald Bowl in late December, a third debuted during the Super Bowl on February 5 and all three aired later in February during telecasts of the Winter Olympic Games. All featured acrostics that spelled out "EMERALD NUTS."
"I am very impressed with the company's commitment to building a strong brand," said Tim Calkins, clinical associate professor of marketing at the Kellogg School at Management at Northwestern University. "I think all too many brands, especially in the food industry, have focused on price incentives at the expense of branding. It is refreshing to see Emerald invest for the long run."
Diamond Foods gained considerable added value for its Emerald brand from intensive publicity in the days before and after Super Bowl XL. According to statistics from the monitoring service Bacons/Multivision, Emerald was included in pre- and post-Super Bowl advertising coverage with a total circulation of 173.6 million (64.6 million, print; 79.6 million, online; and 29.4 million, broadcast).
Print coverage included 62 articles in newspapers and advertising publications, including articles with significant Emerald focus in major newspapers like The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times and USA Today. In addition, a lengthy Associated Press article in late January that devoted three paragraphs to the Emerald ad appeared in dozens of metropolitan and suburban newspapers, with many including a screen grab from the ad emblazoned with "EMERALD NUTS" in large type.
Emerald was mentioned in 137 television segments on Super Bowl advertising for a publicity value of $1.4 Million, according to Bacons/Multivision. The Emerald print ads that ran for two weeks prior to the Super Bowl in The New York Times and USA Today, as well as animated ads on key pages of Yahoo, were successful at driving traffic to the Emerald website. Visits to emeraldnuts.com were 35 times higher the day after the Super Bowl than in early January before the print and online ads began running. Emerald's online advertising contest, which invited consumers to create their own EMERALD NUTS acrostics, drew over 12,500 entries.
Upcoming Runs Yield More Exposure
Emerald's sponsorship of running events around the country is helping the new snack brand reach a receptive audience of health-conscious consumers. For the third year, Emerald is the official snack nut of the Los Angeles Marathon on March 19 and the title sponsor of two related events: the Emerald Nuts Quality of Life Expo on March 17 and 18, which draws more than 80,000 people, and the Emerald Nuts 5k Run/Walk, which takes place March 19 along part of the marathon course. Emerald is also the title sponsor of the Emerald Across the Bay 12k in San Francisco, which Runner's World has called "the best bridge run in America." This run, also on March 19, is the largest foot race across the Golden Gate Bridge.
"Product sampling at events like these directly targets the healthy lifestyle population and is much more cost-effective than in-store or direct-mail sampling," explains Michael J. Mendes, president/CEO of Diamond Foods. Emerald is also the official snack nut of the New York City Marathon in November and the title sponsor of the Emerald Nuts Midnight Run Through Central Park on New Year's Eve. Emerald receives widespread branding exposure at these events, as well as pre- and post-event publicity and in-store promotions and display activity.
Emerald snack nuts were introduced nationwide in August 2004. The line now has 19 products, including three new Emerald trail mix blends, which will be in limited distribution this spring and national distribution in the fall. Emerald products are sold in approximately 60,000 U.S. retail outlets including grocery stores, drugstores, convenience stores, mass merchandise outlets and club stores. For more information visit emeraldnuts.com.
About Diamond
Diamond Foods, Inc. is a leading branded food company specializing in processing, marketing and distributing culinary and snack nuts under the Diamond of California and Emerald brands. Diamond's products include walnuts, pine nuts, pecans, peanuts, macadamia nuts, hazelnuts, cashews, Brazil nuts and almonds. Diamond Foods is listed on the Nasdaq National Market as "DMND." For more information visit diamondfoods.com.
