How do you change a cooking tradition that Southeast Asians have been practicing for 3,000 years? Fried food has been a staple cuisine in this region. Amid rising concerns about health risks from high-fat diets, Philips decided it was about time for a change. In 2011, it launched a revolutionary appliance that fries food with air versus oil - the Philips AirFryer.

The challenge of changing deeply entrenched cooking habits in the region was sizable, requiring a demonstration of the product’s benefits and reliability in cooking Asian food. Communications needed to create awareness and excitement around the breakthrough nature of the product, drive purchase, while reinforcing the leadership of Philips in health and well-being with its timely innovations that improve lives.

Research showed many consumers perceive frying appliances negatively based on heavy oil consumption, odour and mess. They also believed air-frying sounded too good to be true and were reluctant to pay beyond a certain price-point to try it.

The campaign strategy focused on 'seeing (and tasting) is believing', building trust among consumers in 6 countries by putting AirFryers into the hands of influencers (chefs, media, bloggers and celebrities) to showcase the product’s ability to fry local recipes with up to 80% less fat.

The message was 'Lose the fat, not the taste', and the execution was in 4 phases that yielded multiple waves of exposure and favourable coverage. With regional fryer sales volumes up more than 300%, Philips was able to command a more than 15% product price increase in Singapore.

The PR campaign in 6 countries centred on the key message of 'Lose the fat, not the taste', bringing this proposition to life at every stage.'Air of excitement' pre-launch media teaser: To create curiosity and pave the way for launch, Philips developed and sent to reporters, producers and bloggers an air-themed launch event email invitation ('Imagine Frying with Air'), followed with deliveries of clear balloons, each containing a fried chicken wing visual inside.Product launch event: A launch event introduced the product and its technology to media in each country in an interactive format that included celebrities and samples of air-fried Asian dishes prepared by a leading chef. Through the AirFryer Challenge, media were invited to guess the estimated amount of fat saved in each air-fried dish.Media test-kitchens: Samples and recipes enabled media and bloggers to personally experience the AirFryer at home as the basis for reviews.

The campaign generated over 200 positive articles including broadcast coverage across media in 6 markets, conveying the AirFryer’s low-fat proposition for healthier diets and Philips as a company focused on health and well-being.

Since the PR introduction of the Philips AirFryer in 2011, Philips’ sales volume in the fryer category increased nearly 350% from 2010 across the 6 target markets. In Indonesia and Singapore in particular, Philips’ sales volume growth of the Fryer category since the introduction of the AirFryer increased over 1,500% and 600% respectively.

More than 30,000 units of the AirFryer have been sold in Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand to date.In Singapore, demand for the product was so strong it warranted a more than 15% price increase 4 months after launch, despite early consumer research indicating that its premium pricing was a potential barrier to purchase.

The product achieved the endorsement of the Singapore Heart Association.