Following on from Greg’s successful escapade, Emma decided to throw herself in to the mix by working on our very successful Pringles campaign, see our blog post for more info on a hugely successful activity.

Working as a brand ambassador for the very first time, she took the time to answer some questions for us;

What excited you most about the chance to be a brand ambassador on Pringles?

This was my first sampling activity that I have worked on, so I was really looking forward to putting myself in the shoes of a Masher. This was a really ambitious activity so being on site right from the start of the day to experience the challenges, and also receive some of the really positive reactions from the public first hand was really important to me.

What was the biggest surprise for you?

How delighted people were to get a free product. Also how sneaky people will be to get more than one!

How has it changed the way you perceive promotional work?

It has reconfirmed to me that you get out of it exactly what you put in. After my initial trepidation, it felt immensely rewarding when dealing with happy consumers and I was really pleased to see how engaged the public will be with you if you approach them in the right way.  It was quite clear to me how important body language, demeanour and general character were in successfully interacting.

Did you enjoy it?

Yes, very much so. Even in the boiling heat and unflattering shorts. Looking forward to the next opportunity to be let lose again.

What do you think you’ve learnt from this experience?

How invaluable the Event Manager on a job is. A calm, in control EM who is willing to get their hands dirty and involve themselves in consumer interaction will be the making of any campaign and it has defiantely influenced the way I will source my Event Managers moving forward.  It really made me appreciate the good EM’s that I have worked with in the last couple of years.

As part of our ‘Understanding the Challenge’ initiative, all of the internal team have committed to working on a number of our live campaigns over the course of this summer. The ambition for the project is to gain greater understanding and empathy for the challenges faced by our Mashers in the field and as a result of this new experience, gain greater insight which we hope will further fuel the innovation aspirations of the business for 2009.

We are continuously hunting for ways to improve and refine the staffing process and believe that this initiative will effectively aid us in this endeavour.

Understanding the Challenge 1 > Our first person to jump at the challenge was our very own Talent Manager, Gregorious the Gentle.

We conducted a quick interview with him post activity;

What was it like being down in the trenches?

I really enjoyed it. I think I got lucky in a way with the job I was given. Being in a positive environment like John Lewis in Kingston certainly beats leafletting in the rain on a dodgy street corner!

What was the biggest surprise for you?

Many ‘Mashers’ feed back to me that working alone is the kind of job they would rather avoid and I can completely understand after this experience. I’m the kind of person who thrives on being around people; be it colleagues, peers etc so working alone was a whole new concept for me. I suppose the biggest surprise to me was how easy it was to speak to people and how many responses I got and yet how few sales I was able to conclude on! (am not bitter…honest!!)

What was the hardest part of the job?

This was a Sales Job - no question. I couldn’t have had more conversations with consumers or demonstrated the coffee machine more in the time but it was such a complex challenge convincing the shoppers to buy a machine there and then.

What insight have you gained as a result of this?

I suppose I’ve realised the importance of practicing what we preach. The need to be on-brand in terms of appearance, punctuality, product knowledge, demeanour and attitude really couldn’t be more apparent in an environment like John Lewis where ALL the employees are employed on their ability to retain absolute standards on all these alements too.

Would you do it again!?

Absolutely. I honestly got a real buzz from it and was intrigued to see and sense the various consumer responses to what was an amazing brand and coffee machine. Consumer behaviour and psychologies have always interested me and this provided great insight into the various behaviours. Who knows, next time I might actually sell a few more…

‘A classic piece of ambush marketing” those were the exact words of the Telegraph journalist reporting on Mash’s Pringles activity yesterday at Wimbledon.

‘Companies who pay a small fortune to become an official Wimbledon product might well be wondering how Proctor and Gamble, makers of Pringles crisps, managed to do it for nothing yesterday’.

…Well Mash that’s how!

With a very short turn around, Mash and our partner agency Touch, devised a cunning sampling activity, capitalising on the popularity of the Wimbledon championships. On Wednesday our team of samplers dressed in branded tennis whites (mandatory don’t you know) distributed over 20,000 of the distinctive Pringles tubes (carrying the slogan ‘These are NOT tennis balls!’) to lucky fans heading into the All England Club.

Supported by our tennis legend look a likes, including Roger Federer, Boris Becker and Bjorn Borg, and the staple Sir Cliff of course, the very generous samples proved a huge success with tennis loyalists and media alike.

With coverage from the Telegraph, Washington Business Journal (beats us?), Open Salons Understanding Marketing and the Mail Online, the activity was hailed as a ‘huge marketing coup’, a ‘brilliant piece of ambush marketing’ this simple campaign has proven very effective.

Concluding as I started, here’s a quote from the Telegraph ‘The ubiquitous Pringles tins were quite clearly the most visible brand on show all day’. Mission accomplished.

To see some photos of the activity, please visit our Flickr site.  www.flickr.com/photos/mashr/sets/

The Fantasy Football League is over for another season and it’s time we announced the winners of the annual Mash Of The Day League.

Observors are calling it one of most absorbing seasons yet with twists, turns, PR stunts and gamesmanship aplenty. There are many Mashers out there that feel that the title should have gone to them but as Alan Hansen says “the table doesn’t lie”…

In 1st place and walking away with a cool £120 in Shopping Vouchers…

Chris Powell.

We managed to grab a second of his time in amongst the media scrum that has set up camp outside his South-West Home and he had this to say…”What can I say? Except hats off to my fellow competitors whose relentless pursuit of honours, has driven me to dizzying levels of enthusiasm and focus over the course of a gruelling 9 month season. Particular mention for Steve and Gori, who proved worthy adversaries throughout.

I’m sure it won’t sink in for a couple days, but when the dust settles and the hangover subsides, I intend to start plotting for next season, driving the club onto bigger and better things”.

Congrats to last season’s winner Steve Grant (£50) and Gori Yahaya (£30) who pushed Chris hard all season and walk away with the 2nd and 3rd prizes respectively.

Look out for next season’s Mash of the Day announcement in early August.

If you haven’t played before then come and join in - have a look at the Fantasy League Website to get an idea of the excitement and tension that awaits.

Mash continue to change the eating habits of schoolchildren all over the UK with the fantastic Get Real Fast Food Show which is the brain child of the School Foods Trust. The whole aim of the roadshow is to show (in some disgusting detail!!) what really goes into our burgers and sausages and to really make the kids think twice before they order and indeed cook.

Our bad chefs, good chefs and damn good presenters are telling it to them straight with hilarious results…

So who gets the vote? The Good or the Bad Chef?

For a sneak preview of the show in action…. http://www.getreal.uk.com/

The team have been generating some fantastic PR for this incredibly meaningful and health-oriented campaign.

To meet some of the MASHers changing the way kids eat click here:

http://jackiesschoolfoodblog.blogspot.com/2009/02/real-fast-food-show.html

Look out for the team at a school near you soon!

Flamingos can only eat with their heads upside down

In the week of Red Nose madness The Comic Relief team have hired the greatest minds in advertising to come up with the best ad in British television history. Starring Monkey, Honey Monster, Captain Birdseye and many more.

Enjoy…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BCfGC_dGn4M

Competition is tight at the top of the annual Mash of the Day Fantasy Football Competition….With 9 games to go it is all to play for in the chase for the top prize of £120!

For the Mashers who are playing this year or for new players looking to find out more for next season please log on to:

http://fantasy.premierleague.com/

See you next month!