The Long Road to One Show Glory
October 6th, 2009So this year, The One Show Student contest was focused on Long’s horseradish. Our task: instigate an obsession with horseradish that would trigger an onslaught of online ordering. Basically, mission impossible.
After determining that people eat it, and even like it, we cautiously proceeded to try it on toast and immediately regretted it. However, after interviewing several foodie friends we found that those who use their kitchens appreciate horseradish. So we took aim at this ramen-averse crew. After a particularly long staring contest between my team and some wooden beams, a fresh idea came. Since Long’s is bottled and on the shelf in hours, it seemed brand-appropriate for it to provide intel about what’s fresh and seasonal in grocery stores. Interesting, said our teacher, but being the idea killer that he was, he suggested we make it easy and useful.
Enter the Shotcode.
Hold for the Wikipedia explanation: it’s a free mobile application. So for Long’s, we’d stick mini banners in shopping carts and baskets, prompting people to find out what foods are freshy fresh, based on season. How to accomplish this? Shoppers take a picture of the shotcode on the mini banner, which routes them to the Long’s website. There they find the best seasonal grub and a recipe to put that grub to use. (Surprise, all these recipes include Long’s horseradish.) For convenience, the recipe chosen is sent via e-mail, along with a link to buy Long’s online. Cause peeps be wanting it bad after bookmarking “Steak sandwiches with caramelized onions and horseradish.” Inspired by this insider info, people can gather the appropriate accoutrement for a truly fresh feast. Kinda cool right, but don’t take my word for it, check out the video link below for the full effect. Oh, and we got Finalist status for the Website category, in case you were wondering.
