The Director Online Strategies and Services shares about the success the company has found with offline to online promotions.

Michael Bragg is Director Online Strategies and Services for ConAgra Foods, a company with more than 35 household brands like Butterball, Banquet and Hunt’s along with food service brands served at franchised restaurants, hotels, schools and other facilities. Bragg is responsible for all internal and external online communication and online marketing initiatives as well as Website development for the new employee portal. We talked with Bragg recently to find out about current initiatives.

iMedia Connection: What's one of the most successful campaigns your company has executed recently, and what made it successful?

Bragg: Act II's Pop, Peek and Win! promotion kicked off in March with an FSI and five million specially marked packages of popcorn -- consumers watch their popcorn bag as it pops to find out if they're a winner. While they may not win one of the big prizes, consumers are invited, via a special URL found only on the popcorn bag, to go online to play an interactive game for a chance to win a free carton of ACT II. Winners and non-winners are then invited to participate in a brief post-game survey regarding their popcorn preferences. All survey respondents receive a “buy one, get one free” offer.

The game ended July 31 with over one million plays, representing a large number of unique consumers. A significant portion of these consumers opted into the Act II database. Consumers in the Act II database receive a monthly email newsletter -- the "Pop Report" -- containing news on upcoming DVD releases and reviews, as well as an Act II featured product and electronic coupon.

iMedia Connection: What lessons did you learn from this promotion?

Bragg: This is one of our many offline to online promotions, and they are all effective and cost-efficient means of driving traffic. This is particularly relevant in the CPG industry, where packaging is the primary consumer touch point. Additionally, tying purchase to game play via URL on package, UPC requirement, a decoder in pack, etc. ensures that a consumer database is purchase driven rather than promotion driven.

iMedia Connection: What does your company have planned in order to approach the interactive space in different and unique ways?

Bragg: ConAgra Foods will increase, supplement, and leverage its cross-company relational database to understand what consumers are buying now, what they should be buying, and what they will never buy, and to drive trial and top-of-mind awareness via precise, targeted messages delivered to the right consumers at the right time.

iMedia Connection: How have your goals in the online world changed from last year to this year?

Bragg: Dramatically. Brands have embraced our leveraged approach to entering this space collectively. Now that they have enjoyed and obtained significant results, they are now truly utilizing all aspects of Online Strategies & Services to further be more successful.

iMedia Connection: How did online advertising contribute to your company's overall sales goals last year?

Bragg: Results are not in, but closed loop coupon efforts look promising.

iMedia Connection: Does your company plan on increasing its spending on interactive media, and when do you expect interactive to take a larger share of the total marketing budget?

Bragg: Yes, we are currently taking a larger share online and it is definitely over the next two years.

iMedia Connection: How do you perceive rich media? Have you used it in campaigns? Do you think the benefits make up for the cost?

Bragg: I love it. We just have not done a lot of rich media to date.

iMedia Connection: How do you evaluate different sites for media placement -- type of site-content, portal, etc.; audience; affinity to site; other criteria?

Bragg: Hard to answer, but yes to all. Since we have so many different brands and business initiatives online, we have to align the business objectives with the best opportunity for success.

iMedia Connection: How can online marketing mature to overcome corporate reluctance?

Bragg: Online marketing must deliver an ROI framework to clearly illuminate cost savings and long-term sales increases.

iMedia Connection: What knowledge can you impart to traditional advertisers that may be hesitant to enter into the online space?

Bragg: Stay where you are at...it keeps my rates down!