THE RUNDOWN

Rohan Anthony Marley (born 19 May 1972) is an entrepreneur and son of reggae artists Bob Marley and Janet Hunt. In January 2011, Marley advertised a new ‘House of Marley’ range of eco-friendly headphones. The House of Marley high-performance audio products is built on the principles of superior quality, earth-friendliness and a commitment to a global charitable cause. Every product is soulfully designed and engineered to perform at the highest level. You can easily spot the House of Marley headphones from a line-up due to their design and colours. Unlike others, the House of Marley provides a great range of quality headphones at a price that can suit nearly anyone.

Al Douglas was brought on to help launch The House of Marley’s entrée into the marketplace. Al Douglas worked closely with The House of Marley to promote their products, emphasizing their philosophy of “building the beautiful today and tomorrow their father fought for.” Because The House of Marley’s products is all eco-friendly, Al Douglas took great care to show the product that reflected The House of Marley’s authenticity, using only sustainable and recyclable materials.

THE GOALS

• Create a presentation to reflect the philosophy/lifestyle of the brand. • Establish a “vibe” that allowed celebrities and personalities to engage with the product as we showcase and gifted the headphones, earbuds and docking stations being launched. • Use strong messaging at every presentation to incorporate The House of Marley’s commitment to the 1Love charity, where a percentage of every sale is donated to their cause.

THE APPROACH 

• Generated buzz with celebrities by gifting the Marley product. Few companies have a marketing budget to compensate celebrity endorsers, but getting a high quality, branded product in the hands of the right people can create word of mouth buzz, even if those people aren’t on TV every night. You don’t have to pay for endorsements • By capitalising on people’s love of music and their connection to a favourite musician, Al Douglas has assured people that they’re forging an even stronger bond with the music they love through Marley headphones.

THE RESULTS 

• According to digital media follow up Marley’s Facebook fans rose from 41,447 to 149,975 (a 262% increase). From this, page likes increased from 3,000 monthly in 2011 to 15,000 monthly in 2012. Twitter followers rose (from the time of this report) from 11,650 to 21,309 (an 83% increase). • The House of Marley range was exhibited at major UK festivals and events. Al Douglas gifted Marley headsets to celebrities and personalities including Laura Mvula, Emile Sande, Tim Westwood, Maverick Sabre, Fink and Miss Dynamite.