cadbury marketing case study

Cadbury Marketing Strategy 2024: A Case Study

Cadbury, a renowned confectionery brand, has been delighting chocolate lovers for nearly two centuries. With a journey that began in 1824 in Birmingham, England, Cadbury has established itself as a pioneer in the industry. Their commitment to high-quality products and innovative marketing strategies has propelled them to the forefront of the market.

One of the key elements of Cadbury’s success is their strong brand identity. From the introduction of their first chocolate bar in 1849 to their diverse product mix, which includes iconic brands like Bournville, Eclairs, Oreo, Perk, and Dairy Milk Silk, Cadbury has consistently catered to every sweet tooth.

Moreover, Cadbury’s marketing strategy encompasses various components that contribute to their global reach. By utilizing advertising techniques across print, television, and social media platforms, Cadbury effectively engages with their target audience . They also sponsor events like music festivals and sporting competitions, forging emotional connections and fostering brand loyalty.

In addition to their promotional efforts, Cadbury offers sales promotions such as discounts, coupons, competitions, and seasonal offers, driving customer engagement and increasing sales. The company also invests in research and development to create new products and flavors, staying ahead of market trends and consumer preferences.

Cadbury’s commitment to expansion is evident through strategic collaborations and partnerships with celebrities, sports teams, and other brands. This enables them to extend their market reach and tap into new audiences.

With an impressive online presence, Cadbury leverages social media platforms to connect with their customers. Their Facebook page boasts 2,000,000 followers, Instagram has 500,000 followers, and Twitter has 150,000 followers. While they face competition from other chocolate brands, Cadbury’s marketing strategy allows them to maintain their market share of approximately 33% in the global chocolate confectionery market.

Looking ahead, Cadbury continues to invest in their operations, such as their plan to invest £15 million in their UK production facilities to increase efficiency and sustainability. They also respond to evolving consumer preferences, as demonstrated by their introduction of a new line of plant-based chocolate bars in early 2023 to cater to the growing demand for vegan and dairy-free products.

Furthermore, Cadbury’s partnerships with influential figures like British actor Idris Elba demonstrate their dedication to innovative advertising campaigns that capture the attention of their target audience.

Key Takeaways:

• Cadbury’s marketing strategy encompasses strong brand identity, diverse product mix, and engaging advertising techniques.
• They sponsor events and offer sales promotions to connect with their audience and drive customer engagement.
• Cadbury invests in research and development to create new products and flavors, staying ahead of market trends.
• Strategic collaborations and partnerships enable Cadbury to expand its market reach.
• Cadbury leverages social media to connect with customers and maintain a robust online presence.

The Strong Brand Identity of Cadbury

Cadbury, with its long-standing presence in the confectionery market for over a century, has successfully carved out a unique and strong brand identity. Through its unwavering commitment to delighting consumers, Cadbury has positioned itself as a brand synonymous with joy, happiness, and indulgence.

One of the key elements that contribute to Cadbury’s recognizable image in the market is its distinctive purple packaging, which stands out among competitors. The bold and vibrant purple color evokes a sense of excitement and has become synonymous with the brand. Additionally, the Cadbury logo, with its iconic design and bold typography, further enhances its brand recognition.

Cadbury’s brand identity is further reinforced through its emotional storytelling approach in their advertisements. Memorable campaigns like the Cadbury Dairy Milk “gorilla” ad and the “Joyville” campaign have struck a chord with consumers, evoking a sense of nostalgia and happiness. These emotionally engaging ads have not only created a lasting impact on consumers but also strengthened the brand’s connection with its audience.

In addition to traditional marketing channels , Cadbury actively engages with its audience on various social media platforms, building a vibrant online community and fostering brand loyalty. The brand’s active presence on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram enables it to connect with consumers on a personal level, share relatable content, and listen to feedback.

Furthermore, Cadbury’s commitment to corporate social responsibility initiatives, such as Cocoa Life, showcases its dedication to ethical and sustainable practices. By supporting initiatives that focus on the welfare of cocoa farmers and promoting responsible sourcing, Cadbury enhances its reputation among socially conscious consumers.

Cadbury’s collaborations with popular brands like Oreo, Toblerone, and Daim have resulted in unique product variations, appealing to a broader consumer base. These strategic partnerships have not only expanded Cadbury’s product offerings but also strengthened its market position.

To cater to evolving consumer preferences, Cadbury frequently introduces new product extensions such as Cadbury Bitesize or Cadbury Darkmilk. These innovative offerings ensure that the brand stays relevant and meets the diverse needs of its customers.

With its extensive product range, global presence, and commitment to innovation, Cadbury has firmly established itself as a leader in the confectionery industry. The brand’s strong brand identity, built upon its recognizable logo, distinct packaging, emotional storytelling, and robust online presence, ensures that it remains a household name beloved by consumers around the world.

Diverse Product Mix for Every Sweet Tooth

Cadbury, with its rich history and legacy in the chocolate industry, offers a diverse product mix that caters to the varied tastes and preferences of consumers. From their iconic Cadbury Dairy Milk chocolate bars to a wide range of candies, gums, biscuits, and beverages, Cadbury has something for every sweet tooth.

Cadbury Dairy Milk, the cornerstone of their product lineup, has been a favorite amongst chocolate lovers for decades. Known for its creamy and delectable taste, it holds a special place in the hearts of consumers worldwide. In fact, the Dairy Milk brand alone accounts for a significant 40% share of the entire Indian chocolate market.

But Cadbury doesn’t stop at their classic offerings. They understand the need for constant innovation to stay ahead in the competitive market. Cadbury’s product innovation team works tirelessly to develop new flavors and products that cater to evolving consumer preferences.

One area where Cadbury shines is their festive offerings. Festivals like Diwali are an integral part of Indian culture, and Cadbury understands the importance of these occasions. They offer festive boxes of assorted Cadbury chocolate bars, beautifully packaged and perfect for gifting during these special celebrations.

Cadbury also recognizes the different market segments and demographics they cater to. For children between the ages of two and eight, Cadbury Bournvita is considered a must-have. This nutritious and delicious drink has become a household name, providing essential nutrients and energy to young ones.

For the millennial spenders and high-spending families, Cadbury offers luxury products like Cadbury Dairy Milk Silk, Temptations, and Bournville. These premium chocolates provide a unique and indulgent experience, making them popular choices for special occasions and gifts.

Cadbury’s commitment to quality is unwavering. They ensure that every chocolate bar that leaves their production centers maintains the same consistent taste that consumers have come to love. This dedication to relentless quality has helped Cadbury establish a strong position in the Indian chocolate market, accounting for two-thirds of all sales.

Furthermore, Cadbury embraces innovation when it comes to product development. They constantly introduce new and exciting variations, such as flaky chocolates, chocolates with bubbles, fruits, infusions, and even venturing into the realm of vegan products. Their ability to adapt and cater to changing consumer preferences has been a key factor in their continued success.

Cadbury products are widely distributed across both urban and rural areas in India. Consumers can find their favorite Cadbury chocolates at grocers, retail outlets, and even online platforms. Cadbury has embraced innovative ideas like home deliveries and gifting options to enhance customer experience and make their products easily accessible.

To summarize, Cadbury’s diverse product mix, ranging from classic favorites to innovative creations, ensures there is something for everyone with a sweet tooth. Their commitment to quality, relentless focus on innovation, and widespread distribution have solidified Cadbury’s position as a leader in the Indian chocolate market.

Carefully Balanced Pricing Strategy

Cadbury, operating in over 160 countries, understands the importance of implementing a well-thought-out pricing strategy to cater to a wide range of consumers. With a rich history spanning over a century, Cadbury has continuously evolved its pricing approach to meet changing market dynamics and consumer preferences.

One of the key components of Cadbury’s pricing strategy is skimming pricing. By offering premium products like Cadbury Silk at higher price points, the company positions itself as a luxurious treat for consumers seeking indulgence. This strategy allows Cadbury to capitalize on the value associated with its brand and the high-quality experience it delivers.

At the same time, Cadbury recognizes the importance of affordability and accessibility. With its iconic product, Dairy Milk, Cadbury adopts an economy pricing strategy, ensuring that it remains an accessible choice for a broad consumer base. This competitive pricing enables Cadbury to target mass-market customers and maintain a strong market presence as one of the leading confectionery brands globally.

During holidays and special occasions, Cadbury also leverages bundle pricing to provide additional value to consumers. By offering value packs and attractive discounts, Cadbury entices customers to purchase more products, ultimately boosting sales and enhancing brand loyalty.

Why a Carefully Balanced Pricing Strategy Matters

Cadbury’s carefully balanced pricing strategy plays a crucial role in appealing to the diverse preferences of its target audience. By offering a range of price points, Cadbury ensures that consumers with different budgets can enjoy their favorite Cadbury products. This flexibility allows the brand to maintain a strong position in the market while catering to the varying needs and desires of its customer base.

Furthermore, a well-structured pricing strategy is essential for Cadbury’s long-term success and sustainability. It helps the company optimize profitability, achieve market share, and effectively compete with industry rivals like Nestle.

Through its pricing strategy, Cadbury strikes a delicate balance between providing affordable options and catering to consumers’ desire for luxurious treats. This approach, combined with its commitment to quality, innovation, and product excellence, solidifies Cadbury’s position as a premium and trusted brand in the confectionery industry.

By implementing a carefully balanced pricing strategy, Cadbury ensures that it remains a sought-after brand, fulfilling the desires of chocolate lovers around the globe, regardless of their preferences and budget constraints.

Extensive Distribution Network

Cadbury’s global success can be attributed to its extensive distribution network, which allows its products to reach customers in over 50 countries. With a vast distribution network, Cadbury ensures that its diverse range of products, including chocolate bars and blocks, boxed chocolates, seasonal confections, snack-sized treats, beverages, biscuits and cakes, and dairy products, are readily available to consumers.

The company employs a multi-channel distribution strategy, selling its products through various retail outlets, including supermarkets, convenience stores, and grocery stores. This widespread presence in retail locations enables Cadbury to cater to a diverse customer base and reach consumers in both urban and rural areas.

In addition to traditional retail channels, Cadbury embraces e-commerce to meet the demands of the digital age. By offering online sales, Cadbury makes its products easily accessible to consumers who prefer the convenience of shopping from their homes. This online presence also allows the brand to expand its global reach and cater to customers beyond its physical distribution network.

Furthermore, Cadbury leverages partnerships with wholesalers, distributors, and vending machine operators to ensure wider product availability. These partnerships enable Cadbury to penetrate new markets and reach consumers in locations where traditional retail outlets may be limited.

The Cadbury distribution network extends beyond domestic borders, with exports to numerous countries. This global presence demonstrates the brand’s commitment to satisfying the sweet tooth of chocolate lovers worldwide.

In summary, Cadbury’s extensive distribution network is a key driver of its global success. By strategically utilizing a combination of retail outlets, online platforms, wholesale partnerships, vending machines, and exports, Cadbury ensures that its products are accessible to consumers in various markets and regions around the world.

Building Emotional Connection Through Advertising and PR

Cadbury understands the power of emotional connection in building strong relationships with consumers. Through their strategic advertising and public relations efforts, Cadbury aims to create a deep bond with chocolate lovers all around the world. By leveraging various channels and techniques, Cadbury successfully appeals to the hearts and minds of their target audience.

When it comes to advertising, Cadbury employs a diverse range of mediums, including print and television advertisements, to capture the attention of consumers. These advertisements are carefully crafted to evoke positive emotions and create a sense of joy and indulgence associated with Cadbury chocolates.

In addition to traditional advertising methods, Cadbury recognizes the importance of utilizing social media platforms to engage with their audience. By sharing mouthwatering images and captivating videos of their chocolates on platforms like Instagram and Facebook, Cadbury entices consumers and creates a desire for their products. This digital presence allows Cadbury to connect with their audience on a more personal level and build a community of loyal chocolate enthusiasts.

Public relations plays a crucial role in building Cadbury’s brand reputation and strengthening their emotional connection with consumers. Cadbury sponsors events like music festivals and sporting competitions, associating their brand with moments of joy and celebration. This strategic partnership enables Cadbury to connect with their target audience during memorable experiences, deepening their emotional connection.

Moreover, Cadbury’s commitment to corporate social responsibility is evident through their partnerships with NGOs and support for social causes. By aligning themselves with organizations that make a positive impact, Cadbury reinforces their values and creates a sense of trust and admiration among consumers.

Idomoo: Empowering Cadbury’s Personalized Video Campaigns

Cadbury’s Personalized Video campaigns have been highly successful in creating emotional connections with consumers. An essential component of these campaigns is Idomoo, a digital communication platform that has helped leading brands across industries with their personalized video marketing strategies. Idomoo’s technology enables Cadbury to deliver customized and engaging videos to their audience, further deepening the emotional bond between the brand and consumers.

Cadbury’s Global Reach and Impact

Cadbury’s efforts to build emotional connections with consumers extend beyond India and reach over 50 countries worldwide. With a presence in diverse markets, Cadbury employs nearly 50,000 people globally, emphasizing their commitment to providing delightful chocolate experiences to people from all walks of life.

In India, where Cadbury holds a significant market share, their goal was to increase market penetration for premium Cadbury Glow gift chocolate. The Cadbury campaign in India achieved an impressive 90% completion rate for the Personalized Video, and over 12% of viewers shared their video with friends on social media. These results showcase the success of Cadbury’s advertising efforts in creating emotional connections with Indian consumers.

Looking ahead, Cadbury has plans to expand their Personalized Video campaigns to global markets, starting with Singapore. This demonstrates their belief in the power of personalized marketing and the emotional impact it can have on consumers.

Overall, Cadbury’s strategic advertising and public relations initiatives play a crucial role in building emotional connections with consumers. By creating compelling and relatable content, Cadbury continues to delight chocolate lovers and foster a deep sense of loyalty and affection towards their brand.

Sales Promotion Strategies to Drive Customer Engagement

Cadbury, a renowned brand in the confectionery industry with a rich history dating back to the 19th century, understands the importance of sales promotion strategies in driving customer engagement and boosting sales. To captivate their audience, Cadbury leverages various promotional techniques, including discounts, competitions, and limited-time offers.

One of the most effective ways Cadbury entices customers is through discounts. They offer special deals and promotions, such as “buy one, get one free” or discounted bundle packs, which not only attract new customers but also encourage repeat purchases. By providing these enticing discounts, Cadbury creates a sense of urgency and exclusivity, making consumers feel like they’re getting a great deal.

In addition to discounts, Cadbury organizes competitions that engage and excite their target audience. These competitions allow consumers to participate and have a chance to win exciting prizes, adding an element of fun and interactivity to their marketing campaigns . By incorporating competitions in their sales promotions, Cadbury encourages customer participation, effectively increasing brand awareness and fostering brand loyalty.

Seasonal promotions are another way Cadbury captures customers’ attention. By aligning their promotions with holidays like Easter and Christmas, Cadbury creates anticipation and excitement among consumers. They launch limited-edition packaging, exclusive flavors, and unique gift options during these festive seasons, compelling customers to indulge in their delightful treats. These seasonal promotions not only drive sales but also create a sense of celebration and joy associated with the Cadbury brand.

Furthermore, Cadbury leverages digital marketing platforms to amplify their sales promotions. They run viral campaigns and collaborate with social media influencers to reach a wider audience. By leveraging the power of social media, Cadbury encourages customers to engage with their promotions and share them with their friends, effectively expanding their reach and driving organic growth.

With their strategic sales promotion initiatives, Cadbury attracts customers, boosts sales, and creates a lasting impression. By combining discounts, competitions, and innovative marketing campaigns, Cadbury continues to engage consumers and solidify their position as a leading player in the confectionery industry.

Commitment to Product Innovation and Research

Cadbury has built a reputation for its unwavering commitment to product innovation and continuous research and development. This dedication has been key to their success in the confectionery industry. Cadbury’s pursuit of excellence is reflected in their extensive range of delectable chocolates and confections that captivate consumers worldwide.

Since its debut in 1905 in the United Kingdom, Cadbury Dairy Milk Chocolate has become an iconic brand loved by millions. Recognized as the top-selling chocolate bar in the UK since 2014, Cadbury Dairy Milk continues to be a favorite among chocolate enthusiasts.

To stay ahead of the competition, Cadbury invests heavily in research and development. Their team of experts conducts thorough market research to analyze customer preferences, identify emerging trends, and study the evolving needs of consumers. This valuable insight enables Cadbury to develop new products that meet and exceed consumer expectations.

Cadbury’s research and development efforts go beyond just product innovation. They also explore innovative packaging solutions to enhance the consumer experience. By constantly experimenting with new ingredients, flavors, and packaging designs, Cadbury ensures that their chocolates remain fresh, exciting, and relevant in an ever-changing market.

One of Cadbury’s strengths lies in its ability to introduce limited-edition products, delighting consumers with unique flavors and seasonal variations. These limited-edition treats not only create a sense of exclusivity, but they also generate anticipation and boost sales. Cadbury’s commitment to innovation and product development ensures that customers are always excited about trying something new.

Furthermore, Cadbury leverages its deep understanding of consumer preferences to develop chocolates tailored to different occasions and preferences. Whether it’s a festive celebration, a special moment with loved ones, or a simple indulgence, Cadbury strives to provide a chocolate for every sweet tooth.

