COVER STORY
LOVING
THE UNION
Aberdeen shoppers didn’t wait until this past
Valentine’s Day to reveal the object of their
shopping affection. The Scots spoiled Union
Square with a 12.1-percent boost in traffic and
a 7.9-percent jump in sales last holiday season
in response to the center’s “That’s why I love U”
campaign.
The promotional effort had noticeable impact,
considering that it was a mere seasonal tweak
on a campaign that Union Square had launched
that April. The updated version of the creative
included Christmas imagery, such as sparkle and
sleigh bells, to put Aberdeen’s well-off residents
and city center executives in the mood to indulge
their loved ones and themselves—according to
Union Square, approximately 60 percent of the
local population works in the oil and gas sector,
and their average income is 20-percent higher
than the Scottish average, and 15-percent higher
than the UK average. Despite that upscale target
clientele, the center still had a couple of challenges
to overcome.
“The center had performed well since opening.
However, with a small catchment area it was
important to keep customers coming and give
them reasons to visit more often, especially at
Christmas. Those customers located on the
periphery of the catchment tend to make less
frequent shopping visits and may also choose
to visit alternative shopping locations, so we had
to ensure that Union Square was at the forefront
of their minds when planning shopping trips,”
THE BOTTOM LINE
Union Square’s media agency, The Big Picture,
negotiated hard on media placements, allowing
the center to implement its Christmas campaign
for under its set budget of £45,000 ($72,450),
with savings of £10,519 ($16,936) on print
alone. Union Square also benefited from PR
exposure worth £90,587 ($145,845).
explained the center’s marketers in their BCSC
Purple Apple Merit Award-winning submission.
“Research undertaken indicated that there was
spend available in the pockets of those visiting
the city center and that this also presented a great
opportunity for Union Square over the Christmas
period.”
Union Square and its agency, The Big Picture,
settled on a campaign that comprised of traditional
advertising, but also PR and digital marketing,
generating activity in the center’s halls and on its
website, where the number of unique visitors shot
up by nearly 12 percent above traffic recorded
in December 2010.
MEDIA MIX
Online:
• Center website: UnionSquareAberdeen.com
• Social Media: Facebook and Twitter
Outdoor: six-sheet campaign ran for two
weeks in the city center, from November 28
to December 11.
Print: advertisements ran from November 28
Radio: radio spots ran o