Advertising best practice, evidence and insights

What we know about qualitative theories & methods

Article • WARC Best Practice, May 2020

The most current thinking and writing on qualitative theories and methods, the broad approach of seeking to understand the attitudes, motivations, and behaviours of consumers: the why and how of decision making.

Glasgow Life and Glasgow Sport (Glasgow City Council): I am the goal smashing – Glasgow Club rebrand

Case Study • Design Business Association, Design Effectiveness Awards, Gold, 2020

Glasgow Club, a gym brand, relaunched its brand to gain memberships across Glasgow in Scotland by launching a new colour palette and messaging system that changed perceptions of what a 'council gym' is.

Qual research – ‘the business equivalent of antibodies’

News • 27 May 2020

Online research methods are a practical alternative to the face-to-face variety in times of social distancing, but brands shouldn’t be tempted to stick with these post-pandemic as much is lost without the use of face-to-face research, a ...

Face-to-face with uncertainty: Moving qualitative research through and beyond COVID-19

Article • Drago Djourov, WARC Best Practice, May 2020

Researcher Drago Djourov outlines how online methods can help brands make sense of what’s happening right now but makes the case for why we need to go back to face-to-face research post COVID-19.

Snickers: Bring Back the Idols

Case Study • Kaori Yatsu, Hiroaki Taki, Akie Suzuki, WARC Awards, Shortlisted, Effective Social Strategy, 2020

Confectionery brand Snickers collaborated with smartphone game Idol Master to appeal to young males and boost single-bar sales in Japan.

Barclays Private Bank: Smarter Giving

Case Study • Emilie Uzan, Alice Pike, WARC Awards, Entrant, Effective Use of Brand Purpose, 2020

Barclays Private Bank devised a philanthropic campaign to help increase donations from high net worth individuals to the charity sector in the UK and Europe.

Bangchak: Happy Eatery

Case Study • Pirapak Wipawawong, Wasin Pothikasem, Jiraporn Dechraksa, WARC Awards, Entrant, Effective Use of Brand Purpose, 2020

Bangchak the energy company used a feel-good story of a local eatery to create brand love among a mass audience in Thailand.

Hungarian Telekom: Family can be teamwork!

Case Study • Peter Kormanyos, Karolina Galacz, WARC Awards, Entrant, Effective Use of Brand Purpose, 2020

Over three integrated campaigns, telco provider Hungarian Telekom successfully positioned Magenta 1 as not just a package deal, but a service that helps families work together.

Oreo: Rekindling the childlike spirit of playfulness

Case Study • Sneha Raina, WARC Awards, Entrant, Effective Use of Brand Purpose, 2020

In India, Oreo, the cookie brand, launched a campaign to widen its audience to include adults as a way of tackling slow growth in the cream biscuits category.

SNIFF: Clásico Dogs

Case Study • Remie Abdo, Rifaat Fakih, WARC Awards, Shortlisted, Effective Content Strategy, 2020

Dog rehoming charity SNIFF turned rescue dogs into football stars in a social media campaign to boost adoption rates in the UAE.

Mastercard: Cash is no more king in India

Case Study • Rajesh Sharma, Neerja Goswami, Kanika Saxena, WARC Awards, Shortlisted, Effective Content Strategy, 2020

Financial services brand Mastercard developed an integrated campaign to boost card payments and attract new users in India.

Aurecon: Engineering Reimagined

Case Study • Courtney Lock, WARC Awards, Shortlisted, Effective Content Strategy, 2020

Engineering, design and advisory company, Aurecon, harnessed the power of the podcast to strengthen its brand and widen its audience in Australia, New Zealand, Asia and the Middle East.

Airbnb: The Country Pub Project

Case Study • Samyabrata Deb, Daniel Gervais, Shannon Crowe, WARC Awards, Grand Prix, Effective Use of Brand Purpose, 2020

In Australia, Airbnb regained its position as the most popular booking site by creating a project to support regional Australia by boosting a staple of rural life: the country pub.

L'Oréal Paris: The Non-Issue

Case Study • Joy Molan, Rose Van Orden, WARC Awards, Bronze, Effective Use of Brand Purpose, 2020

L'Oréal Paris, the global beauty brand, used a special edition of fashion monthly British Vogue to champion age positivity and reconnect with British consumers.

RAKBANK: Memotraits

Case Study • Mohit Lodha, Kevin Pinto, WARC Awards, Shortlisted, Effective Innovation, 2020

RAKBANK, a leading UAE bank, raised awareness of its sponsorship of FC Barcelona and related credit card product by emotionally connecting with football fans through AI.

Pedigree: SelfieSTIX

Case Study • Hayley Pardoe, Ahmad Salim, WARC Awards, Silver, Effective Innovation, 2020

Canine oral care product DentaSTIX took an innovative approach to improve its relevance and drive purchase in New Zealand.

TD Ameritrade: The first interactive financial goal planning session in a chatbot ad

Case Study • Beth Palmer, WARC Awards, Shortlisted, Effective Innovation, 2020

US-based investment brokerage TD Ameritrade cooperated with IBM Watson to create a display ad capable of providing financial guidance through a chat interface, driving strong conversion rates.

Volvo Cars Australia: Omtanke – rethinking Volvo

Case Study • Matthew Simms, WARC Awards, Grand Prix, Effective Innovation, 2020

Car manufacturer Volvo created a Living Seawall to reinvent its image and attract luxury car buyers in Australia.

What we know about online communities

Article • WARC Best Practice, April 2020

Explores how online communities have emerged as an alternative to online panel research, being an effective way of interacting with and sourcing customer insight.

How Nivea planned its strategic update

News • 19 March 2020

Nivea Crème’s performance as a core product is key to owner Beiersdorf’s fortunes, and qualitative testing of an updated, more progressive brand strategy is designed to find new growth among younger audiences unfamiliar with the product.

The calculus of Nivea’s strategy update

Article • Sam Peña-Taylor, Event Reports, IIeX Europe, February 2020

Beiersdorf-owned Nivea creme needed to increase its appeal among younger audiences through a brand refresh and pre-tested the strategy’s written form to create a global position.

Nescafé: Tribute

Case Study • Case Studies on WARC, 2018

Coffee brand Nescafé reversed a sales decline and improved its perception as a socially committed brand in Mexico through a campaign that got people closer to its CSR program.

Soproni: What we have in common

Case Study • Case Studies on WARC, 2016

Hungarian beer Soproni reversed an eight-year-long volume decline and improved brand metrics through a new communication platform rooted in Hungarian culture.

Why brands need to escape the inside-out perspective

News • 28 February 2020

Market research is often more focused on what matters to the business than what matters to the customer – and therein lies a major problem for many businesses that profess to be customer-led, according to an industry figure.

Buondì Motta: The Asteroid

Case Study • Case Studies on WARC, 2017

Breakfast bread Buondì Motta generated sales increases and huge buzz with a controversial TV campaign aimed to appeal to the modern Italian family.

Qualitative research