Twix: How a Battle of Right VS Left is Fueling Brand Awareness
Ah, 2012, the year of Gangnam style, Call Me Maybe, and the supposed end of the world, such simple times. But over the last decade, you may have forgotten about another important event from that year, the historic split between Twix when the beloved caramel and chocolate candy bar started the rivalry of the decade and the formation of the left vs. right debate.
Did you know that this decade-long rivalry all started as a marketing strategy? After years of inconsistent and unsuccessful marketing campaigns, MARS decided they needed a new powerful idea that would last longer than their past campaigns and differentiate themselves from their competitors, like Kit Kat. This was when the idea of the big split was born. MARS decided to create a fictional sibling rivalry between two brothers “Earl and Seamus,” the creators of Twix. The rivalry is said to have started over a disagreement about the chocolate-pouring technique and caramel consistency. Legend has it that the split resulted in two new candy bars, the left Twix, which is smooth caramel on a crunchy cookie, enveloped in creamy chocolate, and the right Twix, which features chewy caramel on a crisp cookie, cloaked in velvety chocolate. Creating this fictional rivalry allowed MARS to exploit people’s natural desire to pick sides and create humorous and memorable content. Plus, the strategy for the campaign was to fuel sales and create a fun customer debate, which promoted word-of-mouth advertising.
The campaign was an instant success; from winning awards for effective marketing to spin-off campaigns, the split was doing exactly what it was supposed to. Customers wanted to try both sides to see which was their favorite, leading to two bars sold instead of one for each transaction. With posts flooding the internet, they were getting free advertisements all over on top of their widely loved commercial. Plus, this campaign brought MARS an increase of 38% in brand love compared to the period prior to the campaign. An amazing 83% positive sentiment was noted for this fun campaign. Finally, a 15% increase in brand buzz compared to the period before the campaign was also seen. The left vs. right campaign created even more marketing opportunities for MARS, such as the widely successful Twix face-off campaign. MARS has also been able to use this campaign idea for a decade now, and with no end in sight, this is a vast difference from their past campaigns, which were less successful and lasted only three to five years.
Inspiration can come from anywhere, even a fight between siblings. Twix is an excellent example of taking an odd idea and turning it into an extremely successful marketing strategy. As a business operator, you might be wracking your brain trying to think of the best possible marketing strategies you can think of, but it does not have to be that stressful. Twix is just one example of how a brand can really just have fun with an idea and use that to its benefit. So if you're really struggling for ideas, think of some fun, crazy things other brands have done and use that as your inspiration for a really fun campaign! Customers and clients respond well to things that involve them, like picking their favorite side of a candy bar. So when looking for some inspiration, think of ideas that can involve your clientele in a fun way!
What makes you pick a product or service instead of the countless other ones that are similar? Well, something about the one you decide to pick is different from the others. Twix’s entire idea for the split was based on the fact that it would differentiate them from their competitors. So, instead of jumping into thinking of ideas for a campaign, start brainstorming how you can be different from your competitors. The difference does not have to be huge; even something small will set you apart from your competitors!
Longevity is key; instead of having to think of new campaign ideas all the time, would it not be easier to build off the same idea? When thinking of ideas for your next campaign, keep Twix in mind; they have been able to use this idea for a decade and create other campaigns based on this main idea. If you can, think of a campaign that opens up the opportunity for other ideas so that you can build off that main concept over time. If you find that the main idea you had was successful, and you already have ideas in mind related to the same concept, it will be easier for you to continue generating more content while not using the same exact idea over and over. So next time you sit down to think of some ideas, don’t just think about the main concept as its own campaign; always be one step ahead and think about all the ways you can use that concept to create other campaigns in the future!
Campaign ideas are all around you, even if you don’t realize it’s actually a marketing strategy. While you may not have thought to look to a candy bar for inspiration, it genuinely can come from anywhere. Don’t be scared to do something fun and unconventional; it can really pay off for you in the end! Just remember, the next time you sit down to think of ideas, keep two main things in mind, how can it make you different, and how can you build off this idea for future content? If an idea can do those two things for you, it can also open up a world of possibilities you didn’t even know were there!
AUTHOR: NATALIE PRESCOTT