McVitie’s launches £10m masterbrand campaign to showcase brand purpose

McVitie’s new marketing campaign focuses on the issue of loneliness as the brand looks to “embed itself in modern culture”.

McVitie’s is launching a £10m master brand campaign as part of the “next chapter” of its marketing strategy, which aims to modernise the brand and drive purpose.

Launching today (9 March), the ‘Sweeter Together’ campaign will run throughout the year across TV, cinema and digital channels.

Sarah Heynen, vice president of marketing at McVitie’s owner Pladis UK & Ireland, tells Marketing Week: “This really is the next chapter in our overarching brand modernisation strategy.

“This is about really giving McVitie’s a role in society. Before it was about creating a warm feeling around the brand but this new campaign is really about embedding McVitie’s role within today’s modern culture.”

The campaign includes a new 60-second animated advert, created by Grey London, that sees a lonely crane operator trying to connect with his colleagues working on the ground below him. Despite his best efforts he is ignored but when he receives a cup of tea and McVities sent up on an iron beam he feels connected. The ad ends with the tag line “Sometimes the little things are actually the really big things”.

Heynen says the campaign aims to tap into societal issues around the issue of loneliness and how, despite having lots of digital connections, people can feel isolated from each other. A second ad, due to be aired later in the year, will look to highlight how biscuits can bridge the  loneliness.

“All the research we’ve done, and I think we can all feel it ourselves, digitally we are more connected than we have ever been. We all talk about the number of friends we’ve got that like the stuff we share and post but actually real human connections are dwindling. McVities really can play that unique role in bringing us all closer together through that simple act of sharing a biscuit,” she explains.

The adverts, while airing on TV, were created with mobile in mind and digital makes up 20% of the total spend. Heynen explains “We can’t just live in one space we have to try to connect with every consumer touch point.”

She adds that despite the “ubiquitous” appeal of biscuits the hope is that the new campaign will appeal to the younger generation. Sales of sweet biscuits are still rising in the UK, up 2.3% year on year in 2017 to £1.7bn, according to Mintel.

“The purpose for McVities to bring us all close together through the very simple every day gesture of sharing a biscuit.” 

 

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