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As marketers, you often have the chance to engage in truly interesting initiatives, including creative campaigns, groundbreaking advertising, and sponsorship programs that resonate with millions.
We sat down with TJ Rooney, President of Loacker North America, as part of our Campaign Corner+ series. We wanted to understand how the brand plans to engage in a year-long celebration to mark its 100th anniversary, which includes several strategic sponsorship programs. Throughout the interview, TJ also shares some of the strategies that Loacker takes in its process of deciding sponsorship partners to the measurement of programs.
I’m TJ Rooney and I’ve proudly served as President of Loacker North America, for more than six years. I oversee operations at the company, I’m responsible for the success of the brand and driving the strategic vision into the next 100 years in North America. As a business development professional, I thrive on building brands while delivering results in highly competitive categories.
What is the most exciting thing about your role?
TJ - Innovation and being able to provide consumers with something new that fulfills their unmet needs. My team and I thrive on generating the best ideas by engaging with Loacker’s consumers. By prioritizing open communication and understanding their needs, we can identify and fix potential gaps in the market. For instance, Loacker Quadratini is one of our most popular products but was only available in large bags. Consumers and retailers told us they wanted smaller bags for on-the-go occasions. This year, we will be launching two varieties, Hazelnut and Chocolate, in a 54g bag that is convenient and ideal for sharing on-the-go.
How did your partnership come to life?
TJ - While planning for Loacker’s 100th anniversary year and ideating on how to celebrate with consumers in Canada, we worked with our local agency partners, Strategic Objectives and my marketing department, to develop a year-long PR and communications plan to raise awareness and generate news about this momentous occasion.
TJ - The brand itself has remained true to the same values around the best ingredients, products and recipes for a century. The evolution of the brand continues with each new generation of consumers – from a tiny bakery in the Alps to now being distributed in more than 100 countries. From word of mouth in a single village to reaching millions of fans at once through Tik Tok. TJ - Since joining Loacker, we have been able to leverage best practices between Canada and the US. Some of the most successful marketing in the US started in Canada first! TJ - For Loacker, a brand that is focused on the legacy of the ingredients, recipes and core values – unchanged for a century – we need to make sure that each partnership aligns with each of these elements and makes sense for our audience. To celebrate the 100th anniversary in Canada, the partnership with Jenna Rae Cakes was a natural fit. Jenna Rae Cakes is also a family business (Jenna and Ashley are twin sisters and co-owners), and prides itself on delivering quality, wholesome products and rebelling against shortcuts, just like Loacker. TJ - Partnerships can take on many forms – in Canada, we are partnering with Canadian entrepreneurs Jenna Hutchinson and Ashley Kosowan of Jenna Rae Cakes to build a 100-layer cake to commemorate Loacker’s 100th anniversary and giving away 300 pieces of the cake to the community at several Jenna Rae Cakes bakery locations on Thursday, April 3. We are also leveraging their expertise and experience to lend their voices to media interviews about their involvement in the program. Jenna and Ashley also have a significant social media presence, and they will also share the news on their channels with dynamic content of the baking process and big reveal. TJ - We work with local agency partners who contract personalities and partnerships based on newsworthiness and like-minded values. Does it fit with the program at-hand? Also is it a fit for the partners and a natural fit for their brand, not a force fit. Also to ensure it is a fit for the partners and a natural fit for their brand, not a force fit. TJ - A challenge we had to navigate around for this partnership was timing – getting a 100-layer anniversary cake made, in market and distributed around the first quarter of this year. The cake itself takes three days of baking and there’s no room for error. TJ - With the help of our communications partners, we localize messaging by leveraging global office direction on themes and priorities for the year. The 100th anniversary is a global celebration, but how the challenge was partnering with unique spokespeople in Canada that can embody Loacker’s values and communicate them in an authentic way. 100 years of Loacker, what’s the biggest change with the brand since you first joined?
How has your focus changed since first joining?
Can you describe the key factors or criteria you consider when evaluating sponsorship opportunities for our company?
How do you assess the alignment between a potential sponsorship opportunity and your company's marketing objectives and target audience?
What metrics or measurements do you prioritize to evaluate the success and ROI of a sponsorship initiative?
What emerging trends in sponsorship should marketers know, and how do they impact decision-making for sponsorship opportunities?
What role do audience demographics and psychographics play in your decision-making process when selecting sponsorships?
How do you navigate negotiations with potential sponsorship partners to ensure mutually beneficial agreements?
Can you discuss a time when you had to deal with unforeseen challenges or risks related to a sponsorship deal? How did you address them?
How do you ensure that sponsored events or initiatives are integrated seamlessly into our broader marketing campaigns and messaging?
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