Securing end-of-aisle space without in-store discounting.
A top-3 global cereal brand used Hive IP unique codes to run a ‘Buy 3, get 1 free’ on-pack mechanic. Three unique codes across three packs unlocked a free-cereal voucher — redeemable in store. The promotion delivered shelf space, share, and a powerful consumer database for follow-up activity.
- Promotions
- On-pack
- Cereal
- Anonymised
The brief
The brand wanted to win additional off-shelf retail presence without resorting to price discounting at the till. They also wanted to capture consumer data they could re-engage later with a follow-up “free cereal & milk” campaign.
Their existing supply chain for generating, printing and validating unique codes was complex, expensive and fragmented across multiple parties — raising both cost and security concerns.
The mechanic
Each pack carried a unique code. Three codes (one per pack) submitted by the same consumer unlocked a printable voucher redeemable in store for a free pack. The codes were single-use and validated centrally; the audit trail tied every entry back to a specific consumer record for the follow-up campaign.
Hive IP’s role
Hive IP delivered the end-to-end programme: code generation, in-factory print integration, cloud validation, and fraud monitoring — replacing what had previously been a fragmented chain of suppliers with a single integrated platform.
The results
- +3.2% market-share uplift over the promotional period.
- End-of-aisle space won from major grocery retailers, without paying for the listing or running in-store discounts.
- ~£750,000 saved on fixed-fee promotional insurance, alongside ~£1m saving across overall campaign costs.
- 78%+ reduction in code-print cost versus the legacy packaging-supplier approach.
- Hundreds of thousands of consumer records captured, used to run a more efficient follow-up campaign.
Related
Let’s see what unique codes could do for your next campaign.
Whether you’re running global promotions on hundreds of millions of packs, launching a single digital push, or scoping a brand-protection programme — we’ll build the right route in.
Or get straight in touch: info@hiveip.co.uk