Starting a new business is full of tricky decisions. And one of the biggest dilemmas for founders is knowing when to launch your first major media campaign.
At Bio&Me, we recently embarked on our first large-scale media push, focusing on building our brand presence across the nation’s capital. Our gut-loving granolas, yoghurts, and flapjacks have been featured on London Underground ads, buses, roadside billboards, and more. We even added radio, podcast ads, and a consumer sampling campaign into the mix.
Since shouting about the activity on LinkedIn, I’ve received countless questions from other startup founders about when is the right time to ‘go large’ with media.
I thought I’d share some insights that might help fellow entrepreneurs to work out when the timing is right. That’s not to say that I or the team are the fountains of all knowledge (far from it). But here’s what drove our thinking…
1. Be patient
When it comes to launching a big media campaign, my first piece of advice might surprise you. I’d say, take a cold shower and tell yourself not to do it!
Once you’ve had the first inkling of an idea, wait a year. And possibly even another year after that. At Bio&Me, we first thought about launching a big media push about three years ago. But time and time again, we made the strategic decision to hold off.
It’s easy for startups to rush exuberantly into putting money into exciting, sexy advertising campaigns, but it’s crucial to build solid distribution before making the jump. Why? Well, if you’re a retail business, like we are, then even if your retail marketing campaign performs well, it’s unlikely to pay off if your brand is only available in a small number of outlets.
Ideally, you want your distribution to be at least 60% before taking the plunge. For larger companies, I know they tend to target around 80% distribution. We took those extra three years to work hard on expanding our distribution before committing to a national launch.
2. Start small and learn what works
Once you decide the time is right, don’t go ‘all in’ from the get-go. Instead, start small and targeted, so you can learn what works best for your business.
At Bio&Me, even though we’re backed by big names such as Harry Kane, we had a moderate budget (much smaller than you might guess). Especially for a London launch.
Whilst wanting to be highly visible across the city, we worked tirelessly to get the best deals and deliver the most targeted campaign possible.
Being focused means we can easily assess what worked and what didn’t work so well. So, you don’t need to have a nationwide rollout right away. A well-placed, highly targeted strategy can help you gauge effectiveness and finesse for future (larger) campaigns.
3. Explore media incentives
When you’re ready to take the step, be sure to look into media company programmes for startups. Many offer special promotional schemes, such as Buy One Get One Free deals on advertising space. Some even have specific startup-focused discounts.
I probably shouldn’t namecheck each provider here, but they’re generally very good. And I commend the media buyers for supporting small businesses in this way. As a startup, these schemes are definitely worth exploring, as they can ensure your budget stretches further.
One word of warning: the only form of scheme I am very sceptical about is equity-for-media schemes. Equity is such a precious commodity and there is no way of knowing the media will give you the return you need, so tread carefully if you decide to go down this route.
4. Amplify impact in-store
One key challenge is measuring your campaign’s effectiveness. Unlike digital ads that can be directly tracked to websites, the impact of out-of-home media is harder to quantify. In my thirty years of marketing, no-one has been able to definitively prove its ROI to me, anyway.
So, how do you ensure your campaign really delivers? The key is to align your media efforts with in-store promotional activity. As part of our recent push, the Bio&Me sales team secured valuable off-shelf displays across the likes of Holland & Barrett, Sainsbury’s, Tesco, The Co-op, Waitrose, with a mix of gondola ends, shippers, and clip strip shelves.
This in-store supermarket visibility, which they planned to coincide with our media campaign, maximised the reach and created a seamless brand experience for consumers. In fact, we only decided to go ahead with the media campaign after confirming these in-store promotions.
We told our sales team back in February that if they could secure the right display opportunities for September, we’d push the button. They delivered, and the alignment made our overall campaign much more effective.
5. Ask around!
For those who are thinking about their first big media launch, I’d recommend reaching out to fellow business leaders for their perspective. If you don’t ask, you don’t get.
If you’re a fellow startup founder, feel free to get in touch with me via LinkedIn if you have any questions or thoughts on the above.
And finally, let me just say, good luck! Your first media campaign is a major milestone to hit. I hope it means you have got off to a great start, and that continues for you.
Jon Walsh founded Bio&Me in 2019 with Dr Megan Rossi. He has a commercial and marketing background spanning 30 years, working on some of the UK’s best-known FMCG brands including P&G and Nestlé. The business is now the fastest-growing gut health brand in the country, with sales of over £10m, and featured in the Startups 100 last year.
For more expert advice, why not listen to the Speaking of Startups podcast? Hear from our inspiring guests and their treasure trove of tips for aspiring founders.
