Friday 18 September, Nobu Hotel, London
James and Sean are sitting at a table when the Gold award for Best Trial and/or Acquisition Campaign is read out. It's us. Plenish x Hashting, with a campaign called "Give it a shot". Later that afternoon the same campaign wins again. This time it's Bronze, for Best Use of Data and Insights.
What these awards are
The IPM Awards are the UK's biggest recognition for promotional marketing. Winning isn't easy. Every campaign is judged in two rounds, with marks for three things: how creative it was, how smart the plan was, and whether it really worked. Every winner also has to follow the CAP Code, the UK rulebook that keeps adverts and promotions fair and honest.
Why two awards for one campaign is special
One prize was about getting new buyers. The other was about learning from information. We checked the full list of winners: Plenish was the only campaign that won in both of those categories. That made us ask why. The answer is useful for anyone who sells through shops.
The problem: a drink nobody had tried yet
Plenish makes plant-based drinks. The new bottles and shots were already in UK shops, but people weren't trying them yet. Getting people to try something for the first time is called trial, and brands spend a lot on it. Here's the tricky part: when you buy a drink, you pay the shop. The shop has the record of the sale, the brand doesn't. So most trial campaigns can only count samples given away or coupons used. Those numbers can't tell the brand who bought, in which shop, or what it cost to win that buyer.
What we did: the whole journey, step by step
The campaign ran in two waves. The first launched in October 2025 and performed well enough for Carlsberg Britvic to renew immediately. The second ran from January 2026 through the year. 100% of rewards went to verified buyers. Every payout was triggered by a checked receipt, not a form fill or a coupon clip. The follow-up after redemption built a bridge to the repeat purchase. One campaign. Two renewals. Two IPM Awards. And every buyer in the dataset spent their own money.
| Step | What the shopper did | What Plenish learned |
|---|---|---|
| 1. See | Saw the ad on Meta | Which ad brought them in |
| 2. Buy | Bought the drink in any shop | Which shop converted them |
| 3. Prove | Took a photo of the receipt and uploaded it | Who really bought it |
| 4. Reward | Got money back | How much each new buyer cost |
| 5. Come back | Got an invite to buy again | Whether they liked it enough to return |
Lesson one: pay once the purchase is proven
With free samples, a brand pays for every sample, even the ones forgotten in a bag. In our campaign the reward only went out after we checked the receipt. The money went to real buyers, one at a time. Zero waste on unverified claims.
Lesson two: a receipt is stronger than a form
Lots of brands ask people to type in their email to win a prize. That tells you someone wants a prize. A receipt proves someone spent their own money on your drink, in a shop they picked. This is the moment the brand meets its buyer for the first time. Until then, only the shop knew.
Lesson three: the reward and the facts come together
Usually a brand runs a campaign and tries to measure it afterwards. Budget first, learning later, if at all. Here the shopper got the reward by sending the proof. So every reward also gave Plenish a fact: who bought, where, from which ad, at what cost. Getting new buyers gave us the facts. The facts proved we got new buyers. That's why the judges gave us both prizes.
What else won that day
The Grand Prix went to ZEAL for "Aero Lost Bubbles". N2O was named Agency of the Year, with wins for Fanta Haunted Factory and Tesco Goodwoof. People still love promotions: a study by Mando, YouGov and the IPM found that 86 out of every 100 Brits still find them appealing.
Two easy words for your next plan
Guessed trial: you count the samples and coupons, and you guess who bought. Proven trial: you count the receipts, so you know who bought.
One question before you spend next year's money
Planning a campaign for 2027? Ask one question first: how will we prove that people really tried it? Then check five things for every new buyer. Do you know who bought, in which shop, from which ad, at what cost, and whether they came back? Thank you to the Carlsberg Britvic team for trying something new with us, and to the IPM judges for the care they put into every entry. Congratulations to ZEAL, N2O and every team that took a prize home.
- Pay the reward only once the purchase is proven.
- A receipt tells you who bought. A form only tells you who wants a prize.
- When the reward is the proof, every payout is also a fact.
- Swap guessed trial for proven trial in your 2027 plan.
- Want to see a campaign taken apart? Join James and Sean's next session.
