Cows and chatbots deliver a 29% increase in footfall to Chesterfield

Cows and chatbots may seem like an odd combination but it’s what’s helped to deliver a 29% increase in footfall to a Chesterfield shopping centre. 

In celebration of ‘Chesterfield in Bloom’, a number of floral installations in the shape of cows were placed at the Vicar Lane shopping centre. 

Working with Maybe*, Vicar Lane launched a competition to name the cows and win a £50 shopping voucher. The purpose of this was to build awareness of the installation and drive footfall. 

Once someone left a comment on the post with their name suggestion, a chatbot would message them via Facebook with details on how to enter. 

The competition: To enter people had to physically visit the installation which is what helped increase footfall. 

The chatbot: Gathered opted-in contacts that can be contacted again and encouraged entrants to follow them on social media channels. 

The selfie: The competition a much wider reach by asking entrants to take  a selfie and upload it to their social channels - showcasing the installation to many others.   

The hashtag: Using the #vicarlanecows allowed  Vicar Lane to track the competition and see all the entries being shared. 

The result?

• Over the past 6 months the combination great local events supported by market leading tech has delivered a 29% increase in footfall.
• An abundance of content from real customers which were shared on their own social channels and repurposed on Vicar Lane social channels. 
• New, opted-in contacts that can be contacted again with future marketing.