Table of Contents
DEERFIELD, Ill. — Global snack maker Mondelēz International is looking to get more out of its media efforts.
Mondelēz this week unveiled what it calls a “fearless marketing” model designed to boost the company’s return on investment for its worldwide media spending. To that end, it aims to form new media partnerships to acquire, develop and distribute content that will build its “power brands” and drive revenue.
As part of the new model, a collection of content properties will be created across a variety of formats in film, television, digital and mobile platforms, Mondelēz said. The rationale is that in the era of digital, social and mobile media, content must be more engaging and relevant because consumers have much more control.
The goal: For Mondelēz to have up to 10% of its global media investments to break even or turn a profit by 2020.
“Capturing audience attention is more difficult than ever. As audiences become more empowered to control their viewing experience, the old model of interruptive advertising is rapidly becoming irrelevant,” explained Laura Henderson, global head of content and media monetization at Mondelēz. “This new approach will hold us to a higher standard of creating content that earns attention and is good enough to make money. By developing content that people want to watch, we can begin to monetize our investments, offsetting costs, improving return on investment and making our media spending more sustainable.”
The first three initiatives under the new model include the Stride and Sour Patch Kids brands, as well as partnership involving Mondelēz’s brand portfolio.
On July 30, Stride gum will debut “Heaven Sent,” a live event in which professional skydiver Luke Aikins will jump from a plane at 25,000 feet. The event will air in the United States on Fox television at 8 p.m. ET/PT and be executive produced by Mondelēz, Amusement Park Entertainment and Emmy Award winner Al Berman.
Mondelēz said the event is part of its campaign for Stride’s new “Mad Intense” gum, due to hit stores this summer and targeted at teens. The brand will feature a new look and positioning and come in two new fruit flavors. Plans call for the skydiving event to be made available globally through broadcast, online streaming and pay-per-view platforms.
And building on the success of its Oreo Twist Lick Dunk game, Mondelēz plans to roll out a suite of highly engaging, branded mobile games. Sour Patch Kids will be the first brand to launch a mobile game later this year, with more brands following over the next 18 months.
In addition, a first-of-its-kind partnership with news and entertainment platform BuzzFeed is aimed at building content capabilities for Mondelēz International’s portfolio of brands. The company said the effort will continue successful integrations like food and recipe content on platforms like Tasty, as well as new content programs for brands. The initiative also will entail the co-creation of a new original content brand in the wellness area, Mondelēz added.
“Make no mistake about it, this is the future of how brands and advertisers will connect with consumers and drive real growth,” stated Bonin Bough, chief media and e-commerce officer for Mondelēz. “More importantly, this is how brands can continue to help elevate the ecosystem for all of their partners from broadcasters to publishers. This is a different model that is in service of the entire industry.”
Mondelēz products are sold in 165 countries and span such categories as biscuits, chocolate, gum, candy and powdered beverages. The company’s billion-dollar brands include such names as Oreo, LU and Nabisco biscuits; Cadbury, Cadbury Dairy Milk and Milka chocolate; and Trident gum. Its 2015 sales totaled about $30 billion.
