Executive Summary
At the start of this year, a story hit the news and dominated the headlines for weeks on end:
Horsemeat had been found in Tesco burgers. It was a story that had the potential to cause
significant damage to the UK’ biggest retailer, unless handled with extreme care.
Over the following six weeks, Tesco used the medium of newspapers to avert a disaster. With a bold
and honest approach, and an ‘always-on’ mentality, we used news advertising to issue a sincere
apology, position Tesco as thought leaders and restore customers’ faith in their retailer.
Tesco Horsemeat: National Crisis Averted
How tactical use of newspapers, a bold approach and an ‘always-on’ mentality allowed Tesco to turn
a potential disaster into a positive debate
Background & Objectives: Disaster strikes
On the evening of Tuesday 15th January, a piece of
news broke that sent the UK public into uproar and
had the potential to cause irrevocable damage to
Tesco plc.
“Horsemeat has been discovered in beefburgers sold
by the supermarket giant Tesco….Investigators said
that in Tesco’s Everyday Value burgers, horsemeat
accounted for almost one third of the meat content.”
Over the following weeks, the story dominated the news. The British public were furious, and Tesco
was in the firing line, splashed over every national newspaper as the supermarket that had let down
millions of customers. To the UK’s No.1 retailer, which prides itself on being open and honest, this
was a disaster.
Insight & Strategy: Act quick, be honest
With news of the ‘horsemeat scandal’ spreading like the plague, we had no time to waste. Unless
Tesco responded immediately, the long-term health of the business would be at risk. Media would
be crucial in guiding that response, and newspapers (the medium fuelling the horsemeat story and
inciting the public debate) would have to be at the heart of it all.
We went about this in a clear and simple fashion, with a tactical combination of newspapers and
social media. All of our messaging and activity would be aligned directly with how the horsemeat
story was developing. We would: 1) Say sorry, 2) Take action, 3) Make a promise 4) Take a positive
lead.
Plan: Lead the real-time debate
Stage one: A bold apology
With a communications team mobilised within hours of the
horsemeat news breaking, bringing together the 24/7 support of
media, creative, PR, social and marketing specialists, we went out
the very next morning with a Facebook apology. Hours later,
creative from Wieden & Kennedy was sent to the national press, so
that our apology could dominate the national newspapers the
following day. Our tone was honest and straight – ‘We have let you
down, and we’re sorry.’
Exactly how we used the newspaper medium would be paramount to the impact and success of our
campaign. A typical product recall ad tucked away at the back of the paper was the last thing we
needed. We were dealing with a major public outcry, and we had to go out and meet it head-on. So,
we convinced Tesco to use bold, full-page adverts that could not be missed, and we placed them in
the middle of the news debate.
Furthermore, our campaign had to reach way beyond the traditional Tesco audience. A national
debate had surfaced, so we had to speak to the nation. We therefore placed our ad in all of the
broadsheets as well as the tabloids usually used to target Tesco customers – ensuring that our
message went to the heart of where the most serious debate was taking place.
Stage 2: Action based on real-time debate
Our campaign had to be topical in the most literal sense of the
word. We had to listen to every development in the story,
understand what all parties were saying, monitor the public
mood and respond accordingly.
As soon as the news broke, we monitored social buzz through
bespoke dashboards developed by Face, which allowed us to
track the volume and sentiment of conversations as well as
identify key influencers.
Of course we responded to all of this via social media, but we also used it
to shape our newspaper campaign and messaging. What we found is that
having taken on board our apology, customers now wanted to know
what Tesco were doing about it.
So we ran another burst of full-page national press ads, this time telling
the public exactly what we had found out, and explaining how we would
be launching a comprehensive system of DNA testing. Tesco customers
were always at the forefront of our minds, but our adverts went way
beyond that – explaining to the nation, influencers, journalists and
politicians the steps we were taking, and setting the example for other
parties caught up in the issue.
Stage three: Our promise
Finally, we completed our reaction piece by ensuring Tesco customers
were left with a clear understanding of what we promised to do on an
on-going basis. It meant staying on our toes, because all of our media
activity had to be completely in line with what the wider business was
saying and agreeing upon as a wider commercial strategy. Tesco CEO
Philip Clarke was leading the national debate, and as soon as he spoke
publically, we collaborated with Tesco and the wider marketing team to
create new copy and respond at once.
Stage four: Taking a positive lead
A month on, this rapid and tactical use of
newspapers had allowed us to avert a
business-changing crisis. The brand tracking
and buzz monitoring was telling us that
customers – and the media – respected
Tesco’s stance. But we also knew that the
horsemeat story had caused a huge amount of
personal offence to customers, who believed
their trust had been violated. We couldn’t
stand back and disappear at this stage.
Again, we turned to newspapers, and again, we stayed completely on-topic. Philip Clarke outlined on
a number of commitments at the NFU conference on 27th February, which gave us the evidence we
needed to show customers we were changing. Armed with this extra confidence, our creative style
was evolved, and we delivered a suite of work designed to stand out and feel different. Again, the
public and the media responded well to our response. Our ad was even read out as a poem on Radio
4 (how many newspaper ads have that as a
claim to fame?)
In fact, our advertising supported all of the
commitments that Philip made: to simplify
Tesco’s supply chain, to source all fresh chicken
from British and Irish farms, and to build better,
stronger relationships with our farmers.
Results: Disaster averted
A bold media strategy, with newspapers at its heart, allowed Tesco to regain the trust of millions of
customers at a time when they felt completely let down by their supermarket. It also put Tesco at
the heart of a debate that had gripped the nation.
The press coverage we achieved at each stage of the
campaign showed that the public was noticing and
reacting - in a positive way.
Research from Tesco marketing and Hall & Partners
told us that:
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Customers thought we dealt with the crisis
better than our competitors
Our newspaper ads were considered ‘easy to understand’, ‘informative’ and ‘credible’, and
half of the customers we spoke to said we had ‘addressed their concerns’
Over 11,000 customers ‘liked’ our Facebook apology
In the week following 17th January, Tesco saw a dramatic drop in convenience food sales. This could
have been the precursor to a much bigger problem for the retailer. As it was, two months on, overall
footfall and sales were back in line with previous forecasts. Disaster well and truly averted.
Client view
“This campaign helped us to demonstrate thought leadership at a very difficult time for the business.
Putting newspapers at the heart of our media activity allowed us to demonstrate how we were
taking responsibility for events as they unfolded, so much so that our adverts went way beyond
advertising to actually become the news.” Angela Porter, Head of Brand Advertising, Tesco
“We were really impressed with the way Initiative and Tesco responded when the horsemeat story
broke. Their approach was bold, honest and straight-talking, which is exactly what their customers,
our readers and the wider British public needed at the time.” Dominic Carter, Commercial Director,
News UK
“It would have been easy for Tesco to shy away from the horsemeat issue. Instead, they used
newspapers to put themselves at the heart of the debate . They were quick off the mark, using press
to get an apology out to their customers and win back confidence – leading the way compared to the
rest of the market.” David Emin, Managing Director, Trinity Mirror