Building a brand on the board
George Mead is busy driving Beko’s biggest ever marketing investment
What’s your background? I have over 10 years’ experience in consumer electronics, having worked at companies including Panasonic, HP and LG Electronics. I spent seven years at LG and left as head of consumer marketing, after joining as a marketing executive in 2006. In my time there, I was responsible for product, and consumer marketing within the electronics category. My role included planning the marketing
strategy and implementing ATL activity across multiple platforms, as well as managing key partnerships with BSkyB and Formula 1. I joined Beko plc in February 2013, with a view to helping transform the brand’s perception – which has been challenging but rewarding.
Tell us a bit about Beko. Since launching in the UK 23 years ago, Beko’s product development has always been led by consumer insight: a strategy which has helped secure it the top spot as the UK’s best-selling home appliance manufacturer*. With products spanning the cooking, laundry, dishwasher and refrigeration categories, the brand has sold over 20 million appliances since entering the British market.
Astonishing things can
be achieved by bringing the benefits of the digital and traditional world together
Right now, I’m driving Beko’s biggest ever
marketing investment with a £6m ATL (Above The Line) and BTL (Below The Line) campaign amplifying the brand’s quality messaging. With the campaign predicted to reach a massive 43.5 million strong audience, we’re really excited to see the impact this has on the business. The campaign highlights Beko’s average 9/10 product score on independent customer review website, Reevoo, reinforcing messaging around its high quality standards and excellent product reliability.
What’s your working week like? Busy! I start the day with a commute which takes me through Richmond Park, normally
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www.innovativeelectricalretailing.co.uk
What are the most rewarding and challenging aspects of your job? The most rewarding aspect has to be watching a campaign translate into a real shift in consumer perception and. in turn, an increase in sales - tangible results like this make it worth all the effort. Recently I saw our 9/10 campaign has increased traffic to our site by over 60%, retailer sales are up 50%, and the quality perception of our brand is at its highest rate. It’s these types of results that make it so worthwhile. The most challenging aspect is convincing consumers to upgrade their appliances. For example, the innovative air-cool technology in
Name one change you would make to the electrical industry. We’ve already started to see some of the astonishing things that can be achieved by bringing the benefits of the digital and traditional world together. “ The complete synergy of these two areas would be a change I’d love to see.
What advice would you give to someone starting out in the electrical industry? Find your passion and you’ll do great things.
*GfK, Total MDA 6.Volume Sales July 2012- June 2013
October 2013
hitting about 30 minutes of traffic before I arrive at our brand new office in Watford. I try to spend Mondays prioritising actions for the week ahead and I usually spend one day a week visiting our agencies – they are all based in London, and are really helping us along this exciting journey.
What’s the one thing that you couldn’t do your job without? My laptop and phone – I need both!
Above Left: George Mead. Above Right: Expanding Beko’s multi-zone technology into the 90cm category, the CFF6873GR fridge freezer
What’s keeping you busy? We’re in the middle of planning 2014 campaigns – there’s some really exciting projects planned, including our season two activation of The FA Cup. I’m also focused on ensuring our current ATL, social and PR campaigns are all running smoothly.
What’s on your agenda? We will be continuing with the progress we’ve made building the Beko brand this year- and 2014 is set to be even bigger and better - watch this space.
What do you do to relax? Watch my beloved Portsmouth Football Club play – although these days it isn’t so relaxing to see us get beaten by the likes of Fleetwood Town (no joke – we did lose to these guys recently).
Beko’s new washer dryer can help consumers save up to 7,500 litres of water per year – that’s equivalent to 95 bath tubs.
What is the biggest issue facing the electrical industry?
Educating consumers about the advances in technology. Most shoppers for white goods won’t have been in the electrical marketplace for many years, so aren’t aware of the newest innovation. It’s vital that manufacturers take every opportunity to highlight developments. The advancements in energy efficiency
and features such as super-quick dishwasher and washing machine cycles can help improve people’s everyday lives, by saving them time and money – which is something that we’re aware is important in today’s time-poor society.
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