Evolving Chocolate Choices Despite Tradition

The evolving preferences of consumers have driven Cadbury to continually adapt and innovate. Cadbury recognizes the importance of staying relevant in a dynamic market and proactively adjusts its product offerings to meet changing consumer demands.

This dedication to innovation is not limited to their product range. Cadbury also embraces digital marketing platforms to engage with customers, utilizing social media campaigns to encourage participation and foster a sense of community. They understand that in today’s interconnected world, engaging with consumers on digital platforms is essential to maintaining brand relevance and establishing lasting connections.

Furthermore, Cadbury extends its commitment to product innovation beyond taste and packaging. The company is dedicated to sustainability and corporate social responsibility, ensuring that their products are responsibly sourced. By actively supporting employment, economic development, community growth, diversity promotion, and cultural influence, Cadbury positively impacts society while producing delicious chocolates.

Through their unwavering commitment to product innovation, research and development, Cadbury has solidified its position as a leading global confectionery brand. By continuously pushing the boundaries of creativity and delivering unforgettable chocolate experiences, Cadbury remains a staple in households worldwide.

Strategic Collaborations and Partnerships

Cadbury understands the power of collaborating with other brands to create innovative and exciting products that resonate with consumers. These strategic partnerships not only expand Cadbury’s market reach but also allow them to tap into new audiences and create unique offerings.

One example of Cadbury’s successful collaborations is their partnership with Grenade, a prominent sports nutrition brand. Together, they created a protein bar that combines the delicious taste of Cadbury with the nutritional benefits of Grenade, offering consumers a protein-packed treat.

Cadbury also joined forces with Oreo to develop the “Stay Home Stay Safe: At Home with Oreo” campaign during the pandemic. This collaboration aimed to provide comfort and joy to consumers during challenging times, reminding them of the importance of staying home and enjoying moments of sweetness.

In addition to brand collaborations, Cadbury leverages influencer partnerships to enhance their social media reach. By teaming up with popular personalities, Cadbury is able to create engaging and relatable content that resonates with their target audience.

Cadbury’s collaborations extend beyond the digital realm. They strategically partner with celebrities, sports teams, and other brands to create co-branded products and promotional campaigns. These partnerships not only boost brand awareness but also tap into the existing fan base of their collaborators.

By leveraging the reputation, influence, and following of their partners, Cadbury strengthens its brand presence and builds deeper connections with consumers. These collaborations not only drive sales but also create excitement and generate buzz around Cadbury’s products.

These strategic collaborations and partnerships allow Cadbury to stay relevant, maintain a competitive edge, and continue delighting consumers with exciting and innovative products.

Leveraging Social Media and Engaging Online Presence

In today’s digital landscape, social media has become an essential tool for brands to connect with their audience and build a strong online presence. Cadbury, with its rich heritage and innovative approach, understands the significance of leveraging social media platforms to engage with its consumers and foster a sense of community.

Cadbury’s social media strategy encompasses platforms like Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube. By tailoring their content to suit each platform, Cadbury ensures that they reach a wider audience and stay relevant in the ever-evolving digital space.

One of the key factors contributing to Cadbury’s success on social media is their ability to create engaging and shareable content. Their posts feature stunning visuals that showcase their delectable products, including the Dairy Milk Silk range with flavors like Oreo, Red Velvet, Roast Almond, and Hazelnut, alongside other popular favorites like Oreo, Gems, and Perk.

Cadbury’s social media team capitalizes on the power of storytelling, using heartwarming narratives that celebrate joy, love, and togetherness. This emotional branding approach resonates with their audience, helping to forge a deep connection between the brand and the consumer.

The company actively engages with their followers by responding to comments and messages promptly. This interactive approach makes consumers feel valued and heard, further strengthening their bond with the brand.

Cadbury’s online presence extends beyond promotional content. They go the extra mile to offer behind-the-scenes glimpses, sneak peeks of upcoming releases, and exclusive access to events. By providing this insider perspective, Cadbury fosters a sense of exclusivity and excitement among their followers, keeping them eagerly anticipating new products and promotions.

Furthermore, Cadbury’s commitment to corporate social responsibility (CSR) is also reflected in their social media presence. Initiatives like the “Wrapper That Gives” campaign, which donated 1 GB of data to the Pratham Education Foundation from chocolate wrappers, strikes a chord with socially-conscious consumers and solidifies their connection with the brand.

With a diverse range of engaging content, a responsive approach to customer interaction, and a focus on giving back to the community, Cadbury has successfully established itself as a leader in the social media space within the food and drink industry. It comes as no surprise that they have been voted as the “top social media firm,” further highlighting the effectiveness of their approach to creating a welcoming and engaging brand image through their online presence.

Cadbury’s enduring success in the confectionery industry can be attributed to its well-crafted marketing strategy. With a strong brand identity and a diverse range of products, Cadbury has captured the hearts of consumers worldwide. Their carefully balanced pricing strategy caters to a wide range of consumers, making their products accessible to all. Through advertising, public relations, sales promotions, and social media marketing , Cadbury has effectively promoted its brand and products.

Innovation is at the core of Cadbury’s success. By continuously developing new and exciting products, they have remained ahead of the competition. Cadbury’s corporate social responsibility initiatives and strategic partnerships have also contributed to their industry leadership.

To sustain its position in the market, Cadbury must address the challenges of enhancing its virtual presence and expanding its online reach. With a well-crafted distribution network, Cadbury’s products are available globally, ensuring that chocolate lovers everywhere can indulge in their favorite treats. By engaging with the community through social media and interactive initiatives, Cadbury has built strong customer relationships and enhanced its reputation.

As Cadbury looks towards the future, their commitment to sustainability and fair trade will continue to be a driving force. With a rich heritage dating back to 1824, Cadbury’s iconic branding and innovative marketing strategies have made it a leader in the confectionery industry. Through seasonal campaigns, brand partnerships, and global localization strategies, Cadbury will maintain its position at the forefront of the industry.

What is Cadbury’s brand identity?

What products does cadbury offer, how does cadbury balance its pricing strategy, how does cadbury distribute its products, how does cadbury create an emotional connection with consumers, what sales promotion strategies does cadbury use, how does cadbury prioritize product innovation, does cadbury collaborate with other brands, how does cadbury leverage social media, what has been the key to cadbury’s enduring success, related posts:.

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Cadbury Marketing Strategy: A Case Study

• February 1, 2024

Cadbury marketing strategy – Cadbury , the renowned multinational confectionery brand, has been delighting chocolate lovers for nearly two centuries with its wide range of delectable treats. From the iconic Dairy Milk chocolate bars to biscuits, cakes, and beverages, Cadbury has established itself as a global leader in the confectionery industry. 

But what sets Cadbury apart from its competitors? It’s their carefully crafted and successful marketing strategy. In this article, we will explore the key ingredients that make up Cadbury marketing strategy recipe for sweet success.

Read More : 7 Coca Cola Marketing Strategy 2024 – A Case Study

The Origins of Cadbury: A Chocolate Revolution

Cadbury’s journey began in 1824 when Quaker John Cadbury started selling tea, coffee, and drinking chocolate in Birmingham, England. His passion for chocolate led him to create a heavenly chocolate drink that soon gained popularity. 

As the business grew, Cadbury expanded its offerings and started producing chocolate bars. With the introduction of their first chocolate bar in 1849, Cadbury began its chocolate revolution.

Building a Strong Brand Identity

Cadbury marketing strategy – One of the essential elements of Cadbury marketing strategy is its strong brand identity. The Cadbury logo, with its vibrant purple background and bold typography, represents the brand’s simplicity, accessibility, and timelessness. 

It instantly captures the attention of consumers and creates a sense of familiarity and trust. Cadbury has also introduced a limited-edition golden logo, symbolizing exclusivity and elegance for their premium products.

Product Mix: Catering to Every Sweet Tooth

Cadbury marketing strategy – Cadbury’s product mix is diverse, offering something for every sweet tooth. From their classic Dairy Milk bars to a wide range of candies, gums, biscuits, and beverages, Cadbury has a treat for everyone. 

They continuously innovate and develop new flavors and products to cater to different market segments and meet the rising tastes and preferences of consumers. Cadbury’s product range includes iconic brands like Bournville, Eclairs, Oreo, Perk, and Dairy Milk Silk.

Pricing Strategy: Balancing Affordability and Luxury

Cadbury’s pricing strategy is carefully balanced to cater to a wide range of consumers. They offer products at various price points, ensuring affordability for cost-conscious consumers while also providing luxury experiences for those willing to indulge. 

Cadbury employs different pricing strategies, including skimming pricing for premium products like Cadbury Silk and economy pricing for mass-market favorites like Dairy Milk. Bundle pricing is also utilized during holiday seasons to offer value packs and attract more customers.

Extensive Distribution Network: Reaching Every Corner

Cadbury marketing strategy – Cadbury’s extensive distribution network plays a vital role in its global success. With production facilities in multiple countries and sales offices in major cities, Cadbury ensures its products are available in urban and rural areas alike. 

Their chocolates can be found in supermarkets, corner shops, and grocers worldwide. Additionally, Cadbury embraces e-commerce, making its products easily accessible through online platforms. Wholesalers, distributors, and vending machines also contribute to Cadbury’s wide reach.

Promotion: Creating a Sweet Connection

Cadbury marketing strategy revolves around creating an emotional connection with consumers. They employ various advertising techniques to showcase their products, using print and television advertisements to capture the attention of chocolate lovers. 

Cadbury also leverages social media platforms to engage with their audience, sharing enticing images and videos of their chocolates. They run campaigns that evoke nostalgia, celebrate festivals, and promote sharing sweet moments with loved ones.

Public Relations and Sponsorships: Supporting Causes and Celebrations

In addition to traditional advertising, Cadbury utilizes public relations and sponsorships to build its brand reputation and connect with its target audience. They sponsor events like music festivals and sporting competitions, associating their brand with joyful experiences.

Cadbury has also partnered with NGOs to support social causes and recognize unsung heroes. By aligning with these initiatives, Cadbury reinforces its commitment to corporate social responsibility and strengthens its bond with consumers.

Sales Promotion: Tempting Customers with Sweet Deals

Cadbury marketing strategy – Cadbury employs various sales promotion strategies to entice customers and boost sales. They offer discounts, coupons, and competitions to create excitement and incentivize purchases. 

Special promotions like “buy one, get one free” and seasonal offers during holidays attract customers and encourage them to indulge in Cadbury’s delicious treats. These sales promotions not only drive sales but also create a sense of urgency and exclusivity.

Innovation and Research: Sweet Surprises for Every Occasion

Cadbury’s dedication to innovation and research ensures that they constantly surprise their customers with new products and flavors. Their research and development team is constantly experimenting with new ingredients and packaging to create unique and exciting chocolate experiences. 

Cadbury introduces limited-edition products to celebrate festivals and occasions, catering to the evolving tastes and preferences of their consumers.

Building Strong Partnerships: Collaborations for Success

Cadbury marketing strategy – Cadbury understands that success is not achieved alone. They forge partnerships with other businesses to expand their market reach and create unique offerings. 

Collaborations with celebrities, sports teams, and other brands help Cadbury tap into new audiences and create buzz around their products. 

By leveraging the reputation and influence of their partners, Cadbury strengthens its brand presence and builds stronger relationships with consumers.

Digital Marketing Strategy

In the digital age, Cadbury recognizes the importance of a strong online presence. They harness the power of social media platforms to engage with their audience and foster a sense of community. 

Cadbury’s social media accounts feature mouthwatering images, interactive campaigns, and behind-the-scenes glimpses, keeping their followers eagerly anticipating new releases and promotions. 

By actively responding to comments and messages, Cadbury ensures that their customers feel valued and connected.

International Expansion: Spreading Sweetness Worldwide

Cadbury marketing strategy – Cadbury’s global success can be attributed to its expansion into international markets. With production operations in multiple countries and products available in over 50 nations, Cadbury has become a household name worldwide. 

They adapt their marketing strategies to suit different cultural preferences and consumer behaviors, ensuring that their products resonate with local audiences. 

Cadbury’s international presence has helped them gain a diverse customer base and establish themselves as a leader in the confectionery industry.

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Cadbury marketing strategy is a carefully crafted recipe that has contributed to its enduring success. From building a strong brand identity to offering a diverse product mix, employing effective pricing strategies, and leveraging extensive distribution networks, Cadbury has created a sweet connection with consumers worldwide. 

Their promotional efforts, partnerships, and commitment to innovation further differentiate them from their competitors. With a strong online presence and international expansion, Cadbury continues to satisfy sweet tooths everywhere, spreading joy and sweetness one chocolate at a time.

Lydia Pricillia

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Marketing Strategy of Cadbury: How it has mastered the art of spreading sweetness

Learn about cadbury's iconic marketing strategy and advertising campaigns. read how cadbury aces the 4ps of marketing mix - product, price, promotion & placement..

• overview#goto" data-overview-topic-param="creating-a-chocolate-empire">Creating a chocolate empire
• overview#goto" data-overview-topic-param="the-rise-of-cadbury-house-in-india">The Rise of Cadbury House in India
• overview#goto" data-overview-topic-param="logo-the-sweet-badge-of-honour">Logo: The Sweet Badge of Honour
• overview#goto" data-overview-topic-param="target-audience">Target Audience
• overview#goto" data-overview-topic-param="marketing-mix-of-cadbury">Marketing mix of Cadbury
• overview#goto" data-overview-topic-param="strategies-that-define-cadbury">Strategies that Define Cadbury
• overview#goto" data-overview-topic-param="noteworthy-marketing-campaigns">Noteworthy Marketing Campaigns
• overview#goto" data-overview-topic-param="strategies-to-steal-from">Strategies to steal from

The British multinational confectionery Cadbury has created magnificent confectionaries for almost 200 years, making it every chocolate lover's paradise. It is owned by Mondelez International and is the second-largest confectionery brand in the world, behind Mars, followed by its nearest competitor Nestle, Ferrero, and Miji. Cadbury offers something to satiate any sweet craving, from their well-known Dairy Milk chocolates to other confectionery treats like cakes, biscuits, and beverages.

However, how does it manage to operate in over 50 countries and employ nearly 50,000 people? How did Mondelez India Foods Private Limited report a 16% year-on-year jump in FY22 revenues to ₹9,296 crore ?

Read on as we evaluate how Cadbury's marketing strategy adds a little sweetness to our lives every day.

How cocoa essence helped create a chocolate empire

A dream and a passion for chocolate marked the beginning of Cadbury's history. To create chocolate that anybody might enjoy, Quaker John Cadbury who sold tea, coffee, and drinking chocolate founded his company in Birmingham, South west England, in 1824.

Starting with a humble pestle and mortar, he ground cocoa beans to make a chocolate drink that was nothing short of heavenly. As the business grew, John Cadbury moved to a larger factory on Bridge Street and began to craft chocolate bars, marking the beginning of a chocolate revolution.

Benjamin, John's brother, soon joined the company and helped it grow by introducing new products and flavors. Cadbury company launched its first chocolate bar in 1849.

Source: Telegraph

Following the incorporation of their company as "Cadbury Brothers Limited" and the realization that business was booming, the brothers decided to build a new factory named Bournville Estate in the Birmingham suburb of Bournville in 1866 to better the lives of its employees. The factory offered housing and entertainment, ensuring that the chocolate was not only delicious but also produced ethically.

Source: Prints and ephemera

Cadbury was one of the big three British confectionery manufacturers throughout much of the 19th and 20th centuries. In 1969 Cadbury merged with Schweppes brand — an American beverage business. It was known as Cadbury Schweppes plc until 2008, only to be acquired by Kraft foods inc. in 2010. Cadbury is now owned by Mondelez International.

Cadbury has expanded over the years by buying other businesses, releasing new products, and entering new markets. Currently, it is one of the largest sectors in the global confections market and is renowned for its excellence and innovation.

In 1990, Cadbury introduced Cadbury World. It offers visitors the chance to learn about the history of Cadbury chocolate and see how it is made.

The Rise of Cadbury House in India

When Cadbury, the pride of Mondelez International, made its foray into India in 1948, it brought some sweetness to the nation by establishing its corporate headquarters in the bustling metropolis of Mumbai, Maharashtra.

Following the initial import of its well-known chocolates, Cadbury India quickly gained a monopoly in the market, with Cadbury's chocolate confectioneries portfolio accounting for an value share of 70%. Stunningly, the well-liked Dairy Milk brand alone held 40% of the whole Indian chocolate market.

As the years passed, Cadbury India's confectionery company expanded its selection of products in India by introducing several delectable Cadbury products like biscuits, candies, and beverages, solidifying its position as a household name. With Cadbury products like the beloved Cadbury Bournvita, Gems, 5-star, Eclairs, Cadbury Dairy Milk Silk, Crispello, Tang, and Oreo in addition to the traditional Dairy Milk, Cadbury has come to symbolize nostalgia for many Indians.

In 2021, the maker of Cadbury Dairy Milk reported a revenue of $1.2 billion in India. Mondelez International aims to push up India revenue to $2 billion by 2030.

