There were three challenges to the conference launch of Hill’s Prescription Diet Metabolic Advanced Weight Solution:

1) The conference environment is saturated with brand messages from exhibitors, including other pet food companies.

2) While veterinary practitioners frequently see overweight patients, pet obesity is a frustrating and often avoided topic. It was necessary to find a new way to approach the veterinary healthcare team about nutritional management of pet obesity so they understood that this was a revolutionary product innovation.

3) Attendees have limited time in between their CE sessions to visit the exhibit hall. The conference communication needed to be engaging enough to get attendees to the Hill’s booth in order to learn more about the product and place orders.

The strategy was to focus on one main claim to help attendees understand that they could expect something different from this product—88% of pets lost weight at home. Unique marketing tactics were necessary to break through the conference clutter and get attendees interested in hearing about a new weight loss food. By priming the audience with pre-conference communication and being consistent with a singular message, we were able to engage the audience about the product and affect perceptions of nutritional management of pet obesity. We also used guerilla marketing tactics like “picketers” and a singing flash mob to create buzz at the conference. The campaign resulted in an increase in booth traffic, extremely high retention of the main claim, and double the amount of the sales goal for the conference.

Metabolic was the focus of all conferences Hill’s attended for the first half of 2013. The conferences ranged in size, but the “house” booth theme was consistent for all of them. The house booth stood out since it was unexpected on the show floor. Conference attendees were sent an invitation to a “house-warming party” where the new product was announced.

Attendees were also given branded tumblers and fleece blankets to help them feel more at home while they were travelling. The home theme of the booth also encouraged attendees to feel comfortable gathering in the booth, to have a cup of coffee, and have one-on-one discussions with the sales staff.

To garner even more excitement, creative guerilla tactics like having talent walk the convention centre with “picket” signs with the main message and a singing flash mob during the opening session of the conference were used.

An exit interview conducted after attendees viewed the booth presentation resulted in 97% retention of the claim. Additionally, 96% of respondents reported that they were likely or very likely to prescribe Hill's Prescription Diet Metabolic Advanced Weight Solution to their patients.

30% of total audience came to the booth; this generated over 12 million impressions, a huge figure for veterinary-focused media outlets in the US and Canada.

The sales team was able to double the sales goal set for orders taken at the conferences.