All signs are that the media and advertising campaign supporting the return of Mars and Snickers bars to shelves in NSW has been successful, according to Masterfoods’ representatives.
Company spokesman Simon Bromell said although it would be some time before sales figures were available, early indications were good.
“It’s too early to tell quantitatively [whether sales are up], but anecdotally the feedback is very good,” he said.
About three million Mars and Snickers bars were recalled and destroyed following an extortion threat involving the brand’s owner, Masterfoods, in July this year.
Bars began being returned to shelves in mid-August, supported by an extensive media and advertising campaign called ‘We’re Back’, produced by Clemenger BBDO in Melbourne.
Bromell said the campaign, which features television ads running nationally and outdoor, print and online executions in NSW, will continue running into September.
More than 100,000 Mars and Snickers bars were also given away as part of the relaunch, with chocolates handed out in Albury, Wagga and Bathurst as they were being shipped back into NSW from the company’s Victorian production plant, at Sydney’s Darling Harbour and to commuters in the city’s major train stations.
Bromell said these actions were taken “to thank the public for their support”, but there is no doubt the media coverage they generated didn’t hurt either.
The campaign also includes a ‘takeover’ series of ads in today’s edition of Sydney’s free metro daily, MX, which involves running 18 separate ads with one continual message throughout the paper from front to back.
Clemenger representatives said they understood this was a first for Sydney.
Bromell praised the two advertising agencies associated with Mars and Snickers, Clemenger BBDO and Whybin TBWA, saying they had been quick to offer their support when details of the extortion threat emerged, and had worked closely with the company in formulating short and long-term plans for the brands involved.
He said Clemenger BBDO had finished up working mainly on the back-on-shelf strategy, with Whybin TBWA formulating some new creative ideas for the brands in the medium and long-term.
National president of the Public Relations Institute of Australia (PRIA), Robert Masters, said Masterfoods had handled the public’s perception of the extortion crisis “in copybook fashion.”
He even suggested the brands involved may derive some benefit from the affair.
“Research shows that companies that handle themselves well in a crisis can actually benefit from the experience,” he said.
“The key thing is they have retained the confidence of the public. They have come out of it all with a big tick.”
Bromell said that while he did not have a final figure on how much the extortion threat had cost the company, he confirmed communications, lost sales and the logistics of recalling and destroying the bars had cost “more than $10m”.
In contrast, Love Communication’s Monique Haylen said the brands had received valuable media coverage.
“It’s been amazing coverage”, she said. “It’s been in print, TV, talkback—I even heard them supporting the recall on ABC. You couldn’t quantify [the value of] it.”