Logo: The Sweet Badge of Honour

The creation of the Cadbury logo shows the company's dedication to not just producing high-quality chocolate products but also to develop a visual identity that captures its rich heritage and commitment to excellence.

The initial logo, which included a stylized representation of a cocoa tree, made a subtle reference to the company's history in the chocolate industry. But the brand's determination to stay current was evident in the more modern and abstract style that came next, being inspired by William Cadbury's sign.

Source: Logos World

The current logo uses a strong typeface against a vibrant purple background to represent the brand's simplicity, accessibility, and timelessness.

Cadbury company also released a limited-edition version of the logo in its gold form, which is only used for the priciest and most exclusive items and promotions. The conventional purple logo is no longer the only option. The golden version of the logo conveys exclusivity and elegance, elevating the already well-known Cadbury brand to new levels of sophistication. It looks like an encrusted badge of honor.

Target Audience

Cadbury's customer base is diverse, ranging from the smallest candy enthusiasts to the pickiest chocolate connoisseurs. The company's sumptuous treats, which range from conventional chocolate bars to lavish chocolate boxes, are enjoyed by people of all ages. Whether you're looking for a tasty treat to enjoy on your own or a gift to give to loved ones, Cadbury India has something to meet every occasion.

Marketing mix of Cadbury

Cadbury has a recipe for success that is as sweet as its treats. The secret ingredient? A well-crafted marketing mix that tantalizes the taste buds of chocolate lovers everywhere. From the delectable products to the irresistible prices, to the convenient distribution channels, and the alluring Cadbury promotions, Cadbury's marketing mix is a symphony of deliciousness. Each element of the Cadbury marketing mix is carefully crafted to create a cohesive and irresistible experience for the customer.

Here's a closer look at how the Cadbury marketing mix makes every day a little sweeter:

The Cadbury product collection is as diverse as a box of chocolates, offering something for every sweet tooth to enjoy. All ages can enjoy their chocolates, which range from classic Cadbury Dairy Milk bars to the decadent delight of Creme Eggs. They also provide a vast variety of candies, gum, and pastries that will take you on a sweet experience.

The broad product list includes several Cadbury items, such as Bournville, Bournvita, Tang, Crunchie, Cadbury Dairy Milk, Dairy Milk Fruit & Nut, Caramel, Cadbury Five Star, Cadbury Dairy Milk Silk,Perk, BournVita, Bytes, Oreo, Crispello, Eclairs, etc which gives a unique take on the original Cadbury flavor.

Source: Cadbury

Want to reward yourself with a holiday treat? Cadbury India has you covered with special chocolate gifts that are suitable for any occasion, including Cadbury Celebration boxes for Diwali and Rakshabandhan, Easter eggs, Christmas selection boxes, and more.

Cadbury's product mix provides a range of options tailored to different market segments, making it a veritable gold mine of delectable treats just waiting to be discovered. Mondelez India expanded its Choco-bakery segment recently with its chocobake cookies.

Source: Instagram

Cadbury India offers a tempting selection of goods at various pricing points. Cadbury's pricing strategy is a delicate dance between production costs, market competitiveness, and consumer desire. It offers everything from affordable, mass-market options to luxury experiences.

While the business's more luxury products, like gift boxes and expensive dark chocolate bars like Bournville or Cadbury temptations, Cadbury Dairy Milk Silk tempts those looking to indulge. Its primary range of chocolate confectionery like Eclairs, Cadbury dairy milk, and 5-Star fulfills the sweet tooth of customers on a modest budget. But that is not the end of Cadbury's mouthwatering symphony. In addition, a wide selection of expertly made cookies treats, and beverages are offered, satisfying a range of tastes and preferences.

Each Cadbury product, including Bournvita, Tang, Oreo, Dairy Milk Silk, and Dairy Milk chocolate, offers a distinctive flavor sensation at a price that has been carefully matched to the target consumer and the product's ingredients.

Cadbury India constantly evaluates its pricing strategy to make sure it keeps its position as the market leader in the chocolate confectionery business while also remaining competitive, which results in every piece of chocolate being delectable and fulfilling.

By cleverly designing a global distribution strategy, Cadbury ensures that its delicious chocolate delicacies are available in every corner of the globe — urban and rural areas. The company's primary markets include the UK, Ireland, Canada, India, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, and a few Caribbean countries, but thanks to outposts set up there through subsidiaries and licenses, its reach extends well beyond these borders.

The corporation has production facilities in several countries, including the UK, Poland, Russia, India, and Australia. In India, it has manufacturing facilities in Thane, Induri (Pune) and Malanpur (Gwalior), Hyderabad, Bangalore, and Baddi (Himachal Pradesh) and sales offices in New Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, and Chennai.

The products of the corporation have a distinct flavor because of each of their preferences.

Retail locations

Cadbury chocolate bars are available in almost all supermarkets, corner shops, and grocers.

Source: Economic Times

Online Sales

Cadbury products are freely accessible on their website and other e-commerce sites for individuals who prefer the convenience of online shopping.

To ensure that its chocolate bars reach every nook and crevice of the market, Cadbury India also makes its products available to wholesalers and distributors, who serve as the industry's gatekeepers.

Direct sales

Cadbury products are also offered through company-owned establishments and vending machines for individuals who enjoy a decent vending machine experience.

Cadbury ships its goods to a large number of nations to make sure that everyone can enjoy a taste of Cadbury chocolate wherever they may be.

The distribution strategy used by Cadbury is a smart mix of many outlets. The brand stands out and establishes itself as a true worldwide leader in the sector thanks to its constant dedication to making its chocolates accessible to chocolate lovers from urban and rural areas.

As innovative as Cadbury's selection of chocolate flavors is, so to is Cadbury's marketing strategy. To make sure that everyone is continually thinking about their delicious treats, Cadbury India uses a variety of strategies from online to offline campaigns.

Advertising

Cadbury uses a range of advertising techniques to spread the word about its products. They ensure that their chocolate is always in the spotlight by featuring their recognizable Dairy Milk bars in print and television promotions.

Source: Business Insider India

They also take advantage of internet channels to attract younger clients and create a sense of brand community. One successful example is Cadbury's "Tastes Like This Feels" campaign, which used heartwarming commercials to show how chocolate can bring people together to create an emotional connection with consumers.

Public relations

Cadbury uses PR to generate positive press and bolster their brand. To develop their brand and establish relationships with their target demographic, they have sponsored events such as music festivals, sporting competitions, and philanthropic endeavors.

Runners received free chocolate bars as part of Cadbury's partnership with the London Marathon to create positive buzz and boost brand loyalty while Cadbury Fuse served as the 2023 Tata Mumbai Marathon's official snacking partner.

Source: SportsMintMedia

Sales Promotion

Cadbury uses a range of sales promotion strategies, such as discounts, coupons, and competitions, to increase sales and entice new customers. They have developed programs, such as "Buy one, get one free" and "Win a vacation to Cadbury World," to tempt customers to indulge in several chocolate sweets.

Social media marketing

The biggest chocolate manufacturer in the world, Cadbury, is aware that the secret to their success on social media is providing a delectable and entertaining experience for their audience. On a variety of social media platforms, such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube, they post enticing images and videos of their delectable chocolates.

By introducing new products made of chocolate, running contests, and hosting promotions, Cadbury keeps their customers yearning for more.

But Cadbury goes above and beyond with their social media approach to foster a sense of community around their brand in addition to just selling chocolate. They ensure that their clients feel like they are a part of the Cadbury family by responding to comments and messages and conducting interactive initiatives.

Cadbury's social media marketing ensures that engagement and excitement are maintained year-round for both the brand and its followers. Apart from other social media platforms, YouTube Channel —YouTube Cadbury India is the primary medium for executing marketing campaigns.

However virtual presence is one of the pain points Cadbury India needs to work on to stay ahead of the competition.

Strategies that Define Cadbury

Cadbury, the chocolate connoisseur, has a recipe for success that is as rich and diverse as the chocolate varieties it offers. With a strong sense of brand identity, innovative product development , and great emotive marketing, Cadbury possesses all the elements needed for a successful strategy. What sets Cadbury apart, though, is its ability to forge partnerships that give its marketing strategy a competitive edge.

Strong brand identity

Cadbury's famous purple and white logo represents taste and quality. Chocolate lovers have grown to appreciate and believe in this indulgence promise.

Innovative product development

Cadbury's R&D team is similar to Willy Wonka's chocolate factory in that it constantly tries out new flavors and packaging to create a unique and exciting chocolate experience.

Emotional marketing

Cadbury understands that chocolate is more than just a treat; it's an experience. Cadbury has been able to connect with customers on a deeper level through storytelling and emotional appeal, resulting in loyal fans.

CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility)

Cadbury is conscious of the luxury and responsibility that comes with managing a responsible business. Due to its efforts in sustainable and fair trade, Cadbury has been able to build a strong reputation and form stronger relationships with its customers.

Partnership

Cadbury is aware that success involves more than just one person—it demands a team. Through partnerships with other businesses, Cadbury India has been able to access a larger market and provide consumers with unique and fascinating chocolate experiences. Cadbury partnered with an NGO & the Zee Network to say thanks to the unsung heroes of the lockdown. Cadbury India also partnered with Reliance jio to launch an initiative called ' The Wrapper That Gives .' It also has partnered with Hindustan Unilever Limited.

Marketing Campaigns that helped Cadbury become a part of Indian audiences' celebrations:

Since its debut television advertisement in 1955 to the prized Grand Prix Lion winner for its famous Gorilla campaign at the 2008 Cannes International Festival of Creativity, Cadbury has been known for its meticulously produced and emotionally stirring marketing campaigns. Each advertisement is carefully designed to increase sales and solidify Cadbury's reputation among customers.

Here are successful Marketing campaigns of Cadbury India's from Kuch meetha ho jaaye to Kiss Me jingle.

Kuch Meetha Ho Jaaye" Cadbury marketing campaign

To capitalize on people's craving for sweet moments and festivities, Cadbury India's 2017 "Kuch Meetha Ho Jaaye" campaign used a subtly effective call to action. The lovely campaign successfully combined indulgence, celebration, and the emotive power of sweets to deliver a strong and enduring brand message.

Source: Facebook

Cadbury India did this by combining television advertisements, digital marketing, and carefully chosen promotions and events. It emphasized the emotional connection customers have with Cadbury products, making them the go-to option for satiating sweet cravings. It also highlighted how versatile Cadbury's products are in elevating special occasions, from small events to festivals.

How Far Will You Go for Love

2010 saw the premiere of Cadbury India's "How Far Will You Go For Love" campaign. This astute dairy milk campaign aimed at appealing to the core of human emotions. It challenges consumers to think about the lengths they would go to display their love for others and portrays Cadbury's chocolate goods as potent expressions of devotion through moving advertising, events, and promotions.

To create a strong and durable brand message that engages clients emotionally, the campaign, which was specifically created for millennials, combines nostalgia, romanticism, and longing. It is endorsed by Kartik Aryan, a well-known figure in the young culture, and uses the hashtag #PopYourHeartOut.

Kuch khaas hain Zindagi Mein

When Cadbury launched this ad campaign back in the 90s, it was nothing short of revolutionary. Picture it: A cricket match, a player smashes the ball out of the park, and in that moment of pure elation, a young woman breaks out into an impromptu dance, chocolate bar in hand. It was a scene that shattered stereotypes and defined a new era of chocolate appreciation.

Source: Exchange4media

The lovely campaign was such a hit that Cadbury recently brought it back to life, this time with a twist. A female cricketer hits a six, and a male spectator runs onto the field, dancing with joy. And all the while, the iconic slogan "Kuchh Khaas Hai Zindagi Mein" plays in the background, perfectly capturing the unrestrained love and joy of the moment. This ad campaign by Cadbury India was a game-changer, a true masterpiece of advertising.

Cadbury's Oreo Biscuit: Stay Playful at Home

Amid the Covid-19 pandemic's volatile environment, Cadbury's Oreo India Marketing campaign provided a different and welcome perspective. The campaign's slogan was "Make Way for Play," and its target audience was young children. The message of being safe and at home, which was expertly timed and meticulously planned, provided a sense of optimism and hope during a difficult period.

Source: Digitas

Cadbury Dairy Milk Campaign: Kiss Me Jingle

Advertising jingles have the potential to be a potent instrument for deeply ingraining a brand in consumers' minds when used well. Cadbury brand has provided an instance of this strategy with its enduring and alluring "Kiss Me" jingle. A marketing campaign for the delectable Cadbury Dairy Milk Silk chocolate initially featured a catchy melody.

Since then, it has grown to be identified with the business and has made countless additional appearances in ads. Due to the song and the marketing campaign, Dairy Milk Silk chocolate gained a lot of popularity, and its allure has persisted throughout time.

Strategies to steal from Marketing Strategy of Cadbury:

Here are some major takeaways marketers and business owners can have from the Cadbury marketing strategy:

A brand that warms the heart

The major objective of the Cadbury marketing strategy is to establish a strong emotional bond with its customers. They are adept at using alliances, sponsorships, and focused advertising to make their brand appear like a cozy embrace on a frigid day. Developing strong emotional bonds with clients could be a very successful strategy for boosting brand awareness and loyalty.

A taste of the immersive

Cadbury uses experiential marketing to provide its customers with a first-hand encounter with the brand. Through the immersive experiences they provide, customers can engage with the business uniquely and memorably. Experiential marketing strategy can create original and memorable brand experiences for customers.

A buffet of sweet treats

Cadbury's product mix is as diverse as a box of chocolates, with something for every sweet tooth. From classic Dairy Milk bars to the gooey, delicious goodness of Creme Eggs, they cater to all tastes. Offering a diversified product mix can help to cater to different consumer preferences and tastes, increasing sales and market share.

Pricing that's just right

Cadbury has a dynamic pricing strategy that is tailored to different market segments. They provide a combination of skimming, penetration , price discrimination, and bundle pricing to make sure that everyone can indulge in their delectable pleasures. A dynamic pricing approach might help you reach out to different market segments while remaining profitable.

Always within reach

Because of the company's extensive network of distribution channels, which is as extensive as its chocolate bars, Cadbury chocolate is always readily accessible. Retail establishments, online sales, wholesale, direct sales, and export are all ways to get products. Having a wide distribution network can increase the availability of products and make it more convenient for customers to purchase.

Promotion that's hard to resist

Cadbury's marketing strategy is equally inventive as its variety of chocolate flavors. They employ different marketing strategies, such as direct marketing, personal selling, sales promotion planning, marketing campaigns, and public relations, to make sure that everyone is constantly thinking about their delectable delights. Brands may raise their awareness and boost sales by developing innovative and captivating promotion techniques.

Quality and innovation at the core

Cadbury's marketing and product activities reflect the excellence and innovation for which the company is renowned. This is evident in their commitment to using products from ethical and sustainable sources, as well as in their constant introduction of fresh goods and flavors. Setting innovation and quality as top priorities can help a business stand out from the competition and earn a reputation for excellence.

In closing, the best way to describe Cadbury's marketing strategy is as a masterful blend of brand development, nostalgia, and innovation. Cadbury has been effective in building familiarity and trust with its target audience by leveraging the power of indulgence and commercial themes that evoke nostalgia.

The strategic partnerships that Cadbury has developed with important parties, like suppliers and retailers, have helped to strengthen its position as the market leader in the global confectionery industry. The Cadbury marketing strategy is a fascinating case study for the marketing sector because of the convergence of all these factors. To get your foot in the snacking market you can also go through Dunkin Donuts marketing strategy.

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A Case Study on Cadbury’s Gorilla Brand Campaign

A Case Study on Cadbury’s Gorilla Brand Campaign 6 min read

The Cadbury Gorilla Brand Campaign , launched in 2007, is a notable example of a unique and highly effective marketing strategy. The campaign featured a 90-second commercial that depicted a gorilla playing the drums to Phil Collins’ hit song “In the Air Tonight.” The ad begins with a close-up of the gorilla’s face, gradually zooming out to reveal the animal sitting at a drum kit. As the drum solo begins, the gorilla passionately plays along, showcasing intense emotion and skill. The advert concludes with the simple message, “A glass and a half full of joy,” followed by the Cadbury logo.

Campaign Execution of Cadbury Gorilla Brand Campaign

The execution of the Cadbury Gorilla Brand Campaign is widely regarded as a prime example of innovative and effective advertising. Here’s a comprehensive breakdown of how the campaign was brought to life, from concept to results:

Concept and Creation:

• Agency Involvement : The campaign was developed by Fallon London , an agency known for its bold and creative approaches.
• Creative Leadership : Juan Cabral, a renowned creative director, led the project. His vision was to break away from traditional chocolate advertising and create something unexpected that would evoke joy.
• Core Idea : The idea was to create an ad that was both surprising and emotionally engaging. The concept centered around a gorilla playing the drums to the iconic song “In the Air Tonight” by Phil Collins. This choice was designed to generate an emotional response and create a memorable experience for viewers.

