Use Rugby World Cup 2011 to engage customers and reinforce PAK’nSAVE (New Zealand’s only locally-owned supermarket) as proud supporters of all things New Zealand.Help customers to back the New Zealand All Blacks during the Rugby World Cup 2011.Avoid getting sued by the IRB for aligning with the Rugby World Cup without actually being an official sponsor.And, of course, get customers into PAK’nSAVE stores.

1m customers came into PAK’nSAVE, made a purchase and got their free Supporter-pop. (A great result, considering NZ’s population is just 4m.)1m black tongues were poked out in support of the All Blacks, backing them to becoming world champions.Black tongues saturated PAK’nSAVE’s Facebook page and snuck their way into stadiums, official fanzones and even the Rugby World Cup website.PAK’nSAVE cemented themselves as supporters of the All Blacks, and all things New Zealand.Without being an official sponsor, PAK’nSAVE managed to make its own black-tongued mark on the Rugby World Cup, and avoided costly lawsuits.

To get people instore we wanted to give customers something unique to help them support the All Blacks.

We invented the Supporter-pop: a lollipop made with a special recipe that stained your tongue black.1m Supporter-pops were made and given to customers, free with purchase.Posters, wobblers and bunting promoted Supporter-pops instore.People were encouraged to sneak Supporter-pops into World Cup games or fanzones and poke out their black tongues in support of the All Blacks.Web banners, Facebook ads and checkout staff prompted customers to upload pictures to the PAK’nSAVE Facebook page, where prizes were up for grabs.

Customers needed to visit PAK’nSAVE and make a purchase to get their free Supporter-pop – we made 1m Supporter-pops, driving 1m people instore.Tongue poking has special cultural significance to All Blacks supporters – the tongue poke, called 'The Pukana', is the final defiant act of 'The Haka' – the Maori war challenge famously performed by the All Blacks before every match.The cheeky act of poking out black tongues is in keeping with PAK’nSAVE’s irreverent tone of advertising.Aligning themselves with the World Cup, without paying millions of dollars to do so, is in keeping with PAK’nSAVE’s low price policy.