ILLUMINATION LIGHTING – ‘YOU DEFINE THE MOOD’
Case Study
Key takeaway
When growing a retail business, combining high-visibility outdoor advertising with a modern e-commerce website helps you capture customers at the exact moment they are looking to buy. Giving shoppers the tools to see products in their own homes before buying is an excellent marketing strategy to increase online sales and drive showroom visits.
Strategist’s Insight – Robert Doran
“”After the success of last year’s indoor campaign, we knew we had a winning formula. But let’s face it, getting people to think about garden lighting in Ireland can be a tough sell when it rains nine months of the year.
Our approach was to focus entirely on the feeling of those long, rare summer evenings, that you just don’t want to end. We didn’t want to just show bulbs and switches on a page. By showing real, beautiful outdoor moments on commuter billboards and backing it up with a website that lets you preview the lights in your own garden, we made the choice easy for homeowners.”
The Brief
Illumination Lighting wanted to promote its newly expanded physical showroom in Donabate, Dublin, alongside its online store. Following a successful indoor campaign last year, the brief was to launch a summer campaign called “You Define the Mood.” The goal was to convince homeowners that garden lighting isn’t just functional, but a key part of creating a comfortable outdoor living space.
The Strategy
Our plan focused on emotional storytelling across multiple advertising channels, supported by a major upgrade to their online shopping platform.
High-Visibility Commuter OOH: Placing large-format outdoor adverts along major Dublin travel routes to catch homeowners during their daily drive.
Story-Led Radio Advertising: Using local radio spots to describe the perfect summer evening, helping listeners picture the products without needing to see them instantly.
Interactive E-Commerce: Building a brand-new online store that focuses on inspiration and ease of use, making the journey from seeing an ad to buying a light completely seamless.
The Implementation
Creative & Multi-Media Campaign (Rage)
We organised a professional location photoshoot featuring model Sophie Vavasseur in beautifully designed garden settings. These images formed the backbone of our outdoor billboards across Dublin, showing how different lights create feelings of warmth, relaxation, and social fun. We backed this up with targeted social media adverts and radio slots that focused on how the right lighting transforms small, everyday moments.
E-Commerce & Digital Tools (Tilt)
The digital team completely rebuilt Illumination’s e-commerce website. Moving away from boring grid layouts of product shots, we focused on clean, modern design. Crucially, we included a smart visual tool on the site. Customers can take a quick photo of their own garden or living room, upload it, and instantly see how different lights would look in their home before spending any money.
The Results
Massive Brand Footprint: The combination of Dublin commuter billboards and radio spots successfully put the Donabate showroom on the map for local homeowners.
Higher Online Sales: The new, simple e-commerce checkout loop made it much faster for customers to browse, test lights using the upload tool, and complete their purchases.
Stronger Customer Connection: Shifting the advertising message from “functional fixtures” to “summer moods” helped Illumination Lighting stand out completely from traditional DIY and hardware competitors.