Production Details:

• Filming : The commercial was shot over a few days, with meticulous attention to detail to ensure the gorilla’s movements were lifelike and engaging.
• Special Effects and Suit Design : The gorilla suit was designed by Stan Winston Studio , a leader in special effects and animatronics. Actor Garon Michael, who wore the suit, trained extensively to mimic the gorilla’s movements convincingly.
• Music Synchronization : The use of Phil Collins’ song was crucial. The drum solo was perfectly timed with the gorilla’s performance, creating a powerful and emotional climax in the ad.

Launch and Distribution Strategy:

• Initial Airing : The ad first aired on September 10, 2007, during a prime-time slot on British television. This strategic timing ensured a wide audience.
• Cinematic Release : To further increase reach, the ad was also shown in cinemas, capitalizing on the immersive experience of the big screen.
• Online Platforms : Recognizing the potential of viral marketing, Cadbury uploaded the ad to YouTube and other social media platforms. The ad’s unique and humorous nature quickly captured online attention, leading to widespread sharing and discussion.

Supporting PR and Buzz:

• Media Coverage : The ad generated significant media buzz due to its unconventional approach. News outlets, magazines, and online publications covered the campaign extensively, adding to its visibility.
• Public Engagement : Cadbury supported the campaign with PR activities that encouraged public engagement. This included press releases, interviews, and behind-the-scenes content that provided insights into the making of the ad.

Engagement and Interactive Elements:

• User-Generated Content : The success of the ad led to several spin-offs and user-generated content. Cadbury encouraged fans to create their own versions of the gorilla ad, fostering a sense of community and participation.
• Merchandising : The popularity of the gorilla character prompted Cadbury to produce related merchandise, further embedding the campaign in popular culture.

The Cadbury Gorilla Brand Campaign is a landmark in advertising, providing valuable insights into the power of creative and emotional marketing. Here is an in-depth analysis of the campaign’s key elements, impact, and lessons learned.

Key Elements of Cadbury Gorilla Brand Campaign

Creativity and Innovation :

• Unconventional Approach : The campaign broke away from traditional chocolate advertising, which typically focuses on product attributes or consumption moments. Instead, it used an unexpected and humorous scenario involving a gorilla playing the drums.
• Emotional Engagement : By leveraging Phil Collins’ iconic song “In the Air Tonight,” the ad created a strong emotional connection with viewers. Music played a crucial role in evoking nostalgia and joy.

Strategic Execution :

• High-Quality Production : The use of a realistic gorilla suit and expert performance added authenticity and intrigue, making the ad more engaging.
• Multi-Channel Distribution : The ad was strategically launched across television, cinemas, and online platforms, maximizing reach and impact.

Memorable Branding :

• Minimal Branding : The ad only revealed the Cadbury logo at the end, creating curiosity and making the brand association more impactful. This minimalist approach kept the focus on the emotional experience rather than overt product placement.

Impact and Results

Sales and Market Share :

• The campaign led to a significant increase in sales, with reports of a double-digit percentage growth in the months following its launch. This demonstrated the effectiveness of emotional and engaging advertising in driving consumer purchases.

Brand Perception and Loyalty :

• Positive Brand Image : The ad refreshed Cadbury’s brand image, making it appear more innovative, fun, and emotionally resonant. Consumers associated the brand with joy and pleasure, aligning with Cadbury’s core values.
• Increased Brand Loyalty : The strong emotional connection fostered by the campaign helped in building long-term brand loyalty. Consumers were more likely to remember and prefer Cadbury products.

Viral and Cultural Impact :

• Viral Success : The ad’s unique and unexpected nature made it a viral hit on social media, leading to widespread sharing and discussion. This organic reach amplified the campaign’s impact without additional advertising spend.
• Cultural Resonance : The gorilla character and the use of Phil Collins’ song became cultural touchstones, referenced and parodied in various media, further embedding the campaign in popular culture.

Industry Recognition :

• The campaign won numerous awards, including the Grand Prix at the Cannes Lions International Advertising Festival. This recognition validated the campaign’s creative approach and its effectiveness in achieving marketing objectives.

Lessons Learned

Embrace Creativity :

• The success of the Cadbury Gorilla Campaign underscores the importance of creativity in advertising. Breaking away from traditional approaches and taking risks can lead to highly memorable and effective campaigns.

Emotional Connection :

• Creating an emotional connection with the audience is crucial. Music, humor, and surprise elements can significantly enhance the emotional impact of an ad, making it more engaging and memorable.

Strategic Branding :

• Minimal and strategic use of branding can be more effective than overt product placement. Allowing the emotional experience to take center stage can create a stronger association with the brand.

Multi-Channel Approach :

• Distributing the campaign across multiple channels ensures maximum reach and engagement. Leveraging both traditional and digital media can amplify the campaign’s impact.

The Cadbury Gorilla Brand Campaign is a quintessential example of how innovative, emotionally resonant advertising can drive significant business results and leave a lasting impact on brand perception. Its success highlights the potential of creative risk-taking and strategic execution in achieving marketing excellence.

Also Read: A Case Study on Airbnb’s Belong Anywhere Campaign

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Case Study On Cadbury’s Digital Marketing Strategies [Download PDF]

• November 23, 2022

Table of Contents

Did you know that Cadbury initially sold drinking chocolate and labelled itself a healthy drink? This was way back in 1824, and well, fast forward to 2022. All we can think of when one says chocolate is Cadbury. What happened between these years (or centuries) is a testament to how Cadbury jumped on every opportunity and established its brand name worldwide.

To sell really tasty chocolate isn’t that difficult, but to sell it as Cadbury does, is something to learn from! This blog will discuss how Cadbury used the digital platform for branding and earned a name for itself amongst the competition. 

Let’s first understand more about Cadbury’s digital marketing strategies;

About Cadbury

Cadbury built its very first manufacturing unit in India in 1948. They now have a total of five manufacturing units and one cocoa operation across India. The market share of Cadbury India is around 70%, which is the highest in the world. India’s favourite chocolate, Cadbury Dairy Milk, is a benchmark for all the other chocolates. These are some of Cadbury’s products:

• Celebrations

Beverages: Cadbury Bournvita

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Cadbury Bournvita (@cadburybournvita)

Oreo Biscuits

You can play with Oreo Biscuits also, just like her 😉

Since 1965, Cadbury has been leading the cocoa cultivation development. This is with regard to their collaboration with the Kerela Agricultural University and their constant training sessions with cocoa farmers on its cultivation.

Why Should Marketers Study Cadbury’s Digital Marketing Strategies?

Marketers must study Cadbury’s digital marketing strategies because they can get inspired by them and try to implement some of those strategies for their brands. Here are four of the many things marketers can learn from Cadbury: 

1. Use Brand Name to Increase Visibility.

The Cadbury logo is always displayed on all its products, ensuring customers know who made their favourite chocolate bars.

When was the last time you heard “Nestlé Kit Kat” mentioned?

Did you hear about Cadbury Dairy Milk Silk before?

Almost certainly never. When compared to the way Cadbury chocolate is marketed, “Cadbury’s Crème Egg,” “Cadbury’s Roses,” and, of course, “Cadbury’s Dairy Milk” seems a lot more natural because that is how we are familiar with them. In this way, Cadbury’s chocolate is instantly recognisable. You can use your brand name, too, to make your product more identifiable.

2. Consistency

Just in the UK, Cadbury sells over 276 goods, including bars, bags, ice creams, desserts, biscuits, travel exclusives, spreads, beverages, food products, and seasonal products for Christmas, Easter, and Halloween.

Despite having such varied products, Cadbury develops products that are consistent with their brand – nothing seems out of place or as if it were made by someone else. As a result, when consumers desire a Cadbury product, they know what to look for and what to expect when they get it.

3. A Style Guide

Every page should be consistent, according to a basic rule of web design. Suppose certain pages on your website have a completely different layout, typeface, or colour scheme than others. In that case, the consumer may become confused and believe they’ve left your site and landed on another.

To promote exposure and familiarity, a great brand requires consistency. This implies that your name, logo, colours, tone of voice in your writing, and other branding elements should be consistent across your website, social media pages, email newsletters, and physical marketing materials. If you’re launching a new product, pay attention to how you show it online and advertise it to your target audience.

4. Adapting to Changes

Cadbury continues to update its product offering to keep up with the newest consumer trends and adapt to its changing market, as evidenced by its extensive product range. With 538 abandoned goods, the firm knows when to retire a product that isn’t profitable enough and when to attempt something new.

Cadbury, for example, will produce Dairy Milk chocolate with 30% less sugar next year, maybe because people are more concerned about living a better lifestyle than ever. But, through it all, it knows how to maintain its brand despite product and market changes.

The same rationale can be applied to your marketing strategies. Whether it’s a new social networking platform or Google making adjustments to AdWords (or as it’s now known, Google Ads), the internet marketing landscape is continuously shifting. The most important thing for marketers to do is to assess these developments and efficiently adjust to them without losing sight of their brand.

Determine whether you should attempt a new social media platform, establish a new ad campaign, or send out a series of mailshots. But remember what your brand is, how you want to be perceived, your objective, and who you’re aiming for when you do.

Cadbury’s Digital Marketing Strategies 

1. cadbury’s social media marketing strategies & case study.

Cadbury entered the social media realm with the intent to revolutionize its marketing strategies and step back from Television and other traditional forms of advertising. Here is how they are currently performing on different social media platforms: 

Cadbury’s Instagram Marketing Strategies

Cadbury has different Instagram accounts for each of its products. This allows them to keep their marketing more focused on that particular product and adhere to the audience consuming it. Each account has different content, colour themes, and overall presentation.

Here is the follower count of Cadbury’s most famous products (as of November 2022):

Each of these brands post content that is specialized to their own product. BournVita recently ran a campaign with the saying “Maa Kabhi retired nahi hoti” on their Instagram page. This goes well with their brand language since BournVita’s TV ad focuses on the relationship between a child and their mother. Hence, even across different platforms, their brand image stays the same.

On the other hand, Dairy Milk’s Instagram page is filled with posts related to IPL since they sponsor the ground staff in IPL. 

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Cadbury Dairy Milk (@cadburydairymilkin)

Cadbury’s Instagram Analytics

Cadbury Dairy Milk is very active on Instagram space. The Instagram handle was created in 2016, and they are getting quite a good traction on the handle, as they use it to post updates, collaborations, and upcoming products there and interact with their audience. To date, they have around 254k followers and still growing.

Cadbury’s Facebook Marketing Strategies 

Cadbury also uses Facebook to publish similar content as Instagram for their Facebook audience. They have a much larger follower on each account on Facebook. 

Cadbury used Facebook to follow up on the 30-second television advertisement they published using the saas-bahu duo. This campaign was to brand their product, “Dairy Milk”, to build friendships and other relationships. They aimed to catch the sentiments of the otherwise negative duo, mother-in-law and daughter-in-law, and show them in a more loving and positive light. This proved to be successful because Cadbury could connect with their audience and make them emotional. 

According to a study by Medium , these were the following trends they experienced after their campaign on Facebook:

• There was a 5.8% increase in top-of-mind awareness.
• Facebook is alone responsible for a 5.1% boost in brand consideration.
• 5.7% increase in TV reach
• Increase of 8.1% in the number of people who watch light television.
• Increase of 2.8% in spontaneous awareness
• Tenfold increase in Facebook ad spend

Cadbury’s YouTube Marketing Strategies:

Unlike Instagram and Facebook, where Cadbury has different profiles for different products, Cadbury has only one channel on YouTube, with different sections for “Seasonal,” “Flavours,” and “Marvellous creations.” Cadbury has over 548K YouTube subscribers. They also use “YouTube Shorts,” YouTube’s most recent feature, to post short videos within 30 seconds. 

Cadbury’s Youtube Engagement Rate

Cadbury’s YouTube engagement rate is 0.67%. They receive an average of 262 likes per post .

Cadbury’s Twitter Marketing Strategies

Cadbury also has separate accounts for its different products on Twitter. 

Cadbury Dairy Milk’s Twitter account is currently occupied by content about the ongoing IPL 2022. Similar to its Facebook and Instagram accounts, Cadbury Dairy Milk’s Twitter is occupied by content about its sponsorship of the ground staff. Cadbury has a strong social media presence, particularly on Twitter. Customers are kept engaged on Twitter by posting on a regular basis. Although there is much-repeated information across platforms and pages, this is understandable because it broadens the audience’s reach.

Cadbury’s key strength is its ability to engage its followers on social media since they are quite good at responding to customer comments and inquiries. This good aspect of the organisation aids in developing a welcoming and accepting brand image.

2. Cadbury’s SEO Strategies

Cadbury India has a gifting website where people can customise their chocolates for gifting purposes and place an order for the same. According to SEMRush, here’s an overview of how their domain is performing:

Cadbury’s organic keywords include

• Cadbury India
• Lumba rakhi
• Cadbury celebrations
• Cadbury happy birthday, and
• Dairy milk silk,

However, Cadbury does not have a website with the same name as its domain. Mondelez International, its parent firm, only has a section dedicated to it. The website must also be optimised in order to appear first on Google’s Search Engine Results Page (SERP).

Popular companies like Dairy Milk and Oreo do not have their own websites. A distinct website for the brand allows individuals to learn more about the products while also increasing transparency between the company and its customers.

Case study of Cadbury’s Top Digital Marketing Campaigns: 

1. 5 stars everywhere – a cadbury 5 star campaign.

The smart move of Cadbury definitely makes a mark on history & its audience’s hearts and minds. That’s the plan, right? Every time you rate anything you remember, Cadbury is there.

“When you #DoNothing and the entire world does your work for you. #5StarsEverywhere #Cadbury5Star ,” that’s the campaign.

2. Stay Home Stay Safe: At Home with Oreo – A Cadbury Oreo Campaign

Oreo, a Cadbury cookie brand, has produced a clever commercial corresponding to the pandemic situation: staying at home. Oreo debuted the #AtHomewithOreo campaign, which is aimed at youngsters. In these uncertain times, the campaign urges children to be playful. “Make Way For Play ” is the campaign’s slogan. Isn’t it an excellent use of the current situation?

3. How Far Will You Go For Love? – A Dairy Milk Campaign

Cadbury Dairy Milk Silk is marketed primarily to millennials. On the other hand, Dairy Milk Silk has proven to be a favourite among youngsters, and launching this promotion for Valentine’s Day was a fantastic decision!

The campaign’s theme was simple: “How far will you go for love on Valentine’s Day?” with the hashtag #PopYourHeartOut. Kartik Aryan, a well-known actor and youth hero, was also enlisted to help promote the ad.

4. Kuch Meetha Ho Jaaye – A Dairy Milk Campaign

People in India highly value rituals and traditions, especially when embarking on a new endeavour on an auspicious occasion. Cadbury Dairy Milk launched the “Kuch Meetha Ho Jaaye” campaign, in which Cadbury India positioned Dairy Milk as a treat that could be enjoyed during joyous occasions in our lives.

Cadbury India demonstrated individuals of all ages sharing big and small life experiences, interacting with others, and making great occasions even more memorable with Cadbury Dairy Milk. The campaign is still remembered fondly, and Amitabh Bachchan, the great Indian actor, previously endorsed it.

As you can see, Cadbury has seeped into the digital world to showcase its products and spread the word about its brand. You can enrol in the best online digital marketing course if you wish to build amazing digital marketing approaches for your company. This course is for students who want to learn everything there is to know about digital marketing and how to use it to grow their businesses.

Are you prepared to take your company’s image to new heights? Now is the best time to take our free digital marketing course !

Which was your favourite campaign by Cadbury? Please share your thoughts in the comment section below.

Written By Digital Scholar

Digital Scholar is a premier agency-styled digital marketing institute in India. Which offers an online digital marketing course and a free digital marketing course worldwide to elevate their digital skills and become industry experts. Digital Scholar is headed by Sorav Jain and co-founder Rishi Jain, who are pioneers in the field of digital marketing. Digital Scholar’s blogs touch upon numerous aspects of digital marketing and help you get intensive ideas of different domains of digital marketing.

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Cadbury's Marketing Strategies: Creating Moments of Joy

Apoorva Bajj , Archana Karthikeyan

Cadbury, the world-renowned chocolatier, has a sweet story that started way back in 1824. The company was founded by John Cadbury, a visionary entrepreneur who had a passion for making chocolate. Initially, Cadbury started off as a small family-run business, selling tea and coffee in Birmingham, UK. However, it was the company’s chocolate that truly set it apart.

Cadbury’s first chocolate bar was produced in 1849, and it quickly became a hit among chocolate lovers. Over the years, the company continued to innovate and expand its product line, introducing new flavors and packaging options. Today, Cadbury is a household name and is recognized as one of the world’s most iconic chocolate brands.

With over 200 years of history, Cadbury has achieved some impressive milestones. In 2019, the company’s global net sales amounted to a staggering $13.9 billion. The brand also has a significant market share in several countries, including the UK, Australia, India, and South Africa.

Cadbury’s success can be attributed to its innovative marketing strategies. From its iconic “ Cadbury Dairy Milk ” campaign to its recent “ Free the Joy ” campaign, the company has always been at the forefront of creative and engaging marketing. Cadbury’s advertising campaigns have become a part of popular culture, with many of its commercials becoming viral sensations.

Cadbury continues to dominate the global chocolate market. With a wide range of products that cater to different tastes and preferences, the company has something for everyone. Its commitment to quality and innovation has helped it maintain its position as one of the world’s top chocolate brands. It is a true testament to the power of a great brand and the importance of effective marketing strategies.

