Magnolia Bakery

Full 360 Marketing Communications Services

Founded in New York City in 1996, Magnolia Bakery is a classic American bakery that is cherished for its wide variety of old-fashioned, freshly baked desserts and warm, inviting atmosphere. For nearly 20 years, Magnolia Bakery has provided patrons across the globe with a range of homemade baked goods and delicious desserts. Magnolia Bakery first opened in Doha in 2013 in Dar Al Salam and followed its first, and highly successful, outlet with a second location opened in December 2015 in Ezdan Mall.

After successfully launching the first Magnolia Bakery in Qatar and setting up all marketing communications services, systems and policies, Qanect was asked to step in once again and provide the necessary guidance and services to launch the new Ezdan Mall outlet.

Challenge

– Utilize the launch of the new outlet to drive maximum awareness for the Magnolia Bakery brand in Qatar (both locations), to drive footfall and increase sales.
– Host both a media event and a brand and social media ambassador event for the opening of Magnolia Bakery at Ezdan mall to drive media and online 3rd party content.
– To further promote Magnolia Bakery’s products and catering /events services.
– To continue to communicate the ethos of Magnolia Bakery to the local target market.

Target Audience

– Business to Customer (B2C)
+ Aspirational Qatari women who possess ability to closely identify with and attain the Magnolia Bakery brand in both their social and corporate lives.
+ Younger Qatari men who enjoy socialising, savoury and sweet treats and networking or relaxing in a comfortable café environment.
+ Expatriates with high levels of disposable income and their associations with the US franchise of Magnolia Bakery,
+ Mothers/Families as a key demographic, as both outlets are located in schooling areas.
+ Aspirational, hardworking and ambitious women – Expatriate, yet still with the ability to identify with and attain the Magnolia brand.

– Business to Business (B2B)
+ Kids Birthday Companies
+ Weddings / Event Companies
+ Hotels – Wedding Coordinators
+ Vendors – Exhibition Centres
+ Arabic Wedding Planners
+ Corporate Events
+ Fashion / Retail Outlets
+ Large family networks (celebrations like Eid, Graduations, Weddings, Births)
+ Networking Groups and Assocations.

Implementation

  • Marketing: To effectively promote the Magnolia Bakery as a brand in Qatar as well as boost communications pre-opening at Ezdan, Qanect implemented monthly tactical marketing activities. These included direct marketing initiatives, on site activations, social media campaigns and a PR/Influencers content campaign.
  • PR: Qanect implemented monthly PR activity for Magnolia Bakery including feature articles in high end lifestyle publications, Q&A’s, monthly listings, Interviews and mass market releases. The combined PR effort ensured Magnolia Bakery benefited from increased awareness in print publications and online and was able to deliver a host of educational key messages on offers, locations and brand messaging.
  • Social Media: Qanect implemented an 8 month Social media activity plan that focused on building relationship with the community and engaging with current customers to generate awareness about Magnolia Bakery. The social media channels were also used to drive campaign content and promotional activity.

Duration

  • September 2015 – May 2016

Results

  • Qanect successfully delivered updated designs and managed the production of stationary, promotional collateral and campaign collaterals throughout the duration of the contract.
  • Qanect planned, booked and managed an intensive online advertising campaign with main page banners, MPU’s, social media advertising campaigns and emailers on key lifestyle sites and pages in the lead up to the launch of the new outlet in Ezdan Mall.
  • Qanect planned and managed a series of media events/ bloggers meetings/ media tastings.
  • Qanect successfully delivered ten tactical promotions and campaigns, at a rate of one a month to maintain front of mind awareness for the brand and its offers.
  • Qanect revitalized the Magnolia social media pages and delivered 8 months of Facebook, Instagram and twitter content, engaging an average of 5,100 new followers (organic), and reached out to an average number of 668,320 people per month with Magnolia bakery posts.