The Activation Game
A year ago – remember what was happening about a year ago? – we decided that we’d take
a different route when it came to creating and launching a new Nicotine Replacement
product to the market. And it had to be different in many ways.
Different in its name, different in its design, and different in the way we took it to market.
In a nutshell that’s how Xero was born. A contemporary, fully loaded – and fully disposable
– vape pod system created to offer smokers an easier, simpler and stress-free alternative to
the current smoking cessation choices out there. But there are plenty of choices out there
for smokers who are looking to start stopping. That’s why it’s more that just a great product
that’s needed, it’s a great POS and display system that’s needed too. A system that retailers
and distributors look at and think ‘You know what, this will sell!’
We knew potential customers would like and buy Xero, we just needed retailers to ‘buy in’
to Xero. Buy in to the concept, the design, the USP and of course, the bottom line.
We like to call it the snowball scenario. Firstly create a test market in a few areas around the
UK. These were to be the very first UK retailers to try out the Xero Experience.
We know how important – and expensive – a retail footprint is in all shapes and sizes of stores. That’s
why we created a super-powerful POS design system that required tiny countertop spaces
to do it’s work. Combined with the offer of compact CDU designs that offered even more
impact and stand out in an already crowded display space. Retailers now had real choices, a
beautiful yet functional product AND product display, marketing materials and assets that
not only sold Xero to them, it also sold it to their customers.
The test worked. From week 1 to week 10 the word spread. Sales were on the up, and at a
pretty impressive trajectory. Retailers wanted ‘in’ on Xero and most importantly they also
wanted ‘in’ on iBreathe. The site activation numbers speak for themselves. Week on week,
more and more retailers across the UK were now requesting and selling Xero and iBreathe
products. All through one brilliant idea at the start of lockdown 2020.
And the ‘snowball’ reference? How’s this: Week 1 and 2 in February 60, new store
installations and activations. Week 3 in February, 100 new activations. Week 4? 160 new
activations. And the trend is continuing. We’re now almost at the end of March and
currently on target to activate 180 retailers.
Different doesn’t have to be a risk does it? Xero is different. iBreathe is different. And the
big difference, an amazing bottom line and a rise in sales (and you know what that means!)
that wasn’t in anyone’s pandemic plan. Want to join us? It’s Easy, it’s iBreathe! Find out
more by contacting us directly, or get in touch here on LinkedIn.