Cadbury - Target Audience Cadbury - Marketing Mix Cadbury - Marketing Campaigns Cadbury - Marketing Strategies

Cadbury - Target Audience

Cadbury has a target audience that spans across all ages and demographics. The brand has a broad appeal and is loved by people from all walks of life. However, the company has identified specific target markets based on demographic, geographic, and psychographic factors.

Demographically, Cadbury’s target audience includes children, teenagers, adults, and seniors. Children are drawn to Cadbury’s fun and colorful packaging, while teenagers and young adults appreciate the brand’s trendy and innovative products. Adults and seniors, on the other hand, have a long-standing love affair with Cadbury’s classic chocolates.

Geographically, Cadbury’s target audience is spread across the globe. The brand has a strong presence in the UK, Australia, India, South Africa, and other countries where it is a household name. Cadbury also targets emerging markets, such as China and Brazil, where there is a growing demand for premium chocolate products.

Psychographically, Cadbury’s target audience is characterized by their love of indulgence, joy, and celebration. Cadbury’s products are often associated with special occasions, such as Easter and Christmas, and are seen as a way to celebrate and share joy with loved ones.

Cadbury also targets specific consumer groups, such as health-conscious individuals and those with dietary restrictions. The company has introduced several products that cater to these consumers, including low-sugar and gluten-free options.

Cadbury’s target audience is diverse and inclusive , with something for everyone. The brand’s ability to appeal to different age groups, geographic regions, and consumer groups is a testament to its strong brand equity and innovative marketing strategies.

Cadbury - Marketing Mix

Cadbury, the iconic chocolate brand, has built its reputation on a powerful marketing mix that combines the four Ps: product, price, place, and promotion. This mix has helped the company to develop a strong brand identity, increase its market share, and maintain its position as a leader in the global chocolate industry.

Cadbury’s product mix includes a range of chocolates, sweets, and other confectionery products that cater to different tastes and preferences. The flagship product is its Dairy Milk chocolate, which is known for its smooth texture and rich, creamy taste. In addition to its classic offerings, Cadbury has also introduced several innovative products, such as its Creme egg and Oreo chocolates , that have become fan favorites.

Cadbury’s pricing strategy is focused on offering an affordable luxury to its consumers. The chocolates are priced competitively, making them accessible to a wide range of consumers. Cadbury also offers premium products, such as its luxury boxed chocolates, which are priced higher to cater to consumers who are willing to pay more for high-quality confectionery products.

Cadbury’s place strategy involves making its products available in a wide range of locations, from supermarkets and convenience stores to online retailers. The company has a strong distribution network that allows its products to reach consumers in all corners of the world. Cadbury has a significant presence in emerging markets, where it has invested in building local production facilities to cater to local tastes and preferences.

Cadbury’s promotional strategy is focused on creating a strong emotional connection with its consumers. The company’s advertising campaigns are known for their creativity and innovation, often featuring heartwarming stories that celebrate joy, love, and togetherness. Cadbury also engages with its consumers through social media, where it encourages them to share their own experiences and stories with the brand.

Cadbury’s marketing mix is a powerful combination of product, price, place, and promotion that has helped the company to build a strong brand identity and maintain its position as a leader in the global chocolate industry. The company’s focus on innovation, quality, and emotional connection with its consumers has enabled it to remain relevant and successful in an increasingly competitive marketplace. With its iconic products, affordable pricing, wide distribution network, and engaging marketing campaigns, Cadbury is poised to continue delighting consumers for years to come.

Cadbury - Marketing Campaigns

Cadbury is renowned for its innovative and engaging marketing campaigns that have captured the hearts of consumers around the world. Here are some of the top marketing campaigns that have helped to establish Cadbury as a leading brand in the confectionery industry.

“Gorilla” Campaign

In 2007, Cadbury launched its iconic “Gorilla” campaign, which featured a gorilla playing the drums along to the Phil Collins song “In the Air Tonight”. The campaign was a huge success, winning numerous awards and generating widespread media coverage. The campaign was praised for its creativity and emotional resonance, as the gorilla represented the joy and excitement that consumers experience when they eat Cadbury chocolate.

“Joyville” Campaign

The “Joyville” campaign, which launched in 2012, was designed to create a magical and fantastical world that was associated with Cadbury chocolate. The campaign featured a fictional town called Joyville, where Cadbury Chocolate was produced and distributed. The campaign was a huge success, with Cadbury sales increasing significantly in the months following its launch.

“Cadvent” Campaign

The “Cadvent” campaign is a holiday-themed campaign that Cadbury runs every year in the lead-up to Christmas. The campaign features a series of short videos that are released daily in the run-up to Christmas Day, each one showcasing a different Cadbury product. The videos are designed to create a sense of excitement and anticipation, with consumers eagerly anticipating each day’s release.

“Egg ‘n’ Spoon” Campaign

The campaign was launched in 2014 to promote Cadbury’s new Egg ‘n’ Spoon chocolate product. The campaign featured a series of whimsical animated videos that showcased the unique features of the product, which included a chocolate egg that contained a creamy mousse filling. The campaign was a huge success, with the Egg ‘n’ Spoon product quickly becoming a fan favorite.

Cadbury has a long history of creating innovative and engaging marketing campaigns that have helped to establish the brand as a leader in the confectionery industry. These campaigns have captured the hearts of consumers around the world and helped to establish Cadbury as a beloved and trusted brand.

Cadbury - Marketing Strategies

Cadbury is a globally recognized chocolate brand that has been in the business for over a century. With an impressive lineup of products and a strong brand identity, Cadbury has remained a fan favorite across generations. However, the success of Cadbury isn’t just a result of its delicious chocolates. Over the years, the company has implemented several successful marketing strategies to engage with its audience and build its brand. Here are the top marketing strategies Cadbury has used to achieve its success.

• Storytelling

Cadbury’s marketing campaigns are known for their ability to tell captivating stories that engage the audience emotionally. From the iconic “Gorilla” campaign to the “Joyville” campaign , the company’s ads have managed to create an emotional connection with its audience that goes beyond its products.

• Product Innovation

Cadbury has always been at the forefront of product innovation . The company has managed to stay relevant by introducing new flavors, shapes, and packaging designs that cater to the changing tastes of its audience.

• Limited Edition Products

Cadbury has a knack for creating a sense of urgency among its audience through the introduction of limited edition products. This approach drives sales and creates hype around its brand.

• Digital Marketing

Cadbury has a strong presence on digital platforms, which it uses to engage with its audience effectively. From social media campaigns to viral videos, Cadbury has created a significant online presence for its brand.

• Brand Partnerships

Cadbury has managed to create successful partnerships with other brands and events. For instance, the company partnered with the 2012 London Olympics , and the Premier League to promote its brand and products.

• Charitable Activities

Cadbury has engaged in several charitable activities, which have helped to build a positive reputation for the brand. For instance, the company partnered with Age UK to help tackle loneliness among the elderly.

• Local Marketing

Cadbury has also used local marketing strategies to target specific regions and audiences. The company has developed products that cater to the taste of people in specific regions, and its marketing campaigns have incorporated local culture and themes to create a more targeted approach.

• Emotionally Resonant Advertising

Cadbury’s advertising campaigns are known for their emotional resonance, using heartwarming stories and relatable scenarios to connect with consumers on a deeper level.

• Creative Packaging

Cadbury’s packaging is instantly recognizable, featuring its signature purple color and iconic logo. The company has also introduced creative packaging designs , such as its Easter egg packaging that transforms into a treasure chest.

• Seasonal Campaigns

Cadbury’s seasonal campaigns, such as its Christmas “Cadvent” campaign , create a sense of anticipation and excitement among consumers, driving sales during key periods.

• Social Media Engagement

Cadbury actively engages with its consumers on social media, encouraging them to share their experiences and stories with the brand and building a sense of community around the Cadbury brand.

Cadbury’s marketing strategies have been nothing short of exemplary. From their innovative product designs to their engaging storytelling campaigns, Cadbury has successfully built a strong brand identity that resonates with its audience. By leveraging digital marketing, local marketing, and brand partnerships, the company has managed to stay relevant and adapt to changing trends in the industry.

Furthermore, by taking a holistic approach to marketing, businesses can create a consistent and unified brand image that extends beyond their products. Cadbury’s success serves as a testament to the power of effective marketing strategies, and there is much to be gained by studying their approach and incorporating it into your own marketing efforts.

Cadbury’s marketing strategies offer valuable insights and inspiration for businesses looking to build a strong brand and engage with their audience effectively. By taking cues from their success, businesses can develop marketing strategies that resonate with their audience and stand the test of time.

What is the target audience of Cadbury?

Cadbury has a target audience that spans across all ages and demographics. The brand has a broad appeal and is loved by people from all walks of life. Cadbury’s target audience includes children, teenagers, adults, and seniors.

What are the main marketing strategies that Cadbury has used to achieve its success?

Here are the main marketing strategies used by Cadbury -

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Comprehensive Marketing Mix of Cadbury with Detailed 4Ps

By Aditya Shastri

Cadbury is a worldwide corporation, and our everyday self-treat, Dairy Milk is a chocolate brand manufactured by Cadbury. Cadbury produces a variety of chocolates and other goods that are offered in a number of nations across the world. 

In this blog, we will analyze the confectionery brand using the tool of the marketing mix of Cadbury. Covering the 4Ps of the marketing mix of Cadbury – product, price, place, and promotion, let’s find out how Cadbury claims their position as a globally recognized brand.

Before that let’s jump on how this brand came to life.

About Cadbury  

Cadbury is a global leading company, standing as the second-largest confectionery brand in the world. Originally a British Multinational confectionery, in 2010, Cadbury became a subsidiary of Mondelez International. 

It was started in 1824 by John Cadbury, in a grocery store in Birmingham, England. He began by selling chocolate and cocoa as a beverage, but witnessing its profitable response, he and his brother purchased a factory and began their successful adventure. 

Cadbury’s headquarters can be found in London, England. They have production operations in over 60 countries and sells its products in over 200.

Cadbury India first opened its doors in 1948 and currently holds a market share of over 70%, making it the most popular Cadbury brand in the world.

Cadbury Dairy Milk, one of Cadbury India’s most popular products, is a benchmark for other chocolates in India and is considered the “gold standard.” To know more about the brand check out the website .

What’s new with Cadbury

• Cadbury maker Mondelez will be investing 4000 cr in India by 2026.
• Cadbury Dairy Milk unveils its World Cup campaign #SitTogether.
• Cadbury scraps one of its popular chocolate bars.

Target Audience of Cadbury

Target Customers of Cadbury include:

• Children and Teens
• Young Adults
• Parents and Families
• Chocolate Enthusiasts
• Gift Shoppers

Following is a buyer persona of Cadbury:

Buyer’s Persona

Profession:

• Indulgence and enjoyment of high-quality chocolate.
• Exploring different flavors and varieties.
• Sharing sweet moments with friends and family

Interest & Hobbies

• Baking and cooking with chocolate as a key ingredient.
• Participating in events and workshops.
• Collecting vintage Cadbury memorabilia.

Pain Points

• Overindulgence and concerns about health.
• Finding unique and premium chocolate products.
• Availability of favorite Cadbury products in local stores.

Social Media Presence

Let’s check out the Marketing Mix of Cadbury.

Marketing Mix of Cadbury

The Marketing Mix of Cadbury includes 4Ps (Product, Price, Place, Promotion). There are different marketing strategies like product/service innovation, marketing investment, customer experience, etc. which have helped the brand to grow more.

Wondering how Cadbury uses a marketing mix? Let’s dive right into it.

1. Product Mix of Cadbury

Products are goods and services that a company or individual sells for the purpose of consumption and meeting societal demands.

Cadbury offers a diverse range of goods. They sell a variety of products in different countries, and the decision to sell which product in which nation is dependent on demographic considerations, production costs, demand volatility, and the presence of competitors.

Cadbury’s product mix includes Chocolates, Candies/Gums, Biscuits, Beverages, Dairy Milk, 5 Star, Gems, Temptation, Oreo, Eclairs, Bournvita, and more. They dwell in the confectionery industry. 

Bournvita is a beverage additive that is one of the market leaders in milk additives. Halls is widely used in India as a mouth freshener and a cold cure.

Internationally, they are famously known for their ‘Creme eggs’, an Easter festival delight. They have products such as the classic Dairy Milk that have been running for years but continue to develop new products to meet the various rising tastes. 

Cadbury has a lot of standard products sold throughout the year, however, they have other products complimenting festive occasions like Halloween and Christmas, Diwali Raksha Bandhan, and many more. 

2. Price Mix of Cadbury

Pricing is an integral part of marketing mix of Cadbury, with the monetary value attached to products playing a central role. Cadbury uses a combination of pricing  that takes into account a number of dynamic factors including demand dynamics,

competitive positioning, package specifications, and the specific target audience they are trying to reach. 

Pricing Cadbury products is a careful process driven by the interplay of market forces. The demand for a particular product affects its price; popular products are often priced higher due to their desirability, while Cadbury carefully analyzes competitors’ prices to ensure their products remain competitive in the market. 

The size of the package also plays a decisive role in prices. Cadbury offers its products in different pack sizes to meet different consumer preferences. The price of smaller packages is cheaper, which caters to cost-conscious consumers.

They follow three distinct pricing strategies:-

• Skimming Pricing : These prices are set high to benefit consumer’s demand for a new product or design at any cost. Oreo cookies, Cadbury Silk, and Cadbury Bournville are some examples of products that are kept at a somewhat higher level than the competition.
• Economy Pricing : Cadbury produces variations of its major goods in order to appeal to a broad audience. Under this segment, we find products such as Dairy Milk, Perk, Five Star, and Eclairs, that are reasonably priced.
• Bundle Pricing : This approach is used to sell a bundle of items at a presumably lesser cost than if the customers bought the items separately. Such a bundle of several products is prominent during the holiday and festival seasons.

3. Place Mix for Cadbury

Cadbury’s products are globally available, catering to a large client base. Cadbury has been able to have a significant influence on the worldwide market because of its strong distribution network. 

Cadbury chocolate is made in the English town of Bournville. Cadbury recently ran an advertisement claiming that it exclusively imports the best cocoa beans from Ghana for its chocolates.

Both urban and rural regions have access to the items. We’ve seen that this has aided the company’s growth. The distribution points have made the items available to a large number of consumers, resulting in a profit for the firm in terms of both customer base and revenue.

4. Promotion Mix of Cadbury

Promotion refers to activities undertaken by the organization to inform the market about its products and services. It is the most important factor as it is a direct relation to sales. 

The company has a keen eye for detail and relies heavily on emotional advertising campaigns to connect with its target audience , which has been the key to its success. Campaigns include “Kuch Mettha Ho Jaye,” a slogan that appears on their celebrations-themed chocolates. The tagline for Bournville chocolates is “You Earn It.”

Here’s an example of Cadbury’s heartwarming ad campaign – The brand launched a campaign where they developed an algorithm to search for happy content on social media platforms that often goes unnoticed. The algorithm scanned for content with positive hashtags like #FamJam and #HappyMoments and curated it into an Instagram guide on the brand’s profile.

This allowed users to share and participate in each other’s joy by engaging with the content through likes, shares, and comments. The campaign aimed to showcase the power of happiness and positivity and bring people together through social media .

Here’s a glimpse –

The company also relies on BTL marketing and employs Vernacular communication to promote itself in many states and areas. The goal of using vernacular language and regional dialects is to outperform smaller regional competitors while also connecting and engaging with the audience.

Additionally, they don’t fail to collaborate with celebrities occasionally. Cadbury’s promotional methods are one-of-a-kind since it is unlike any other chocolate brand; all of these factors contribute to the promotional influence on product sales. 

  How does Cadbury use Digital Marketing in its strategy?

Cadbury makes good use of its digital presence to keep up with the market trends. They make great use of various social media platforms to promote various campaigns. Some of them are mentioned below:

“ Donate your words by Cadbury Dairy milk (2019)  : 

Cadbury launched a campaign in partnership with UK charity Age to raise awareness of loneliness among older people. The “Donate Your Words” campaign encouraged people to buy limited edition chocolate bars with no words on the packaging to symbolize the words lost in the isolation of the elderly.

Cadbury Dairy Milk Silk: How Far Will You Go For Love? :

This was another iconic advertisement for Cadbury, mainly aimed at millennials. It came out on Valentine’s Day, a great move that helped a lot of sales. 

The message of the campaign was simple – how far will you go with your love this Valentine’s Day? It had the hashtag #PopYourHeartOut. It was a great campaign that romanticized the idea of ​​Dairy Milk Silk on Valentine’s Day.

Before we conclude this case study on the marketing mix of Cadbury. Let us have a look at the competitors of Cadbury.

Top 5 Competitors of Cadbury

Mars: Mars Food is dedicated to providing shoppers with better food quality. Their production focuses on quality, taste, and affordability. Mars is produced in 12 production facilities and has approximately 2,000 employees.

Hershey’s: Hershey’s chocolate production is spread over eight factories in the United States. They have a large selection of products including dark chocolate, spreads, licorice candies, dark chocolate, peanut butter cups, cookie layer crunch bars, soft serve, raspberry mints, snacks, chocolate bars, and more.

