Source: Heinze, A., Fletcher, G., Rashid, T., & Cruz, A. (Eds.). (2017). Digital and Social Media Marketing: A Results-Driven Approach. Routledge. Accessible online http://mastersindigitalmarketing.org/book/ #passion4digital This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

1. Source: Heinze, A., Fletcher, G., Rashid, T., & Cruz, A. (Eds.). (2017). Digital and Social Media
Marketing: A Results-Driven Approach. Routledge. Accessible online
http://mastersindigitalmarketing.org/book/ #passion4digital This work is licensed under a Creative
Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Chapter 9 - Content Marketing
Case Study Chapter 9: JW Lees
Turning online traffic into offline footfall in JW Lees pubs
Image: home page of jwlees.co.uk reproduced with kind permission of JW Lees
Overview
Establishedin1828, JW Leesnowmanages35 of itspubs,innsand hotelsanda further115 pubsand
innsletthroughindependentlicenses.JWLeespridesitself onitsqualityalesandfoodatgreat value
for money.
To turn online traffic into offline footfall within the JW Lees pubs, JW Lees selected Venn as its
chosen digital marketing agency. Together, they launched the ‘Beer Hop’ campaign. The Beer Hop
promoted an offer to try three JW Lees beers for the price of two. This deal was fulfilled by a

2. Source: Heinze, A., Fletcher, G., Rashid, T., & Cruz, A. (Eds.). (2017). Digital and Social Media
Marketing: A Results-Driven Approach. Routledge. Accessible online
http://mastersindigitalmarketing.org/book/ #passion4digital This work is licensed under a Creative
Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
downloadablevouchercode,providedatthe endof the BeerHop,that entitleduserstoathird off in
one of four JW Lees pubs.
The aims included the following:
● Promotion of JW Lees cask ales
● Encourage drinkers to try alternatives to their usual drink
● Bring an offline market online
Implementation

3. Source: Heinze, A., Fletcher, G., Rashid, T., & Cruz, A. (Eds.). (2017). Digital and Social Media
Marketing: A Results-Driven Approach. Routledge. Accessible online
http://mastersindigitalmarketing.org/book/ #passion4digital This work is licensed under a Creative
Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Image: reproduced with kind permission of JW Lees
The Beer Hop microsite - http://www.beerhop.co.uk/ - was designed around an interactive ‘fruit
machine’,tohelpbeerloversdiscoverJWLees’alesandlearnaboutthe differenttastes on offer. To
do this,userswere askedtoselectthe flavour and the colour of their perfect pint, after which they
would be presented with three suggestions tailored to their taste.

4. Source: Heinze, A., Fletcher, G., Rashid, T., & Cruz, A. (Eds.). (2017). Digital and Social Media
Marketing: A Results-Driven Approach. Routledge. Accessible online
http://mastersindigitalmarketing.org/book/ #passion4digital This work is licensed under a Creative
Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Venn also designed promotional posters, drip mats and tap hooks to reinforce the campaign and
entice ale loversonline to find the perfect pint and download their voucher. From the smartphone
app to the coasters, Venn made sure users were immersed in the Beer Hop at every touch of their
drinking experience.
While beerwill alwaysbe onJW Lees’customers’ lips, the Beer Hop campaign was launched during
national CaskAle Weektoensure it receivedmaximuminterestfromale loversonrelevantsites and
social media. To reach the right people, Venn also ran Facebook advertising throughout the
campaignand introducedadisplaycampaigntowardsthe end,togive traffictothe site a final boost.
To bolsterthe BeerHop campaign,a social mediacompetitionwasalsolaunched,where people who
included#weightinbeerinaTweetor Facebookpost,could win their weight in JW Lees’ beer. Venn
tooka fullyintegratedapproachandsupportedthe social mediacompetition with an e-shot sent to
everyone on JW Lees’ mailing list.
Results
It’s hard to argue with the results. This short, five-week campaign brought almost 10,000 unique
visitors to the Great JW Lees Beer Hop site. More than 675 vouchers were downloaded over this
period at a staggering conversion rate of 7%.
Targeted outreach generated over 2,000 conversations with industry leaders on social media and
secured placements on 10 high profile websites including the MEN, Cask Ale Week and Prolific
North.
Further Information
The campaign won the Best Digital Marketing Campaign for Travel/Leisure in Prolific North’s 2016
Awards.
http://www.jwlees.co.uk/
http://www.beerhop.co.uk/
Discussion Questions
1. What type of content formats were used within this campaign?
2. What digital marketing channels were most effective in amplifying the content?
3. What were the core KPIs?
4. How could this campaign have been amplified further?

5. Source: Heinze, A., Fletcher, G., Rashid, T., & Cruz, A. (Eds.). (2017). Digital and Social Media
Marketing: A Results-Driven Approach. Routledge. Accessible online
http://mastersindigitalmarketing.org/book/ #passion4digital This work is licensed under a Creative
Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Class Activities
1. Should you have been given the same objectives and client, how would you plan a similar
campaign? Consider the following:
● Strategy
● Buyer persona
● Content
● Digital marketing channels
● Public relations approaches