Century Old Company Weaves Big Time Canadiana into Campaign.
A snowball’s toss over to the all-knowing folks at Google and one will quickly discover what 36,000,000 of us passionate free spirits pretty much already knew. Of course Canada is the best place on earth to live, work and play?!
What some very proud and storied Canadian organizations have also figured out however, is that leveraging country and community pride through both product and service offerings can pay some very significant dividends as well.
Home Is Where the Heart Is
For centuries, conventional wisdom had taken a rather pedantic approach towards what it is that truly makes us all tick as human beings. It wasn’t all that long ago that only those with “book smarts” were expected to go places in life. The “Three R’s” – reading, writing and arithmetic were to pave the way for life success and happiness, while those lacking in these three so-called primary intelligences were doomed to a life of lesser joys and/or mediocrity.
Fortunately, for our flourishing cast of emotional brand clients, Q-Power Communications has long understood that the fast track to securing consumer trust and loyalty is not ultimately through their brains at all, but rather through their hearts!
In the case of Gaspard Inc., Canadian pride proved to be as big and resplendent a connection with their customers as the size of the country itself.
Fortunately, for our emotional brand clients, we have long understood that the fast track to securing consumer trust and loyalty, is ultimately through their hearts.
Move Over IQ, Hello EQ!
Not many years ago, the intelligence quotient, or IQ, was seen as a strong indicator of the level of success one could attain. The standard IQ Test measured raw intelligence, incorporating abilities such as logic and reasoning skills. Research, however, soon proved that the IQ could not actually predict academic and professional performance after all, as once thought.
There was another element involved – Emotional Intelligence, or EQ. Emotional intelligence measures one’s understanding of emotions – the ability to empathize, work with others and make decisions under fire. IQ seldom changes. EQ on the other hand can change randomly, through either self-discipline or a profound experience. Now, depending on your interpretation of a profound experience, one can readily see how marketers the world over would take rather excitedly to this more robust and organic understanding of consumer decision-making in action.
“Human beings are powered by emotion, not by reason.” Kevin Roberts
Executive Chairman, Saatchi & Saatchi
Kevin Roberts, Executive Chairman of the worldwide advertising agency Saatchi & Saatchi, also shares this in his bestselling marketing read, LOVEMARKS - The Future Beyond Brands: “Study after study has proven that if the emotion centers of our brain are damaged in some way, we don’t just lose the ability to laugh or cry, we lose the ability to make decisions. Alarm bells for every business right there.”
Canadian neurologist Donald Calne puts it even more succinctly: “The essential difference between emotion and reason is that emotion leads to action, while reason leads to conclusions.” So, what does this have to do with Canada’s 100-year-young grad gown regalia pioneers? Well, according to the most recent sales and revenue reports, quite a lot actually.
Studies have proven that if the emotion centers of our brain are damaged in some way, we don’t just lose the ability to laugh or cry, we lose the ability to make decisions.”
Kevin Roberts
Executive Chairman, Saatchi & Saatchi
Ohhhh Canada!
Founded at the turn of the 20th Century, Gaspard has been ‘Canada Proud’ since its very inception but was now looking to fly the loyalty banner more prominently than ever before. With the onset of large U.S. competitors entering the market with environmentally unfriendly grad regalia solutions and stripped-down service, Gaspard looked to Q-Power to help create compelling new marketing communications worthy of the hearts of long time Canadian client schools.
With a unique understanding of just how much Canada and everything Canadian means to its passionately loyal citizens, Q-Power helped Gaspard consolidate inspiring new corporate messaging to succinctly capture everything it was they wanted to say.
“Some Things Simply Deserve our Best”
- A Heart For Students
- A Passion for Service
- A Love of Country
- A Responsibility to Community
- A Commitment to Customers
By weaving a sense of national pride and community spirit through a uniquely conceived and environmentally savvy student scholarship initiative, Gaspard’s 2014/15 Canadian marketing communications campaign was able to represent a significant distinction between its more revenue-focused corporate contenders and itself. A distinction that would resonate from the rocky cliffs of Newfoundland to the botanical gardens of Victoria.