Nestle: Nestle is a food and beverage company headquartered in Switzerland. Nestle is considered one of the largest food companies in the world. It has around 2,000 brands and its main products are therapeutic foods, baby foods, bottled water, breakfast cereals, sweets, coffee, tea, and many more.

Kraft Foods: Kraft Foods, also considered the biggest competitor of Cadbury, is an American company that produces food. Kraft Foods is a globally recognized and trusted food manufacturer. The company produces various food brands with a focus on providing diners with high quality, nutrition, and taste.

Lindt: Lindt and Sprungli, considered the market leader in quality chocolate,  is a Swiss chocolate company based in Switzerland. The main products of the Lindt Company are chocolate, sweets, and ice cream. The company produces a wide range of products in approximately 120 countries around the world.

This brings us to the end of the case study of the marketing mix of Cadbury. Let us conclude our understanding in the next section.

Cadbury is a very successful company that not only has tasty sweets but also sells them with the best quality. Their price mix is also affordable which meets the expectation and makes it pocket-friendly. Their geographical reach is remarkable thanks to their year-long experience. 

Hope this case study on the marketing mix of Cadbury was insightful. If you are further interested in Cadbury’s marketing presence, check out IIDE’s case study on the Marketing Strategy of Cadbury . 

Thank you for taking out time to read the blog. Do let us know your views on the marketing mix of Cadbury in the comment section below.

Author's Note: My name is Aditya Shastri and I have written this case study with the help of my students from IIDE's online digital marketing courses in India . Practical assignments, case studies & simulations helped the students from this course present this analysis. Building on this practical approach, we are now introducing a new dimension for our online digital marketing course learners - the Campus Immersion Experience. If you found this case study helpful, please feel free to leave a comment below.

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Aditya Shastri

Lead Trainer & Head of Learning & Development at IIDE

Leads the Learning & Development segment at IIDE. He is a Content Marketing Expert and has trained 6000+ students and working professionals on various topics of Digital Marketing. He has been a guest speaker at prominent colleges in India including IIMs...... [Read full bio]

This piece is very informative. I found it valuable for my thesis on marketing innovation models.

Many thanks.

this blog has interestingly covered how Marketing Mix of Henry Ford has helped Cadbury as a company to grow. The breakdown of the 4P’s is done very well providing much needed clarity and how can Fords marketing mix be used in every organization.

Its really informative.

The marketing mix of Cadbury leading their profit , it is interesting to see how they are evolving. Amazing blog

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Case Study: Marketing Strategy of Cadbury

Rahul Gupta

Cadbury is a well-known multinational brand with products that include chocolates, cookies, and other sweets. It is worth noting that Cadbury was founded in 1824 and had a long history of marketing strategy development. Business enterprises of all sizes can learn valuable business knowledge from studying the case study of Cadbury. In the following blog post, we will explore the Cadbury marketing strategy that has helped the brand grow and become a leader in the chocolate industry.

Cadbury started as a small candy shop in England in the 18th century. It is now among the most recognizable chocolate firms in the country. Cadbury sells its products in over 150 countries worldwide. Cadbury continues expanding its business worldwide, from its home base in the UK to diverse regions such as India, Australia, South Africa, etc.

Discover the keys to Cadbury’s global success and gain insights into how the brand has thrived in various markets. Keep reading to learn about its marketing strategy.

Check this out: Hershey’s SWOT Analysis: Everything to Know

How Cadbury Expanded to Become a Multibillion-Dollar Business?

Cadbury started as a small confectionery shop in Birmingham, England, in 1824. John Cadbury created the business. Early on, the business faced difficulties. However, when his son Richard took over management in the early 1850s, the business began to prosper. The business continued to grow under the management of Richard’s son George, who oversaw its expansion into the US in the late 19th century. In the decades that followed, it expanded to Australia and other continents. It became one of the first British companies to take advantage of the growing popularity of mass-produced goods and became very popular worldwide.

The marketing strategy of Cadbury

Below are some of the marketing strategies of Cadbury.

Making Chocolate Affordable

In the company’s early years, sales were slow because Cadbury sold luxury items rather than affordable commodities like today’s chocolate bars. However, the family changed its strategy and began producing low-cost chocolate bars. They reduced the size of the bars and made them more affordable for the average consumer. This helped increase the company’s sales and made it a leading brand in the industry.

The company introduced smaller chocolate bars with an affordable price tag to appeal to a broader audience. They also reduced the retail price of the original double-sized bars to make them more affordable for buyers.

Expanding into other markets

Cadbury not only dealt with chocolate but also started producing other products, such as chewing gum and cookies. Yes! That’s right, Cadbury used to sell gum too. Regardless, this helped to expand the customer base and helped the company to become one of the leading brands in its field.

Partnering with global corporations to grow their business

Cadbury famously partnered with Chelsea FC to help expand the reach of its brand in a global market. Many sponsors have taken advantage of the power of soccer to expand their brands all over the world. Both Cadbury and Chelsea FC saw significant benefits from the partnership.

Cadbury also conducted webinars and campaigns to help business owners understand the marketing strategies of Cadbury. They helped entrepreneurs understand the ideas they used to attract customers and grow their brands.

Using digital social media marketing to increase brand recognition and reach

Did you know Cadbury’s Facebook page has over 16 million followers? That’s right – they have a huge following on social media, and their fans are always looking for ways to connect with the brand and engage with them online. They even have their own YouTube channel where they upload interesting content about their products and share tips and recipes with their followers. This helps to increase their visibility and reach out to a global audience. They’re on every social media platform popular in today’s digital age – Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Youtube… you name it, they’ve got it! Companies should learn from this and use similar strategies to engage their audience and boost their brand awareness.

Digital marketing and social media are two of the leading tools for expanding the reach of a business in the modern world. Many companies use these tools to grow their brand and expand their business to new audiences. Seeing this Cadbury marketing strategy, we concluded that the key to success in the business world is to adapt and evolve with the changing times and use the latest tools to get an edge over your competitors.

See Also: Top 5 Advantages And Disadvantages Of Social Media Marketing

Expanding into new international markets to boost sales and create new customers

Did you know that Cadbury is sold in over 150 countries worldwide? They employ more than 140,000 people worldwide and operate in every major market worldwide. They have successfully set their operations up in 70 countries around the world. This just goes to show that global expansion is essential for any company that wants to succeed in the long run.

Their international presence has helped them gain access to new markets and find new customers all around the world. Every business should value international customers and understand their importance for the success of their business.

Using rewards programs to create strong relationships with their customers

Cadbury is no stranger to successful reward programs. In fact, they’ve been running one of the most popular reward programs in the UK for many years now. The company offers many exciting and rewarding schemes for its loyal customers. Some examples include their regular giveaways and sweepstakes on social media.

Cadbury UK had a “Win A Worldie” program on their Facebook account. To participate, you had to buy their participating products, enter the barcode number and see if you won. Winners could win vouchers for up to 250 pounds to spend in a shop of Cadbury’s choice. Not only that, but Cadbury partnered with football stars like Neymar Jr. and Steph Houghton to promote their products and reward their Facebook fans with prizes.

An instantly recognizable logo and color

This Cadbury marketing strategy plays on nostalgia and reminds customers of the traditional chocolate they grew up with as a child. Notice how you can instantly recognize Cadbury’s logo and link it to the smell of fresh chocolate? Cadbury has also cemented the particular shade of purple they use on their packaging – it has now become synonymous with the brand. Because of this, customers can identify the product easily, even in crowded stores.

Also, throughout all their marketing strategies, you will see that they include that shade of purple. Lastly, this familiar shade of purple helps to increase brand recognition. Chiefly, it plays a part in distinguishing the product from its competitors.

How has this helped them?

Accordingly, this strategy has worked very well for the company and has helped make them a household name in many countries around the world. Because of this, customers can identify the product easily, even in crowded stores.

See Also: The SWOT Analysis of Nestle

Frequently Asked Questions

Who is cadbury's parent company.

Cadbury is a subsidiary of Mondelez International, a global snacks manufacturer headquartered in Deerfield, Illinois.

How much is Cadbury worth?

Cadbury has a market value of more than $5 billion, which makes it the world’s fifth-largest confectionery company by revenue.

They are on all prominent social media sites used in the current digital era. More than 140,000 people work at Cadbury, which sells its products in more than 150 nations. They are active in all significant global markets. Any business that wants to be successful in the long run must engage in global expansion. Chiefly, Cadbury uses incentive systems to establish enduring connections with its clients.

Customers are reminded of the traditional chocolate they grew up with as children as part of Cadbury’s marketing approach, which also plays on nostalgia. The specific hue of purple that Cadbury uses on its packaging has grown inseparable from the brand, even in busy supermarkets.

See Also: Detailed Marketing Strategy of Parle – 2024 Update 

Table of Contents

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Cadbury’s Digital Marketing Strategies: A Brief Study

• Last Updated On December 7, 2023

Cadbury is a well-known brand. It’s that one brand we’ve all known since our childhood days, isn’t it?

It has been delighting people with its delicious chocolates for years. From the classic Dairy Milk to a wide range of treats, Cadbury is all about creating moments of happiness.

But, do you know that not only the taste of its products but also Cadbury’s digital marketing strategies are the reason behind the brand’s popularity? Yes, you heard it right!

As a global brand, Cadbury employs all the effective methods of marketing its products on the internet. Whether it’s website optimization or a robust social media presence, this brand has it all.

Email marketing plays a significant role in keeping customers informed about newsletters and exclusive offers, nurturing loyalty. SEO efforts ensure their website ranks high on search engines, enhancing online visibility. 

Cadbury also employs PPC advertising, targeting specific keywords to reach potential customers actively searching for chocolate-related products. 

In this ever-evolving digital landscape, Cadbury’s adaptability shines, allowing it to maintain its status as a beloved brand in the confectionery industry while effectively connecting with its audience.

Cadbury Dairy Milk is a chocolate loved by millions worldwide. It has been the top-selling chocolate bar in the UK since 2014, a position it’s held onto ever since. This milk chocolate has a sweet and creamy taste with a hint of crunchiness that makes everyone crave it. We owe this iconic treat to George Cadbury Junior.

The story begins with John Cadbury, who started selling tea and drinking chocolate in 1824. By 1831, he began cocoa production and opened a factory in Bridge Street, England. In 1847, John and his brothers partnered and founded the company we know and love today, originally named ‘ Cadbury Brothers. ’

After John Cadbury’s passing, his two sons took over the business. They faced some tough times, with the company losing money. However, they managed to bounce back, shifting their production focus by 1866. Soon, they began producing chocolate and introduced higher-quality cocoa, making their candy bars famous by 1914.

The Cadbury brothers’ first major creation was the Dairy Milk Bar, developed by George Cadbury Junior. What made it unique was its high milk content compared to other chocolates.

Cadbury Dairy Milk Chocolate made its debut in 1905 in the United Kingdom. It includes various milk chocolate products and is currently manufactured by the Hershey’s company in the United States under license from Cadbury. You can find these chocolates all around the world, from China and India to Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Kazakhstan.

In India, the Cadbury brand is incredibly beloved. It was first introduced in 1948 but didn’t gain popularity right away. The 1990s marked the beginning of Cadbury Dairy Milk’s popularity in India, thanks to a memorable advertising campaign featuring a girl dancing in a field while holding a Cadbury chocolate bar. Since then, the people of India have adored this treat, making it one of the most popular choices.

Marketing Mix of Cadbury

To understand how Cadbury succeeds in the market, we analyze their brand using the 4Ps framework: Product, Price, Place, and Promotion. Let’s dive into Cadbury’s marketing strategy and learn about their product, pricing, advertising, and distribution strategies.

Product Strategy:

Cadbury offers a wide range of products, carefully tailored to different seasons and sales in various countries. They categorize their products not only by chocolates but also include beverages and desserts.

Cadbury even customizes products for specific demographics. Their product line includes Bournville, Crunchie, Cadbury Dairy Milk, Dairy Milk Fruit & Nut, Caramel, Cadbury Five Star, Perk, BournVita, Bytes, Pretzel, Crème Egg, Oreo, Blackcurrant Mini Rolls, Caramel Cake Bars, Fruit Sundae, Brunch Hazelnut, among others. Cadbury’s diverse product lineup ensures they cater to a broad customer base.

Price/Pricing Strategy:

Cadbury prices its products based on their quality. Some, like Bournville, are higher priced, while others like Eclairs and Perk are more affordable. Pricing depends on competition, demand, and package sizes.

Cadbury also bundles products into gift packages, especially for festive seasons, strategically setting prices to attract customers with varying budgets. Health drinks like Bournvita are priced with the target audience in mind. Innovative packaging and bundling also influence pricing.

Place & Distribution Strategy:

Cadbury’s products are available globally, thanks to an extensive distribution network. They reach both urban and rural areas, contributing to their widespread success.

You can find Cadbury products in stores, groceries, retail outlets, and increasingly online through e-commerce channels. Cadbury has embraced concepts like home delivery and gifting to expand its reach. With a presence in over 200 countries, Cadbury’s distribution channels are a vital part of its success.

Promotion & Advertising Strategy:

Cadbury employs various promotional avenues, including television, posters , newspapers, online platforms, and radio. They craft different taglines for their brands to connect emotionally with their audience. For example, in India, Cadbury’s tagline is “kuch meeta ho jai,” emphasizing sweetness. Each brand often has its own set of brand ambassadors to create a lasting impression. Cadbury leaves no stone unturned in promoting itself, ensuring that their chocolates bring happiness to people’s lives.

Cadbury’s marketing strategy revolves around a diverse product range, well-thought-out pricing, an extensive distribution network, and practical promotional efforts. These elements have contributed to Cadbury’s global recognition and continued growth in the market.

Social Media Strategies of Cadbury

Social media advertising is vital for brands like Cadbury.  It connects them directly with their audience. With millions online daily, Cadbury can showcase its chocolates effectively. They engage, create a strong brand presence, and boost sales and loyalty in a competitive market.

Cadbury on Instagram

Cadbury’s Instagram strategy stands out as they manage distinct accounts for each product, ensuring targeted marketing to suit diverse audience preferences. These individual accounts showcase exclusive content, color themes, and styles tailored to the specific product’s identity. 

By doing so, Cadbury maintains a unified brand image while effectively engaging consumers based on their product preferences. 

This approach fosters a deeper connection with their audience and maximizes the impact of their marketing efforts, demonstrating Cadbury’s commitment to delivering a tailored and cohesive brand experience on one of the most popular social media platforms.

Cadbury’s Instagram handle with the user name- @cadburycelebrations_in has more than a hundred thousand followers and approximately 177 posts on its social media. 

The advantage of having such a substantial following is that it provides a larger audience for their content. With more followers, Cadbury can reach and engage with a broader and more diverse group of people, increasing brand awareness and potentially driving more sales. Additionally, a large following can help build credibility and trust in the brand, as it signifies popularity and relevance in the eyes of consumers.

Similarly, Cadbury’s Instagram handle with the user name- @cadburydairymilkin has more than 2 hundred thousand followers and approximately 693 posts on its social media. 

Cadbury’s Instagram handle with the user name- @cadbury_dark_milk_india has more than 4 hundred thousand followers and has shared 49 posts. These individual brand accounts curate content that aligns with their respective products. For example, Bournvita recently ran a heartwarming campaign on their Instagram page, highlighting the enduring bond between a child and their mother. This narrative resonates with BournVita’s television ad, which centers around the parent-child relationship. Therefore, Cadbury maintains a consistent brand image across different platforms.

On the other hand, Dairy Milk’s Instagram page predominantly features posts related to festivals, influencer collaborations posts, etc. Below are some of the creative posts by Cadbury.

1) Collaboration post

  View this post on Instagram   A post shared by ARMAAN MALIK 🧿 (@armaanmalik)

2) Festive posts

             , 3) new product post.

Cadbury’s Facebook Marketing Approach

Cadbury replicates content from Instagram on Facebook, where they have a considerably larger following. They effectively used Facebook for a follow-up to a 30-second television ad featuring the “saas-bahu” duo. This campaign sought to reshape the often negatively depicted mother-in-law and daughter-in-law relationship, presenting it in a more positive light to evoke emotional connections. Post-campaign analysis unveiled significant trends:

• A 5.8% surge in top-of-mind awareness.
• A 5.1% boost in brand consideration.
• A 5.7% increase in TV reach.
• A 2.8% rise in spontaneous awareness.
• A tenfold increase in Facebook ad spend.
• Cadbury’s YouTube Marketing Strategies

In contrast to Instagram and Facebook, where Cadbury manages separate profiles for various products, they maintain a single YouTube channel. This channel includes sections for “Seasonal,” “Flavours,” and “Marvellous Creations.” Cadbury boasts over 548k YouTube subscribers and makes use of “YouTube shorts” for brief videos.

Cadbury’s Twitter Marketing Approach

With followers of more than 10 hundred thousand, Cadbury also maintains separate product-focused accounts on Twitter. 

