In Focus

Online candy campaigns: 6 case studies

Mira Schwirtz
Creative Posted on August 03, 2009

Sweet and sticky

They may be alluring in the candy aisle, but not all candy brands are finding a sweet spot online. M&M's has been the most aggressive in web marketing, launching several successful gaming or "activity" sites around the world. U.K.-based Cadbury engaged 154,000 users in May with its "Creme Egg Twisted" site, and Skittles created buzz when it redesigned its website as an unfiltered channel for Twitter feeds and Facebook riffs. But other brands, notably Nestle and Hershey's stable of candy, have been more muted, if not invisible.

Together, these companies' online campaigns reflect the ways in which brand perception is tied to gaming, movie tie-ins, video, and social media, and how these channels, in turn, help refine brand perception. Here are some profiles of recent candy campaigns that provide a lesson for companies both in and outside of this unique niche.

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Comments

Leslie Cawley
Leslie Cawley August 8, 2009 at 5:55 PM

Hey, who doesn't dream of being something totally different like an M and M. Come on, most of us like them, I favor the plain myself and they are cool. They also care wi th the pink ones proceeds going to breast cancer research.
Besides, candy is suppossed to be fun and enjoyed while you eat. And did I mention that calories don't count when eating them with friends? Just thought I would add that in case anyone didn't know.

Frank Westall
Frank Westall August 3, 2009 at 11:00 AM

Maybe this is a silly comment, but if the Sweet Confectionary industry is trying to create a greater social presence and they are spending as much as they do(which it is obvious they do). Why aren't they creating more multi-player interactive games/presence on all the major social networks and then connecting them back into a greater URL presence game?

By that I don't mean a simple fan site but games more akin to what is being offered now, E.G. concept game like my Hershey Kisses Store, where the more members gathered and that send out all the various kind of kisses will be able to create points for various virtual(and real) items offered up by the company.

I say this because while having 145K members is nice and even having 400K uniques is cool, wouldn't it be better to have 1 million new members a month (registering) who would then convert into real sales and thus real opportunities? I find it amazing that "branded" companies feel their name is good enough to pull people but yet when they stand toe to toe with other game offers, they get blown away. At that point they think it does not matter because it is only the internet and those viewers are not really that monetizable in a direct fashion.

A quick reality check there are multiple sites that garner no less that $50 per person per month in virtual item purchases. The virtual item business is easily going to blow past $1 Billion in revenue(this year). Now that is a lot of Hershey Kisses and M & M's ;-). (now where is that bag of M&M's I was eating?)
FranktheTank