A barcode you can TWIST, LICK, and DUNK? Know more about this campaign's sweet offer here!
| Hello, everyone! One of the reasons I love Thursday is because I get to talk about interesting marketing strategies, a.k.a. “Guerrilla Marketing.” This strategy is simple to appreciate, easy to execute, and sometimes, inexpensive. I am personally fond of guerrilla marketing because it reminds me that we can never run out of creative ways to get our target audience’s attention and foster genuine, organic interactions and reactions. Today, allow me to share with you an example of this marketing tactic. Are you ready? Keep reading below to find out! |
A barcode you can TWIST, LICK, and DUNK? Know more about this campaign's sweet offer here! Twist… Lick… Dunk… Whenever you hear these three words together, what first comes to your mind? That’s right: Oreo! Owned by food company Mondelēz International Inc. , this brand of sandwich cookie is a world-renowned favorite.
“Milk’s Favorite Cookie” Oreo Cookies have been milk and cookie fans’ top choice for over 110 years. Since then, the brand has made a tremendous effort to become the world’s favorite pair for milk. Here’s the thing: Despite Oreo maintaining a 99% brand awareness across the U.S., there are still thousands of American households that purchase milk but don’t buy Oreos—yet. So, to address this concern in 2023, Oreo decided to unleash its playful side. Together with advertising company VMLY&R , Oreo established a custom-built technology called… OREOCodes !
OREOCodes was a commerce experience that tapped into the minimalistic similarity between barcodes and a stack of Oreos. The goal was to allow people to get offers directly from the cookies’ all-time complementary partner—milk. Here’s how it worked… Consumers were given the opportunity to scan any milk branded carton by visiting oreocodes.com. Whether on retail shelves or in the fridge, the Oreo barcodes converted into “dunkable” offers for Oreo + Milk.
The campaign was made available across over 180 Albertsons’ Jewel-Osco stores in the Chicago, Indiana, and Iowa areas. Now, some of you might be wondering: “Milk barcodes only? Every barcode in every product, whether milk or non-milk, looks like Oreos, though.” To answer your question, YES. The campaign worked for milk barcodes ONLY. How was that made possible? To identify every barcode, the campaign team collected data from several retail partners, managing to match every barcode out there with hundreds of milk products across thousands of American households. This allowed them to prevent non-milk products from triggering any offers by scanning their barcodes.
The campaign was supported by an influencer strategy educating consumers how to scan their milk cartons to unlock savings. There were also out-of-home (OOH) and digital media to further drive awareness of Oreo’s creative commerce execution.
Was Oreo’s OREOCodes campaign effective? A lot of American households were delighted by Oreo’s sweet offer through the OREOCodes. In fact, many of them were eager to scan milk barcodes or buy milk from the campaign’s partner stores with hopes to get a discount for the Oreo + Milk pairing! Below are the results of the campaign:
OREOCodes also bagged the following awards: These figures and accolades clearly show that Oreo’s simplistic and minimalistic yet delectable campaign was a hit among its target audience. Great work, Oreo and VMLY&R! *Applause* One of the remarkable things about OREOCodes’ success is its cutting-edge innovation . According to Anne Martin, Director of Shopper Marketing at Mondelēz International: “The retail landscape is constantly evolving and our ability to go to market with impactful work is paramount to our business growth, especially in the grocery channel. OREOCodes is a great example of an innovative commerce idea that not only leverages the strengths of our retail partner’s ecosystem, but also drives sales. We are excited to continue to push the boundaries of how we use creativity and technology, learning from this work at Albertsons.” While they’ve helped insurance companies when rates were low, insurers don’t need to take unnecessary risks today when rates are elevated. See? As an expression of Oreo’s playfulness, the brand keeps looking for new ways to drive purchase and consumption of its cookie products. The result? Oreo fans ALWAYS appreciate it whenever the cookie brand brings something new to the table. Just like Oreo, you should also be consistent in striving for cutting-edge innovation that’s in line with your brand and target market! Who knows? By bringing your brand closer to more consumers and in new shareable moments, you’ll also be able to find the prime opportunity to engage with your audience. Hope you’ve found this week’s guerrilla marketing insight interesting and helpful. EXCITING NEWS AHEAD The world of work has shifted, and there’s no going back. The barriers to entry have never been lower for talented professionals to work independently, and today’s massive external workforce is hardly a pandemic-produced fad. Business owners can only survive in the new work landscape by partnering with this deep talent pool. With decades of experience in both small-business entrepreneurship and executive management at PwC, I truly believe that the future of work is independent. With that, I’m happy to share with you that my book, co-authored with Walter Scott Lamb, is now available for pre-order on Amazon! Free Birds Revolution: The Future of Work & The Independent Mind This is an essential read for both independent professionals and corporate executives. Here, we provide educational and practical guides to unpack the ever-growing workforce and offer you crucial ways to become a client of choice. Click on the link above to pre-order your copy. Let this book help you future-proof your career and organization in the new world of work. Stay tuned for next Thursday’s Gorillas of Guerrilla Marketing! Do you want to know how this skincare brand generated social media buzz to promote its product ? Find out in next week’s article! |
Miles Everson
CEO of MBO Partners and former Global Advisory and Consulting CEO at PwC, Everson has worked with many of the world's largest and most prominent organizations, specializing in executive management. He helps companies balance growth, reduce risk, maximize return, and excel in strategic business priorities.
He is a sought-after public speaker and contributor and has been a case study for success from Harvard Business School.
Everson is a Certified Public Accountant, a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and Minnesota Society of Certified Public Accountants. He graduated from St. Cloud State University with a B.S. in Accounting.
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