When we have an exciting innovation, we want the world to know\u2014and the faster, the better. That\u2019s what drove our latest Reese\u2019s ad campaign, produced by Erich & Kallman, that led up to the big game on February 11.<\/p>\n
Did you hear?\u201d demands the voice of Will Arnett in each of the ads. \u201cWe\u2019re making a big change to Reese\u2019s Peanut Butter Cups.\u201d<\/p>\n
When the characters hear the news, their reactions are over-the-top. Think: pleading emotional meltdowns, table tossing, beating-head-against-wall extreme, and yet, also so relatable. Wouldn\u2019t you cycle through all the stages of grief upon learning that a product you adore\u2014like one of the most beloved candies in America\u2014may be changing?<\/p>\n
But what if you then learned that change was for the better? That Hershey is actually adding a layer of creamy caramel to the Reese\u2019s you love to make Reese\u2019s Caramel Big Cup, and classic Reese\u2019s Peanut Butter Cups are still available?<\/p>\n
Celebration! Everybody dance!<\/p>\n
The strategy <\/p>\n
Being a part of this advertising journey was such a delight. It calls to mind the pain of having something taken away that you always thought would be there, only to realize that the product is still available\u2014and then some. The ad that aired on Feb. 11 features seven characters\u2014six humans and a dog\u2014who each experience their own personalized emotional roller coaster. It\u2019s chaotic, funny and turbulent, all at once. It\u2019s something you could watch again and again to understand the depths of the pain and the elation that each character is feeling.<\/p>\n
And, at its heart, it\u2019s an ad about fandom. People\u2019s feelings about Reese\u2019s are akin to how people feel about their favorite teams. If the logo changes, the colors switch and the stadium moves, lives are disrupted. Chaos ensues.<\/p>\n
The decision to air the ad during the football event of the year was an important one. In this streaming era, where viewers watch their favorite programs on various channels and platforms and according to their schedules, it\u2019s hard to find moments of togetherness. Football\u2019s favorite Sunday is practically an American holiday and a cherished cultural event. People tune in to the most-watched show of the year for their own reasons, whether it\u2019s the game, the commercials, the half-time show or all of the above. Regardless of their motivations, they\u2019ll all have highlights to talk about after the big game. We wanted Reese\u2019s Caramel Big Cup to be a part of that Monday conversation, and we made sure that retail shelves were stocked and ready for all the consumers excited to try this new flavor combination.<\/p>\n
The story arc we built for the ad wasn\u2019t limited to the 30-second Feb. 11 time slot. We created mysterious tea that played for a couple of weeks leading up to the big game, warning viewers that change is afoot but stopping short of the big reveal. We also enlisted influencers, like Jason Kelce, to share their reaction of sheer terror at the thought of a world without their beloved Reese\u2019s. We have some other tricks up our sleeve with similarly themed ads to air in the future.<\/p>\n
The why<\/p>\n
You don\u2019t take just any product to the big game. It\u2019s been four years since we created our only other game day ad (in 2020, we advertised Reese\u2019s Take 5), and it\u2019s an enormous undertaking for us. But as we thought about the business strategy of how we get the most trial on a product that we feel is a great innovation, the big game became a very relevant tactic.<\/p>\n
While working on this campaign, I kept thinking about the thousands of people who have made Reese\u2019s Caramel Big Cup a reality, including teams in research and development, innovation, supply chain, sales and retail. They\u2019ve done a remarkable job. Now, it\u2019s up to the rest of us to ensure that consumers know just how delicious this latest innovation is so they don\u2019t miss an opportunity to fall in love with that orange wrapper again.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
When we have an exciting innovation, we want the world to know\u2014and the faster, the better. That\u2019s what drove our latest Reese\u2019s ad campaign, produced by Erich & Kallman, that led up to the big game on February 11. Did you hear?\u201d demands the voice of Will Arnett in each of the ads. \u201cWe\u2019re making a big change to Reese\u2019s Peanut Butter Cups.\u201d When the characters hear the news, their reactions are over-the-top. Think: pleading emotional meltdowns, table tossing, beating-head-against-wall extreme, and yet, also so relatable. Wouldn\u2019t you cycle through all the stages of grief upon learning that a product you adore\u2014like one of the most beloved candies in America\u2014may be changing? But what if you then learned that change was for the better? That Hershey is actually adding a layer of creamy caramel to the Reese\u2019s you love to make Reese\u2019s Caramel Big Cup, and classic Reese\u2019s Peanut Butter Cups are still available? Celebration! Everybody dance! The strategy Being a part of this advertising journey was such a delight. It calls to mind the pain of having something taken away that you always thought would be there, only to realize that the product is still available\u2014and then some. The ad that aired on Feb. 11 features seven characters\u2014six humans and a dog\u2014who each experience their own personalized emotional roller coaster. It\u2019s chaotic, funny and turbulent, all at once. It\u2019s something you could watch again and again to understand the depths of the pain and the elation that each character is feeling. And, at its heart, it\u2019s an ad about fandom. People\u2019s feelings about Reese\u2019s are akin to how people feel about their favorite teams. If the logo changes, the colors switch and the stadium moves, lives are disrupted. Chaos ensues. The decision to air the ad during the football event of the year was an important one. In this streaming era, where viewers watch their favorite programs on various channels and platforms and according to their schedules, it\u2019s hard to find moments of togetherness. Football\u2019s favorite Sunday is practically an American holiday and a cherished cultural event. People tune in to the most-watched show of the year for their own reasons, whether it\u2019s the game, the commercials, the half-time show or all of the above. Regardless of their motivations, they\u2019ll all have highlights to talk about after the big game. We wanted Reese\u2019s Caramel Big Cup to be a part of that Monday conversation, and we made sure that retail shelves were stocked and ready for all the consumers excited to try this new flavor combination. The story arc we built for the ad wasn\u2019t limited to the 30-second Feb. 11 time slot. We created mysterious tea that played for a couple of weeks leading up to the big game, warning viewers that change is afoot but stopping short of the big reveal. We also enlisted influencers, like Jason Kelce, to share their reaction of sheer terror at the thought of a world without their beloved Reese\u2019s. We have some other tricks up our sleeve with similarly themed ads to air in the future. The why You don\u2019t take just any product to the big game. It\u2019s been four years since we created our only other game day ad (in 2020, we advertised Reese\u2019s Take 5), and it\u2019s an enormous undertaking for us. But as we thought about the business strategy of how we get the most trial on a product that we feel is a great innovation, the big game became a very relevant tactic. While working on this campaign, I kept thinking about the thousands of people who have made Reese\u2019s Caramel Big Cup a reality, including teams in research and development, innovation, supply chain, sales and retail. They\u2019ve done a remarkable job. Now, it\u2019s up to the rest of us to ensure that consumers know just how delicious this latest innovation is so they don\u2019t miss an opportunity to fall in love with that orange wrapper again.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1724,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1723","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-digital"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t