Case Study: Virbac Animal Health
Virbac Animal Health
April 2000 – October 2001
Estimated Budget: $750,000
Challenge
Virbac produces and distributes a line of preventive oral hygiene products for cats and dogs under the name C.E.T. This brand has 90 percent penetration in the veterinary channel, and is, by far, the leader in a $7 million market. However, Virbac felt that the market potential was not fully realized and asked my team to come help boost sales.
Solution
From a combination of primary and secondary research, I found that the core of this issue was a lack of consumer and veterinarian education regarding the need for a regular program of preventive oral hygiene. This low awareness of the issue resulted in not only a market without significant competition, but also one with lackluster overall sales. The size of the market needed to expand, and Virbac would benefit from this increase. The pet-owning population needed to be aware of the need for regular preventive oral hygiene. The challenge was that my client needed to tell this story to a national audience without a national advertising budget.
On behalf of the agency, I developed a relationship with Morris Animal Foundation, a non-profit organization dedicated to the health and well being of companion animals and wildlife. 
With Morris, we created a public service campaign, which featured Morris Foundation president and acclaimed actress Betty White as national spokesperson. The PSA extolled the health benefits of regular oral hygiene for cats and dogs, and asked pet owners to talk to their veterinarians for more information. With Virbac’s channel penetration, C.E.T. would be the veterinarian’s first product recommendation.
Result
In the first 9 months after launch, this campaign generated more than 52 million impressions at no media cost to the client. The team was able to secure regular rotation on the CBS network, broadcasting to all 210 major media markets. Awareness of the issue burgeoned and veterinarians reported significantly increased traffic. C.E.T. sales grew nearly 25 percent from the previous year.
This increase also laid the foundation for implementing our proposed national brand advertising in 2003, which created an additional 40-percent spike in sales. In addition, many in the industry point to the success of this campaign as the catalyst for other competitors entering the oral hygiene market.
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