Cadbury Dairy Milk’s Twitter account is presently focused on IPL 2022 content, akin to its Facebook and Instagram accounts. Cadbury maintains a robust Twitter presence, ensuring regular customer engagement. Although there may be occasional content repetition across platforms, this approach broadens their audience reach.

Cadbury’s SEO Strategies

Mobile-Friendly Website

Cadbury’s Digital Marketing strategies prioritize a mobile-friendly website. This choice offers significant advantages. With the proliferation of smartphones, a mobile-friendly site ensures seamless access and navigation for users on various devices. This improves user experience, reduces bounce rates, and boosts the site’s search engine ranking. Search engines like Google favor mobile-responsive websites, considering them more user-friendly, which positively impacts Cadbury’s online visibility.

Do-Follow Links

Cadbury actively creates do-follow links, and this strategy carries its own set of advantages. Do-follow links pass link equity, also known as “link juice,” from the referring site to Cadbury’s website. This not only drives referral traffic but also enhances the website’s authority and search engine ranking. Quality do-follow backlinks from reputable websites signal to search engines that Cadbury’s content is credible and valuable, contributing to higher search result placements.

Keyword Research and Implementation:

Cadbury’s Digital Marketing strategies involve thorough keyword research. Identifying top-performing keywords is crucial. Proper keyword selection ensures that Cadbury’s content aligns with what users are searching for. This drives organic traffic and enhances the website’s visibility in search engine results. Effective keyword research helps Cadbury target specific demographics and user intents, ultimately improving the relevance and effectiveness of their digital marketing efforts.

Global Traffic Acquisition:

Cadbury’s SEO efforts attract not only national but global traffic as well. Screenshots depicting the distribution of organic and paid traffic by country reveal their commitment to a global audience. This approach diversifies their customer base and reduces dependency on local markets. Attracting global traffic not only expands Cadbury’s reach but also provides opportunities for increased sales and brand recognition on a global scale.

In our thorough exploration of Cadbury’s Digital Marketing Strategies, we’ve uncovered the essential digital tactics that have contributed to this beloved chocolate brand’s online success. Cadbury’s approach to digital marketing is a testament to their adaptability and innovation, catering to the ever-evolving behaviors of today’s consumers.

A key aspect of Cadbury’s digital marketing strategy is their presence on social media platforms, with a particular focus on Facebook and Instagram. These platforms serve as dynamic hubs for engaging with their audience. Cadbury has adopted a tailored approach for each platform, recognizing the unique characteristics and user demographics of Facebook and Instagram users. This means that their content strategies, while consistent with their brand identity, are customized to resonate with the distinct user bases of these platforms.

Furthermore, Cadbury understands the importance of Search Engine Optimization (SEO) in the digital landscape. Their commitment to a mobile-friendly website is a crucial component of their SEO strategy. With the increasing use of smartphones for online activities, having a website that functions seamlessly on mobile devices is imperative. This mobile responsiveness not only improves user experience but also positively impacts the website’s ranking on search engines like Google.

Cadbury also places a strong emphasis on creating do-follow links. These links from reputable websites pass on valuable “link juice,” enhancing Cadbury’s website authority and search engine ranking. This strategy not only drives referral traffic but also signifies to search engines that Cadbury’s content is credible and trustworthy.

In addition to these tactics, Cadbury’s SEO strategy places a significant emphasis on keyword research. They understand that using the right keywords is vital to ensuring their content aligns with what users are searching for. By conducting thorough keyword research, Cadbury can target specific demographics and user intents effectively, resulting in higher organic traffic and improved visibility in search engine results.

One of the most noteworthy aspects of Cadbury’s digital marketing strategy is their pursuit of a global audience. Screenshots depicting the distribution of organic and paid traffic by country highlight their commitment to expanding beyond local markets. Attracting global traffic diversifies their customer base and reduces dependency on specific regions. This not only broadens Cadbury’s reach but also provides opportunities for increased sales and brand recognition on a global scale.

In conclusion, Cadbury’s Digital Marketing Strategies are a well-crafted blend of social media engagement, mobile-friendly web design, do-follow link building, and strategic keyword research. Their efforts to reach a global audience have solidified their position as a formidable contender in the digital marketing arena. Cadbury’s journey is a prime example of how a well-executed digital marketing strategy can elevate a beloved brand to new heights in the digital age, proving that chocolate is not the only thing they excels at.

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Cadbury Crisis Management Case Study: Preserving Trust in Times of Crisis

In the realm of beloved chocolate brands, Cadbury has long held a cherished place in the hearts and taste buds of consumers worldwide.

However, even the most esteemed companies are not immune to crises that can pose significant threats to their reputation.

Effective crisis management becomes paramount in such moments, serving as the linchpin in preserving brand equity and consumer trust.

In this blog post, we delve into the realm of Cadbury’s crisis management, exploring a notable incident that tested the brand’s resilience and examining the strategies they employed to navigate the storm.

By understanding Cadbury’s response and the lessons gleaned from their experience, we can gain valuable insights into crisis management in the food industry and the critical importance of safeguarding brand reputation.

The Cadbury crisis: an overview 

In October 2003, just a month before the festive season of Diwali, customers in Mumbai reported the discovery of worms in Cadbury Dairy Milk chocolates. Responding promptly, the Maharashtra Food and Drug Administration (FDA) took action by seizing chocolate stocks produced at Cadbury’s Pune plant.

Cadbury defended itself by stating that the infestation could not have occurred during the manufacturing process and suggested that poor storage at retailers might have been the cause of the reported worm cases.

However, the FDA remained unconvinced. Uttam Khobragade, the FDA commissioner, expressed doubts, stating, “While it was presumed that worms entered the chocolates during storage, what about the packaging? If the packaging was not proper or airtight, it could be considered a manufacturing defect due to unhygienic conditions or improper packaging.”

This exchange of allegations and counter-allegations between Cadbury and the FDA led to negative publicity that significantly impacted Cadbury’s sales. During a time when Cadbury typically experiences a 15% sales boost due to festive season demand, their sales dropped by 30%. As a result, Cadbury’s advertising went off air for a month and a half following Diwali, as consumers seemed to lose interest in their chocolate cravings.

Facing intense scrutiny, Cadbury took action by launching an education initiative called “Vishwa’s” in October itself. This initiative aimed to educate 190,000 retailers in key states. However, it was what Cadbury did in January 2004 that truly helped restore the brand’s reputation.

Investing around Rs 15 crore (Rs 150 million), Cadbury revamped the packaging of Dairy Milk by introducing imported machinery. The new metallic poly-flow packaging, despite being costlier by 10-15%, did not lead to a price increase for the product.

Bharat Puri, managing director of Cadbury’s India, stated, “Although we are addressing a few bars out of the 30 million we sell every month, we believe that as a responsible company, consumers should have complete faith in our products. So, even if it requires significant investment and change, we must not let consumer confidence erode.”

Simultaneously, Cadbury enlisted the support of brand ambassador Amitabh Bachchan for extensive endorsement, with the actor risking his personal reputation for the brand.

Cadbury also increased advertising spending for the January to March quarter by more than 15%. The brand’s recovery began in May 2004, and by June, Cadbury claimed that consumer confidence had been restored. Experts believe that Cadbury’s success was due to their proactive and direct approach in addressing the crisis. Moreover, consumers were more forgiving because of the emotional connection they had with the brand in India.

Explanation of the potential impact on Cadbury’s reputation and consumer trust

The potential impact of the crisis on Cadbury’s reputation and consumer trust cannot be overstated. Cadbury had spent years cultivating a strong brand image built on trust, quality, and indulgence.

Consumers who had long associated Cadbury with delightful moments and safe indulgence were suddenly confronted with doubts and concerns about the integrity of the brand.

The presence of foreign objects in their beloved chocolate bars not only raised immediate health and safety worries but also shook the trust that consumers had placed in Cadbury’s manufacturing processes.

The crisis threatened to erode the emotional connection between Cadbury and its customers, potentially leading to long-lasting damage to the brand’s reputation and a loss of consumer loyalty. The way Cadbury handled the crisis would be critical in determining whether they could restore faith in their products and reassure customers that their commitment to quality and safety remained unwavering.

Cadbury’s Response: Swift and Transparent Action 

Here are three points that explain the response of Cadbury to the crisis:

A. Immediate actions taken by Cadbury to address the crisis

Recognizing the urgency of the situation, Cadbury swiftly sprang into action to address the crisis and mitigate its impact on consumer trust. Their response was marked by a combination of transparency, accountability, and proactive measures. First and foremost, Cadbury initiated an immediate recall of the affected products from the market, demonstrating their commitment to ensuring consumer safety.

This recall was accompanied by clear and concise public announcements, both through traditional media channels and online platforms, informing consumers about the issue and advising them to refrain from consuming the affected products.

Cadbury launched an internal investigation in collaboration with independent third-party experts. This step aimed to determine how the foreign objects had made their way into the production process and identify any potential lapses in quality control.

In addition to the recall and investigation, Cadbury established a dedicated consumer helpline and email contact to address any concerns or inquiries from customers. This direct line of communication allowed affected individuals to seek information and assistance, demonstrating Cadbury’s commitment to maintaining open dialogue with their consumer base.

Moreover, Cadbury proactively engaged with regulatory bodies, such as food safety authorities and government agencies, to ensure compliance with relevant regulations and collaborate on resolving the crisis. This collaboration helped in conducting thorough investigations, sharing information, and implementing corrective measures.

Throughout their response, Cadbury remained transparent, providing regular updates to the public and stakeholders on the progress made in resolving the crisis. By openly acknowledging the issue and taking swift action, Cadbury aimed to rebuild consumer trust and demonstrate their commitment to the highest standards of product safety and quality.

B. Emphasis on transparency, open communication, and acknowledgement of the issue

Cadbury recognized the critical role of transparency, open communication, and sincere acknowledgement in their crisis management strategy. Understanding that silence or evasion could further erode consumer trust, they chose a different path.

From the onset, Cadbury openly acknowledged the issue, taking full responsibility for the presence of foreign objects in their products. They did not attempt to downplay or minimize the severity of the situation, but rather acknowledged the potential risks and concerns that consumers may have.

To ensure transparent communication, Cadbury provided regular updates to the public and stakeholders about the progress of their investigations, steps taken to address the issue, and any findings or developments. This transparency helped to build confidence among consumers that Cadbury was actively working to rectify the situation and prevent similar incidents in the future.

Moreover, Cadbury prioritized open communication channels with their consumers. They promptly established a dedicated helpline and email contact to address individual inquiries and concerns. By providing accessible means for consumers to voice their questions or fears, Cadbury demonstrated a commitment to engaging in two-way communication and actively listening to their customers.

Engagement with customers, media, and regulatory bodies

Cadbury demonstrated proactive engagement with various stakeholders throughout the crisis, including customers, media, and regulatory bodies. Here are some examples of their efforts:

• Customers: Cadbury promptly set up a dedicated helpline and email contact to address customer inquiries, concerns, and feedback. This direct line of communication allowed affected individuals to seek information, share their experiences, and receive assistance from Cadbury’s customer service team.
• Media: Cadbury issued press releases and media statements to communicate their response to the crisis, including the immediate recall, investigation, and measures being implemented to ensure product safety. These official statements aimed to provide accurate information and address media inquiries promptly.
• Regulatory bodies: Cadbury collaborated closely with relevant food safety authorities and regulatory bodies to ensure compliance with regulations and to share information regarding the crisis. This collaboration helped in conducting thorough investigations and implementing appropriate corrective actions.

Evaluation of Cadbury’s crisis management approach and its effectiveness

Cadbury’s crisis management approach can be evaluated as highly effective based on several key factors:

• Swift and proactive response: Cadbury’s immediate actions, including the recall of affected products and launching an internal investigation, demonstrated a sense of urgency and a commitment to addressing the crisis promptly. This swift response helped contain the situation and prevent further harm to consumers.
• Transparency and open communication: Cadbury’s emphasis on transparency and open communication was commendable. They openly acknowledged the issue, took responsibility, and provided regular updates to the public, customers, media, and regulatory bodies. This transparency fostered trust and allowed stakeholders to stay informed throughout the crisis.
• Stakeholder engagement: Cadbury actively engaged with stakeholders such as customers, media, and regulatory bodies. They established a dedicated helpline and email contact for customers, responded to media inquiries, and collaborated with regulatory authorities. This proactive engagement demonstrated a commitment to listening, addressing concerns, and working collaboratively to resolve the crisis.
• Accountability and commitment to quality: By taking responsibility for the contamination incident, Cadbury showed accountability for the lapse in their manufacturing processes. They acknowledged the potential harm caused to consumers and reassured them of their commitment to maintaining the highest standards of quality and safety.
• Learning and improvement: Cadbury’s crisis management approach also involved conducting internal investigations, collaborating with third-party experts, and implementing corrective measures. This commitment to learning from the incident and making necessary improvements indicated a proactive approach to preventing future occurrences and continuously enhancing product safety.

Identification of key lessons and best practices for crisis management in the food industry

Identification of key lessons and best practices for crisis management in the food industry:

• Prioritize consumer safety: The primary focus during a crisis in the food industry should be on ensuring consumer safety. Swift actions, such as recalls and investigations, must be taken to address any potential risks and protect consumers from harm.
• Transparency and open communication: Transparency is crucial in maintaining trust during a crisis. Companies should openly acknowledge the issue, provide timely and accurate information to stakeholders, and communicate updates regularly. This includes engaging with customers, media, and regulatory bodies to address concerns and share progress.
• Swift response and proactive measures: Time is of the essence in crisis management. Acting swiftly to contain the issue, launching investigations, and implementing corrective actions demonstrate a commitment to resolving the crisis effectively and minimizing its impact.
• Establish a dedicated crisis management team: Having a designated crisis management team with clear roles and responsibilities is essential. This team should be equipped to handle crisis situations, make quick decisions, and coordinate communication across various channels.
• Collaborate with stakeholders: Engage with relevant stakeholders, including customers, media, and regulatory bodies. Collaborating with regulatory authorities ensures compliance and regulatory support, while open communication with customers and media helps address concerns, provide accurate information, and rebuild trust.
• Learn from the crisis: Conduct thorough investigations to identify the root cause of the crisis. This allows for improvements in manufacturing processes, quality control measures, and overall safety protocols to prevent similar incidents in the future. Continuously learning and adapting based on the crisis experience is vital.
• Preparedness through crisis simulations: Conducting crisis simulations and drills in advance can help organizations prepare for potential crises. These simulations allow teams to practice their response strategies, identify gaps, and refine their crisis management plans.
• Monitor and respond to social media : Social media plays a significant role in crisis communication. Monitor social media platforms to gauge public sentiment, address customer concerns, and promptly respond to queries or complaints.
• Maintain brand consistency: During a crisis, it is essential to maintain consistency in messaging and actions across all communication channels. This consistency helps in building trust and avoiding confusion among stakeholders.
• Rebuild trust through actions: Regaining consumer trust takes time. Implement measures to enhance product safety, quality control, and quality assurance processes. Launch consumer-centric initiatives and communicate these actions to demonstrate the brand’s commitment to customer satisfaction and safety.

Final Words 

Cadbury’s crisis management approach serves as an excellent example of effective strategies and best practices in the food industry. By swiftly addressing the crisis, prioritizing consumer safety, and embracing transparency, Cadbury demonstrated their commitment to their customers and their brand integrity.

The lessons learned from Cadbury’s crisis management are applicable to any organization in the food industry. Prioritizing consumer safety should always be the guiding principle, followed by open communication with stakeholders and a proactive approach to resolving the issue.

Remember, a crisis can be an opportunity to showcase a company’s resilience and commitment to its customers. By implementing these best practices and being prepared, organizations can navigate crises with greater confidence, protect their brand reputation, and rebuild trust even in the face of adversity.

About The Author

Tahir Abbas

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Cadbury: Simply Marketing or Neuromarketing Case-Study?

We have several reasons to have a clear winner for this question: Marketing or Neuromarketing Case-Study? Neuromarketing has proved its value a countless number of times, playing a pivotal role in turning companies into Ace companies. 

We’re about to study neuromarketing through one of the most iconic and loved brands of all time, wherein ‘all-time’ literally means over a century! 

Cadbury – The Confectionery that Rules

• Cadbury owner Mondelez UK reported a profit of more than 185 million pounds after it bought out Cadbury. 
• Mondelez UK, a subsidiary of US giant Mondelez International, recorded a 740% jump in profit for the year with turnover rising from 1.65 billion pounds to 1.66 billion pounds. 

The confectionery business is expanding as you read this. Cadbury was founded in 1824, initially selling tea and coffee but later switching to chocolates, biscuits, and other products.

Cadbury has had fierce competition such as Hershey’s, Mars, Nestle, etc. which are among the biggest confectioneries in the world. Despite that, it has managed to stay in business despite initial fluctuations, which were before Dairy Milk entered the scene. 

But the fluctuations stopped, and we all know who it owes its splendid success to! 

Cadbury Dairy Milk – The Trump Card

350 million bars of Cadbury’s Dairy Milk is sold every year – that’s almost a million a day!

Cadbury’s Dairy Milk was first introduced in 1905, mainly to compete with Swiss chocolates. But it has managed to do much more than that, thanks to Neuromarketing. 

Let’s see some of Cadbury Dairy Milk’s amazing Neuro-moves! 

