Partner Agencies Help International Contact Lens Manufacturer See the Light

Client: Ciba Vision | Agencies: kirshenbaum bond + partners, Worldwide Partners, Inc.

Insights and outreach spur win against agency conglomerate

Situation

In July 2005, Ciba Vision, a multibillion dollar international Novartis company, narrowed the field for their $25 million golbal FreshLook fashion contact lens business down to Grey Global and Worldwide Partner agency kirshenbaum bond + partners (kbp).  kbp, posiitons as the global lead agency, enlisted fellow partner 23red in London as the European lead agency to oversee strategy and implementation in the U.K., Spain, Germany, France, Italy and Portugal.

Strategy

During the review process, the team of kbp and 23red conducted and presented proprietary market research that showed that the fashion contact lens/appearance enhancement market in Europe is not as developed as that of the United States.  This fact had a fundamental impact on Ciba Vision since the competing agency assumed that the European market was similar to that of the US.  The Worldwide Partners team won the account and has developed a global campaign for FreshLook colored contact lenses.

kirshenbaum bond + partners created "The Color of You" campaign, including a new logo and brand icon, which rolled out globally via outdoor, magazine ads and point-of-sale materials in May 2006.  As the lead European agency, 23red provided strategic development and has implemented the campaign using partner assistance in the U.K., Germany, France, Italy, Spain, and Portugal.

Results

The teamwork of Worldwide Partner agencies has provided Ciba Vision with a greater chance for global success due to the accurate and speedy assessment of their business along with an account-service structure tailored specifically for the company.  Additionally, six Worldwide Partner agencies have obtained incremental new business and income by being part of Worldwide Partners.

Future

The goal is to have FreshLook color lenses achieve global icon status by 2010.  A continued global rollout is planned, with the campaign being translated into Finnish, Norwegian and Greek.  kbp is beginning discussions with Japan to adapt the campaign for the Japanese market.