In a category where retailers typically compete on price and visibility, Albert Heijn, the supermarket retailer, chose a different path. Together with DPG Media, the brand moved beyond traditional sponsorship to become an essential part of the story of the prime-time music show Lift You Up on VTM.
DPG Media worked through Integreate, its creative hub, to shape that role before the media plan became a list of spots, pre-roll and placements. The case was built around the “backstage rider”: the list of items artists or coaches ask to have available backstage before a performance.
In a festival and concert country like Belgium, artist riders often capture people’s imagination, from blue M&Ms to a special bottle of champagne. Albert Heijn used that familiar idea, but made sure the rider options consisted only of healthy and energy-rich products. This also linked the concept to the company’s mission: “making better food accessible to everyone.”
The creative idea, from “rider” to grocery list
The campaign idea was built around a simple cultural parallel:
Just as a music artist needs a “Backstage Rider” to perform, a family needs a grocery list to live.
The team built an Albert Heijn-style pop-up supermarket on set. It appeared in the backstage environment and supported the storyline around what artists and coaches might want before going on stage.
For viewers, the store belonged to the preparation world around the performances: food, drinks, small preferences and last-minute needs. Albert Heijn could appear through the set and the storyline, instead of only through a logo or a break bumper.
For the advertiser, the link was practical. A rider is a list of personal preferences. A grocery list works in a similar way. The programme idea could therefore connect the show with product choices, store material and social content.
The execution, from screen to shelf
The campaign ran across eight episodes over eight weeks.
On VTM, the media plan included 2 x 7-second billboards around eight episodes, with 16 billboards in total. Each week, Albert Heijn used a different billboard to feature that week’s rider product. The VTM plan also included product placement, storyline integrations and end-credit presence in four episodes.
The storyline integrations gave contestants a short moment to imagine what would happen if they won: their look, their dream stage and their rider on tour. Their answers ranged from healthy food to keep up with touring to guilty-pleasure snacks for a break.
On VTM GO, DPG Media’s free online video-on-demand platform, the plan included pre-roll around Lift You Up, product placement and storyline integrations.
The campaign then moved from screen to shelf. Every week, the products requested by artists and contestants were curated into a “Rider of the Week.” Viewers who saw the products featured during the broadcast could find the same selection available the next morning through the Albert Heijn app and promotional leaflet. The weekly brochure also carried Lift You Up branding with the rider concept.
Social media gave viewers a way to use the same idea themselves. Albert Heijn used contestants in social posts built around product and rider dilemmas, while VTM platforms also used the rider question in their own social content. The campaign invited audiences to “Create Your Own Rider”, turning the rider into a simple participation mechanic.
Albert Heijn also used its own channels for in-store branding, social content and product activation. The TV show introduced the rider. VTM and VTM GO kept the brand close to the programme. Store material brought the idea closer to featured products.
The buyer could see what each part of the plan was doing: reach around the show, brand presence inside the show, audience interaction on social, and product visibility in store.
For DPG Media, the commercial work started before the final inventory plan. The sales house first defined where the brand could credibly appear in the format, then added spots, pre-roll, placements, social content and store extensions around that role.
Results connected viewing, brand health and sales signals
Lift You Up reached more than 800,000 viewers per episode and achieved a 39% market share.
The campaign strengthened Albert Heijn’s brand indicators among viewers. Top-of-mind awareness tripled among viewers of Lift You Up, with a x3.4 uplift. Among occasional or non-shoppers, consideration for Albert Heijn increased by 14 percentage points.
It also delivered a measurable short-term sales uplift on featured rider products, as well as high acceptance scores for the integration; but also signs of cultural impact, with audiences using “rider” terminology in social conversations.
Together, these results give buyers a broader view of the campaign’s performance: reach, brand health, retail signals and delivery of placements.