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How many different ways can you market a biscuit on social media? The Oreo digital advertising journey shows us just that. This week's Brand Saga decodes their strategy.
Did you know that 2 hours is the time it takes to make and bake one Oreo cookie? Well, we weren’t aware of it too until we dug our heads in the not-so-known facts about Cadbury Oreo. And just like that, we move ahead to unravel the world’s favourite cookie’s digital saga as we take a look at the Cadbury Oreo digital advertising journey and discover some nuggets from its immersive social media presence.
Cadbury Oreo Digital Journey
Cadbury Oreo was introduced into the Indian biscuit market in 2011. The brand spent a significant amount of its advertising budget on television and outdoor initially to woo the consumers towards accepting the modern and not just an American cookie.
While tackling giants like ITC, Parle, and Britannia, Cadbury Oreo extended its global narrative of ‘twist, lick, dunk” to India, and the brand kept the communication intact while focusing on the message of ‘togetherness’.
As part of the ‘Play with Oreo’ campaign launched in 2015, Oreo ran a series of web-films on YouTube, and Facebook dedicated to the campaign theme and the core message was- ‘Let your imagination go when you play with Oreo'.
The brand got on a mission to inspire imagination and playfulness, not only with creative fun with the cookie itself but in consumer’s everyday lives and explored every possible communication avenues like digital, print, TV, outdoor, and radio to amplify the message and was executed in a major way on social media.
Mondays. Always so difficult to focus. How about an aMAZEing Oreo challenge to get ur head in the game? #playwithoreo pic.twitter.com/XxAtzw5MR8
— OREO Cookie (@Oreo) August 31, 2015
Interesting Graffiti art installations expressing play through the unique lens of Oreo have been put up at prominent locations in Mumbai, Delhi, and Bangalore. The graffiti idea was extended to social media with the #DoodleIt activity where fans were invited to create interesting and creative doodle art around the Oreo Cookie and post their works of art on the brand’s social media pages.
Look what my sister made! #DoodleIt #PlaywithOreo
Posted by Sahil Wasudev on Friday, June 12, 2015
A few of them were also asked to hone their creative skills in the kitchen and carve delectable dishes with Oreo as the main ingredient.
There were also brand partnerships and associations to integrate the offering and the reach of the campaign #PlayWithOreo where discounts and giveaways were announced to lure in more fans.
#PlaywithOreo, pay with #PayUmoney @OreoIndia pic.twitter.com/eiQRQS6vxI
— PayU India (@PayUindia) July 3, 2015
Also Read: Brand Saga: Cadbury Oreo’s India Chapter – Being more than just an ‘American Brand’
.@OreoIndia We decided to #PlayWithOreo today. Needless to say, coupons aren't the only thing we're playing with now. pic.twitter.com/fTlmMfd0JM
— GrabOn (@GrabOnIn) July 7, 2015
A few user entries for the #Clickit and #PlayIt with Oreo contests were uploaded on the brand’s YouTube channel to give a sneak peek into how kids and adults alike participated.
The YouTube page of the brand shares few recipe animated videos which discover ways to the kids heart and introduced them to the world of Oreo and its magic in making extraordinary dishes.
In August 2017, Google revealed that the next version of its mobile operating system, Android, was named after the world’s favorite cookie – Android OREO. The Android OREO release marked a global collaboration between the OREO brand and Google, which kicked off with the debut of the Android OREO superhero — a new character who personifies the powers of this iconic duo and the features of the new operating system.
Android OREO channelled the playfulness of OREO and intelligence of Android to spread joy throughout the world.
In 2018, a robust-Oreo People campaign – was rolled out built on the idea that when we connect with Oreo, playfulness is evoked in us all – despite differences, playing with Oreo brings people together. The new global creative platform, coined Oreo People, was a part of the brand’s Wonderfilled campaign.
The campaign was especially designed to engage with consumers in the multi-screen, short-attention-span world with exciting visuals and irresistible music, extending across all channels, with a strong focus on digital.
The Oreo people campaign was mainly implemented with an objective to widen the brand appeal to a cross-section of people that not only include mothers and kids, but also youth. Given that IPL was the flavor of the season, the brand launched a digital-only cricket-themed campaign on popular digital platforms including Facebook, YouTube, Hotstar, and Cricbuzz which had over 100 million views across.
The campaign celebrated the fans of the great game and how they enjoy the sport in their own different way but are united by the passion for the sport while rolling out a range of web films.
