Case Study: Retail
Easy Cookin'
Easy Cookin’ was a fixture in the Boise Towne Square Mall for more than a decade, and relocated to an older strip mall. The store owners knew advertising and public relations would be critical to its success as it faced a new set of challenges – not the least of which was communicating to customers about the new location. The store had tried public relations and advertising activities on its own with limited or no success.
Jeannette Duwe invited Tom Scott Communications Shop (a boutique advertising company) to the table to help design a fully integrated public relations and advertising program. The two firms worked in tandem to ensure appropriate communication to the public occurred throughout the year.
Duwe also developed a community relations campaign designed to communicate:
- Easy Cookin’ is still in operation – just in a new location
- Easy Cookin’ is a locally owned and operated store which is committed to the Treasure Valley
- Increase general awareness for the store and a deserving local charity
- Increase sales momentum through awareness.
The charitable component of the program centered on developing a tailgating cookbook containing more than 50 favorite recipes from local chefs, and Idaho celebrities. The store donated 100-percent of the cookbook’s net profits to Life’s Kitchen, a local culinary school which trains at-risk youth.
By integrating public relations and advertising tactics with precision, Easy Cookin’ was always in the media and at the forefront of culinary customers’ minds and achieved promising increased sales and business growth.
The cookbook campaign enjoyed terrific success and was featured in both major dailies in the Valley and coverage on all four television stations. Local radio morning shows promoted the new cookbook which, in the end raised thousands of dollars for Life’s Kitchen.
The initiative elevated Easy Cookin’ in the eye of the consumer as a true community partner, generated awareness for the new location, increased sales, and promoted visibility for Life’s Kitchen.
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