To get emotion back into business in this period when cost-cutting is king is very difficult. People making decisions are tense, under pressure, and rationality is reassuring. But emotions are more rewarding in the short and long-term.”
Maurice Levy
Chairman, Publicis Groupe (owners of Saatchi & Saatchi)
Job #1: Win The Hearts of Students and Educators
Everyone loves being treated special.
To further advance the integrity of campaign messaging and Gaspard’s enthusiastic new commitment to its loyal Canadian customers, Q-Power would be instrumental in creating both a school wide loyalty incentive, as well as a nationally celebrated student scholarship initiative, each aimed at reshaping Gaspard’s most critical client-partner stakeholder relationships.
Keeping Canada Green
At Q-Power, we not only understand Canadians, we totally get students and their teachers. With over twenty years of serving the most distinguished names in the industry, we know a thing or two about the education world. Through newly developed marketing communications collateral, 2014/15 would see Gaspard offering schools a beautifully designed, large format ‘Keep Canada Green’ banner to hang proudly in gymnasiums and atriums from coast to coast.
It was Gaspard’s way of saying Thank You. Thank you for not only the special love and attention continually provided our nation’s future leaders, but equally, for educators’ ongoing protective stewardship of our precious environment.
For twenty plus years, Q-Power Communications has been intimately aware of just how deeply administrators and teachers have invested themselves in their students. We also understand just how busy educators are within the realities of their day to day. So, on behalf of all Canadians, it was well past due to spread the love just a little.
As of the most recent reports from the field, we are delighted to share that hundreds of ‘Keep Canada Green’ banners have been raised high and proud across our home and native land.
3.5 ft. wide x 9 ft. high banner
An Investment In Bright Futures All Around
Online Student Scholarship Contest
- What is the Great Pacific Garbage Patch?
- How many tons of trash does an average person create in a lifetime?
- List the top five cities in the world with the worst air pollution!
- What percentage of our precious Amazon Rainforest do we lose each year?
Q-Power understands that when education morphs into edutainment, real learning happens. To further entrench customer allegiance to its environmentally responsible grad regalia line, Q-Power helped Gaspard introduce the nation’s first ever exclusive-to-Gaspard-grads-only online student scholarship contest As tried and true marketing strategies go, there would be a silver lining to all the good that came from inspiring kids across Canada to respect and appreciate their environment.
A few of the very exciting and tangible outcomes that would put smiles on the faces of the Gaspard leadership team:
- Steady annual unit sales with minimal revenue attrition year over year.
- Minimal discounted unit orders compared with year over year results.
- Increased sales consultant passion and enthusiasm for both Gaspard product and service offerings, as well as newly introduced communications program incentives.
- Enhanced educator and student loyalty towards Gaspard’s product and service offering.
- Elevated product price point introductions for 2014/15 Gaspard campaign.
2014/15 Online Scholarship Contest Highlights
With 10 scholarships of $1,000 and one “Grand Prize” scholarship of $2,500 awarded nationally, it’s no wonder students from sea to shining sea were lining up in droves to test their knowledge of current environmental issues and realities. As of contest end date (April 10, 2015) over 2,700 students from across Canada once again signed up to take part in Gaspard’s exciting annual scholarship program challenge, with over 750 schools participating.
With school and educator awareness and buzz growing each new year for Gaspard’s innovative partner initiatives, the future looks brighter than ever for the nation’s preeminent grad regalia services provider.
Not only that, with Q-Power’s bold new marketing initiatives helping to pave the way, it’s safe to say that from this point forward, Canadian students would now forever become a more integral part of the grad regalia decision-making process. And that would suit the Gaspard sales and revenue folks just fine.
Q-Power helped Gaspard introduce the nation’s first ever - exclusive to Gaspard grads only online student scholarship contest, aimed at global environmental awareness and education…
…It's no wonder students from sea to shining sea were lining up in droves to test their knowledge of current environmental issues and realities…
Champion your organization’s unique legends, heroes and myths! Call 1-204-235-1284 to talk with one of our Canadian brand legends today.