The year 2020 saw everyone in unchartered waters due to the pandemic, keeping families apart, bringing in the new normal of a monotonous routine. However, time and again it has been proved that the human spirit is strong and can rise above any challenge, even if it’s a pandemic. Taking forward the thought, OREO introduced its digital campaign #AtHomewithOreo to help consumers spark their innovative plugs and drive creativity with Oreo cookies.
To kickstart the campaign, the brand initially launched an Oreo Anthem (#AtHomeWithOreo) inspiring people to stay indoors and stay playful. Adding an extension to the campaign, the 2.0 version of the Anthem (Make Way for Play) was introduced encouraging consumers to not only create moments of playfulness but also share and spread them with their loved ones.
Known to create fun-filled moments since its twist, lick, and dunk days, the brand baked yet another unique experience with its campaign which revolved around the themes of Home Recipes, Home Games, and Home Art. Having carved a special place in the cookie-jars of Indian households, today, OREO has also become an ingredient of choice in most modern recipes, creating newer eat experiences.
Super easy and delicious "Oreo Biscuit Cake". Trust me you will not stop at just one slice. I made it in pressure cooker and it comes out super soft & yummy😋
— foodbyMonika (@foodbyMonikaa) October 15, 2020
Follow @foodbyMonikaa#oreorecipic #athomewithoreo #oreorecipe #oreo #oreoindia #contest #recipecontest #dessert @Oreo pic.twitter.com/FW2Z2HxeKO
Through this campaign, the brand aimed to bring forth this trend not just by posting new Oreo Recipes but also by sharing user-made recipes uploaded by OREO lovers on social media platforms. From giving a chance to a mother-daughter duo to bake an Oreo recipe, to, encourage kids to put their wild minds to play and craft a new game with the Oreo cookie, the brand wanted to remind consumers that it is absolutely fine to pause and play a little, and just be happy.
From fun recipes with Oreo to keeping li’l hands busy with Oreo Art, and even giving adults a break from their WFH madness, the brand ensured that the spirit was alive. It amplified the campaign further with #MakeWayForPlay - a challenge that brings people into the fold by passing on the Oreo baton virtually. The campaign was executed by Digitas India and Leo Burnett.
As an extension to the Home Games segment, the campaign was leveraging some innovative social media trends and introduced the ‘Make Way for Play’ challenge which featured a sequence of playful activities with Oreo depicted in a relatable and memorable way, urging consumers to replicate the same and create a bandwagon effect.
Consumers were invited to upload the videos while tagging the brand page to be featured in the challenge video and the same was conveyed through influencer marketing where known digital stars were roped in to take ahead the campaign thought.
In December 2020, Oreo asked everyone to don the chef's hat and sweeten things up in the kitchen as the brand curated some scintillating recipes by some of India’s best home chefs. In its quest for creating indulgences, it launched the #OreoRecipic challenge which brought in a playful twist and invited unique recipes created by the Oreo loyalists.
Popular comedian Rohan Joshi and Celebrity pastry chef Pooja Dhingra were roped in to lead the campaign conceptualised by Digitas (Team Pop) to position the cookie as a baking staple in people’s minds, and pantries.
#OreoReciPic created a platform for people to not just win the grand prize but have their recipe feature in a cooking show. All they had to do was share their Oreo creations – no ingredients, no steps.
Over the three months of campaign activity, the content reached out to more than 650 million users across Facebook, YouTube, and other video platforms. The videos also garnered over 230 million views and 5.5 million engagements across digital. The brand has secured a trademark for the words ‘Oreo ReciPic’ giving a permanent home for all unique creations that people continue to share with the brand.
Fortifying its promise of infusing a dose of fun in everyone’s life with its latest campaign #OreoPlayPledge in 2021, the brand is putting its purpose into action and inspiring people to snooze away from their busy lifestyles and take a pledge to create and cherish the much-needed moments of fun with their loved ones. This sentiment was brought by former team India Cricket captain, MS Dhoni, and his daughter, Ziva Dhoni, offering Oreo fanatics a glimpse of their playful connection on-screen.
As a part of the digital extension, the brand brought on board popular TV celebs and influencers to encourages everyone to take the 'Play Pledge' with Oreo where they shared some blissful moments with their loved ones and built on-going conversations with the consumers to commit to creating and enjoying moments of fun with their kids.
Simultaneously the brand is quick on marching in the topical wave, moment marketing, sharing GIFs, and occasion-based creatives on social media – thereby being as interactive and human-centric as possible to speak the language of the masses.
From encouraging consumers to connect with the people and world around you to present a different angle to our playfulness to devising campaigns that created benchmarks in the world of advertising to acing the social media game, Cadbury Oreo digital journey and its human-centric advertising palette have made the brand one of it’s kind.