SC Johnson combines retail media and sponsorship to build brand metrics

SC Johnson combined its sponsorship of Liverpool Football Club with a retail media campaign on Amazon to boost full-funnel outcomes for its Mr Muscle brand.

Speaking at IAB UK’s Digital Upfronts in London, Sophie Maxwell, Pureplay Lead at SC Johnson, explained that the company had previously focused on optimising return on ad spend (ROAS) in retail media. However, encouraged by Amazon, SC Johnson decided to use its retail media investments to drive brand metrics.

Unblocking drains with Robbie Fowler

SC Johnson has been an official partner of Liverpool FC since 2021, using the deal as a vehicle to push its brand purpose credentials, specifically by upcycling single-use plastic from the Premier League club’s facilities and stadium.

The agreement also provided access to soccer talent: club legend Robbie Fowler appeared in a video ad for its Mr Muscle Drain Unblocker product. The ad ran during Amazon Prime Video’s live coverage of the Premier League, encouraging viewers to purchase using the Amazon e-commerce platform.

Mr Muscle strikes a winner

The campaign succeeded in achieving SC Johnson’s full-funnel ambitions, according to Maxwell:

• Impressions were 111% above Amazon’s benchmarks
• +21% improvement on prior benchmarks when using Amazon DSP
• +17% boost to branded search on Amazon
• The campaign delivered 2.5x ROAS

Why retail media matters higher up the funnel

Retail media spend is growing, and growing quickly (see Global Ad Trends: Retail media’s path to consolidation). However, most investment to date has focused on paid search formats. The next stage of growth may depend on retail media networks trying to win brand-building ad dollars from channels like TV – something Amazon is better-placed to achieve than many, given the scale of its Prime video product. 

Key quote

“My role straddles both sales and marketing, so I’ve always pushed for a high ROAS, but I also know ROAS is not the be all and end all for brands. However, [for full-funnel campaigns] you do need to get buy-in from across the business” – Sophie Maxwell, SC Johnson.