Emotional Branding

The term Emotional Branding is quite famous in the neuromarketing world, and it means, appealing to the target audience through emotion and sentiment. 

This feature is distinctly found in almost every Cadbury advertisement. 

For instance, Cadbury Dairy Milk Celebrations have a series of beautiful ads that show families celebrating different festivals, depicting Cadbury Celebrations as the perfect gift to rejoice and cherish celebrations. 

The most heart melting ads are the ones that revolve around a child’s pure love and innocence. 

For instance, in one of such Dairy Milk ads, a cute little girl asks a shopkeeper for a Dairy Milk since it was her mother’s birthday. But she doesn’t have money, so she gives him all her tiny toys that she has, and even her favourite rubber band. The shopkeeper, touched by her innocence, gives her a Dairy Milk and also gives her a tiny toys flower as change. 

The ad is so heartwarming that it establishes Dairy Milk as the best and most beautiful gift one could give a loved one.

Colour Impacts

According to Neuroscience, every colour has a unique impact on the human brain and the brain perceives different meanings out of different colours. For instance, it’s a universal fact that white colour stands for peace. 

In the marketing world, using colours to design advertisements as well as product packages is no less than an art. 

The colour purple, according to Neuroscience purple symbolizes magic, luxury, royalty, dignity and spirituality. 

Cadbury has undeniably used the colour purple at its best, which is why Dairy Milk is associated with luxury, rich quality and celebration!

If you’re ever asked what purple colour reminds you of, one of your first 3 responses may be Cadbury or Dairy Milk! 

Customized – for You, by You

Nobody can tell what a person would love, better than the person himself/herself.

If you want to know what your customers would like to have, why not have them tell you? 

What better way for an innovation than having your customers brainstorm and create their favourite product for themselves? 

A competition from Cadbury to invent a new flavoured chocolate product has named an Irish 17 year old Callum Clogher as its winner, after creating a Choca-Latte Dairy Milk bar.

The winning bar consists of a mix of coffee cream and vanilla sandwiched in between the smooth taste of Cadbury Dairy Milk.

The company is calling upon consumers to ‘go madbury for Cadbury’ as it relaunches the Inventor competition for 2020. Shoppers now have the chance to create their very own Cadbury Dairy Milk bar, which could become the next addition to the iconic Cadbury Dairy Milk family in 2020.

30% less sugar = 0% Cognitive Dissonance

Mondelez, which has been ramping up its Cadbury profile, recently launched premium Cadbury Dark Milk variant. The brand has rolled out a new variant in its Cadbury range called “Cadbury 30% less sugar”.

The move is quite exactly what neuromarketing looks like. 

Cognitive dissonance is a psychological phenomenon that evokes guilt or regret post doing something wrong, or making the wrong choice. This is experienced by all human beings, especially by women. 

Cadbury 30% less Sugar aims to reduce the cognitive dissonance within people who are conscious about their calorie intake, yet have a sweet tooth and want to enjoy chocolates. 

Brand Recall – Neuroscience to the rescue

Heather Andrew, CEO of Neuro-Insight, deconstructs how the winners of Marketing’s polls on the best ads of the past 60 years work from the brain’s point of view. Public’s favourite ad of the last 60 years is Cadbury’s ‘Gorilla’.

Polls like #60YearsTVAds provide a fascinating barometer of the cultural/creative/emotional messaging that resonates with consumers and industry experts long after an ad has disappeared. 

Marketers are increasingly turning to neuroscience to understand consumers’ subconscious reactions to creative messaging to gain more objective insights into what works, or doesn’t – in an ad.

The way the brain responds to creative messaging is informed by a number of factors – some obvious and some very subtle.

So what makes ‘Gorilla’ special from the brain’s point of view?

• The art of the unexplained

The ad is built on a strong sense of intrigue – we see unexpected images that aren’t immediately explained. 

‘Gorilla’ opens with a shot of the gorilla’s face to the introduction of Phil Collins In the Air Tonight, but this very familiar soundtrack only makes the ad’s climax more surreal with no explanation provided. In both cases the brain is highly engaged in wanting to know more, but never quite getting satisfaction until the branding appears at the end of each ad. This means the brain stays involved right through the ad. 

The ad might seem really weird and that’s precisely what makes it unforgettable! This and many other such effective ads have boosted Cadbury’s brand recall to a major extent. 

Care, Concern and Brand Image

In 2007, Cadbury introduced recyclable cardboard packaging for its Roses and Heroes chocolates this Christmas.

The square boxes, made from sustainably sourced cardboard, replaced the traditional round metal tins. The move was a part of the company’s Purple Goes Green environmental strategy. It included a pledge to cut packaging, carbon emissions and water usage of seasonal products by 25% by 2010. 

Tapping into consumer concerns over sustainable packaging would help boost sales as well as elevate brand image, which was the motive behind the programme. 

“Many of our customers are dreaming of a green, not white Christmas this year. Introducing an environmental twist will help us to meet shoppers ethical concerns, and the new boxes are easier to wrap.” Said Jo Grice, Head of marketing at Cadbury. 

Any Occasion and Every Occasion

Cadbury aims to target kids between the age group of 5 to 10 who consume chocolate the most. However, Cadbury chocolates are eaten by people of all ages, sexes, cultures, regions and on all occasions.

Although Cadbury targets people of all age groups, it has distinguished its product offerings to different occasions and age groups of customers. 

For example, Cadbury Temptations and Bourneville are meant for higher end consumer groups who are willing to pay more. 

Cadbury Dairy Milk Silk is targeted to the people who can’t resist chocolates. It has positioned itself as a symbol of good times, meant for special, romantic, or even little memories, celebrating all moments in life.

Cadbury Dairy Milk Crackles and Crispello are meant for people who need crispness in chocolates. 

Cadbury Lickables are exclusively designed for kids to relish, in their own childish ways. 

Cadbury Celebrations, as the name suggests, is specifically designed for special occasions and festivities. 

They address the needs of each and every consumer, from childhood to maturity, from impulse purchase to family treats. 

They design products to coincide with Christmas, Easter, Valentine’s, Mother’s and Father’s Day, and other calendar landmarks. 

They use neuromarketing strategies such as the ‘Choose Cadbury’ strategy to encourage a link between chocolate and these events, ensuring that there is a Cadbury chocolate product suitable and available for every occasion. The marketing communication over the years as well the lovely taste of Cadbury and its consistently good quality have given fantastic brand equity to the brand.

Here’s the reason why you are a rookie in applications of neuromarketing! Check out applications of neuromarketing : Amul’s Case-Study now.

Neuromarketing is the process of researching the brain patterns of consumers. Learn all about neuromarketing , and it’s common myths.

We hope you are convinced if it is a marketing case study or not just a marketing case study! Contact us now to apply Neuromarketing in your business and wait till you see the Trump card work! 

Subscribe Now to access this and much more…

Cadbury Dairy Milk: A Case Study on Marketing Mix and Targeted Markets

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Cadbury: A Marketing Case Study

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Home » Management Case Studies » Case Study: Cadbury Crisis Management (Worm Controversy)

Case Study: Cadbury Crisis Management (Worm Controversy)

In India chocolate consumption was very low in the early 90’s but as the decade advanced the consumption drastically increased. The late 90’s witnessed a good chocolate market condition. The chocolate market in India is dominated by two multinational companies — Cadbury and Nestle. The national companies – Amul and Campco are other candidates in this race. Cadbury holds more than 70% of the total share of the market. Nestle has emerged by holding almost 20% of the total share. Apart from chocolate segment, there is also a big confectionery segment which is flooded by companies like Parry’s, Ravalgaon, Candico and Nutrine. All these are leading national players. The multinational companies like the Cadbury, Nestle and Perfetti are the new entrants in the sugar confectionery market. (Management paradise) There are several others which have a minor share in these two segments. According to statistics, the chocolate consumption in India is extremely low. If per capita consumption is considered, it comes to only 160gms in the urban areas. This amount is very low compared to the developed countries where the per capita consumption is more than 8-10kg. Observing this fact it would not be appropriate to consider the rural areas of India as it will be extremely low. This low consumption is owing to the notion behind consuming chocolates. Indians eat chocolates as indulgence and not as snack food. The major target population is the children. India has witnessed a slow growth rate of about 10% pa from the 70’s to the 80’s. But as the century advanced the market stagnated. This was the time when Cadbury launched its product- Dairy Milk as an anytime product rather than an occasional luxury. All the advertisements of Dairy Milk paid a full attention to adults and not children. And this proved to be the major breakthrough for Cadbury as it tried to break the conventional ideas of the Indians about chocolate.

The Worm Controversy

On October 2003, just a month before Diwali, the Food and Drug Administration Commissioner received complaints about infestation in two bars of Cadbury Dairy Milk, Cadbury India’s flagship brand with over 70% market share. He ordered an enquiry and went directly to the media with a statement. Over the following 3-week period, resultant adverse media coverage touched close to 1000 clips in print and 120 on TV news channels. In India, where Cadbury is synonymous with chocolate, the company’s reputation and credibility was under intense scrutiny. Sales volumes came down drastically in the first 10 weeks, which was the festival season; retailer stocking and display dropped, employee morale – especially that of the sales team – was shaken. The challenge was to restore confidence in the key stakeholders (consumers, trade and employees, particularly the sales team) and build back credibility for the corporate brand through the same channels (the media) that had questioned it.

In defense, Cadbury issued a statement that the infestation was not possible at the manufacturing stage and poor storage at the retailers was the most likely cause of the reported case of worms. But the FDA didn’t buy that. FDA commisioner, Uttam Khobragade told CNBC-TV18, “It was presumed that worms got into it at the storage level, but then what about the packing – packaging was not proper or airtight, either ways it’s a manufacturing defect with unhygienic conditions or improper packaging.”

That was followed by allegations and counter-allegations between Cadbury and FDA. The heat of negative publicity melted Cadbury’s sales by 30 per cent, at a time when it sees a festive spike of 15 per cent.

Remedy for the Worm Controversy

A focused and intense communications program was implemented over the next six months to rebuild credibility and restore confidence among the key stakeholders. The results:

• In media, the key message that infestation was a storage-linked problem, not manufacturing related , found widespread acceptance. Across the board, media carried Cadbury’s point-of-view on the issue.
• Sales volumes climbed back to almost to pre-crisis levels eight weeks after the launch of new packaging — a concrete step taken by the company to minimize the incidence of infestation. This reflected consumer confidence in the brand and the company.
• There was significant upward movement in ratings amongst consumers on parameters like company’s image, responsiveness of company and behavioral parameters like intention to buy Cadbury chocolates.

The last two helped to restore faith in the corporate brand among the trade and employees.

Marketing Challenges and Objectives

The immediate objective was to get the following key messages across:

• Infestation could never occur at the manufacturing stage
• The problem was storage linked; this without alienating trade channels
• Cadbury Dairy Milk continued to be safe for consumption

The challenge was to restore confidence in the key stakeholders (trade and employees, particularly salespersons) and build back credibility for the corporate brand through the same channels (the media) that questioned it.

Phase 1: Presenting Cadbury’s View (October-December 2003)

The day the crisis broke, the agency set up a media desk to ensure that no media query went unanswered. From Day 1 every story carried Cadbury’s point of view. At the first media briefing organised by the agency, the Cadbury’s Managing Director addressed consumer concerns with the following key messages:

• Infestation is a storage linked problem.
• It is safe to eat Cadbury chocolates.
• Consumers must exercise the same care in purchasing a chocolate as they would when buying any food item.
• A retail monitoring and education program undertaken on a war footing to address storage problems.
• Significant packaging changes to ‘reduce dependency on storage conditions as much as possible’ –to be launched within two months.

An Editorial Outreach program with 31 media editors across 5 most affected cities was orchestrated by the agency to get senior Cadbury spokespeople to share their version of events in one-on-one meetings. The trade, and consumers, were reached nationally through a press ad ‘Facts about Cadbury’, released in 55 publications in 11 languages. It presented facts about Cadbury manufacturing and storage and highlighted corrective steps being taken by the company. This was a public statement of the corporate stand on the issue. The trade was supported with posters and leaflets to help them share Cadbury point-of-view with their customers. A response cell with a toll free number and an e-mail id were put in place to give trade a means to directly contact the company with any issues they faced- reinforcing the company’s commitment to quality. From the beginning, a series of town hall meetings were held with senior managers addressing employees

to ensure they were updated on the proactive actions being taken by Cadbury to manage media, help trade and ensure future occurrences of such incidents were kept to the minimum. Regular email updates from the MD were also used to communicate the company’s point of view and to ensure consistency of messaging since employees are the company’s ambassadors.

The new ‘purity sealed’ packaging was launched in January 2004. By investing up to Rs 15 crore (Rs 150 million) on imported machinery, Cadbury’s revamped the packaging of Dairy Milk. The metallic poly-flow, was costlier by 10-15 per cent, but Cadbury didn’t hike the pack price.This entailed double wrapping for maximum protection to reducing the possibility of infestation. This was a big step involving investment of millions of dollars and getting on stream a production process in 8 weeks, that would normally take about six months. To communicate these significant changes the company was making, Cadbury brought in a brand ambassador to reinforce the credibility that the company had demonstrated through its actions. Amitabh Bachchan , a legendary Indian film star, was chosen, as he embodied the values of Cadbury as a brand and connected with all of India – mothers, teenagers, children, media persons and trader partners.

Another audio visual with a message from the star was used in a series of sales conferences to enthuse and reassure salespersons. And this helped to rebuild confidence in the salespersons to go and sell the product more convincingly and confidently to the trade. The announcement of the new pack was done through a testimonial advertisement on TV called ‘Sincerity’. It consciously addressed the problem head-on, with the superstar talking straight into camera about how before doing the ad he first convinced himself about the quality of Cadbury chocolates by visiting the factory. Consumers respected the brand for not skirting the issue but acknowledging it and giving a solution to the problem. This was Public Relations using a TV Commercial to get key messages across!

Campaign Results:

• Media Coverage : The media relationship effort clearly helped in making media accept that the infestation was genuinely caused by storage-linked problems. From the start, all media reports carried the Cadbury’s point-of-view. Bad news automatically gets great coverage. However, the agency helped Cadbury get a total of 378 clips in over 11 languages covering the new packaging, and its benefits, in January 2004. The Business Today clip is a typical representation of the changed media perception and a better understanding of the problem over a three month period.
• Sales : Sales volumes, which declined drastically between week 1 and week 10 of crisis, climbed back almost to the pre-incident levels by week. within 8 weeks of introduction of new packaging and communication. This is a clear reflection of restoration of consumer and hence trade confidence in the corporate brand.
• Image : There was significant upward movement in ratings amongst consumers on parameters like company image, responsiveness of company and behavioral parameters like intention to buy Cadbury chocolates. While the new product introduction and advertising had their role to play in the changing consumer perceptions, the media’s positive coverage and the trade’s positive pre-disposition played a huge part in helping Cadbury regain its reputation in the market.

Role of Public Relations

The PR department of Cadbury’s played a very effective role in managing the reputation and keeping up the goodwill of the company.

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HBR’s top five most popular articles of 2024 (so far), present an opportunity to reflect on the work you’ve done in the preceding months, and chart any necessary course changes. The list includes a case study of how Starbucks lost its way (and how it could pivot); a guide to how to shift your leadership style based on situation; and a playbook for assessing the quality of the questions you ask at work.

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Generative AI in innovation and marketing processes: A roadmap of research opportunities

• Original Empirical Research
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• Published: 26 August 2024

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• Paola Cillo 1 , 2 &
• Gaia Rubera 2 , 3  

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Nowadays, we are witnessing the exponential growth of Generative AI (GenAI), a group of AI models designed to produce new content. This technology is poised to revolutionize marketing research and practice. Since the marketing literature about GenAI is still in its infancy, we offer a technical overview of how GenAI models are trained and how they produce content. Following this, we construct a roadmap for future research on GenAI in marketing, divided into two main domains. The first domain focuses on how firms can harness the potential of GenAI throughout the innovation process. We begin by discussing how GenAI changes consumer behavior and propose research questions at the consumer level. We then connect these emerging consumer insights with corresponding firm marketing strategies, presenting research questions at the firm level. The second set of research questions examines the likely consequences of using GenAI to analyze: (1) the relationship between market-based assets and firm value, and (2) consumer skills, preferences, and role in marketing processes.

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Introduction

Generative AI (henceforth, GenAI) represents the latest evolution in the field of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and is a group of AI models designed to generate new content, spanning text, images, and videos (Huang & Rust, 2023 ). According to a recent McKinsey report, marketing is projected to be the most affected firm function by GenAI, which is forecast to enhance marketing productivity by up to 15% of the total marketing expenditure, amounting to approximately $463 billion annually. Footnote 1 While AI has changed marketing activities in several ways, ranging from product personalization (Chung et al., 2016 ) to service experience (Noble & Mende, 2023 ), one of the most distinctive features of GenAI is its capability to create novel content (Eapen et al., 2023 ). Unsurprisingly, numerous firms have already started using GenAI to perform key innovative marketing activities. For instance, Coca Cola used GenAI to co-create new beverages, such as its Coca-Cola Sugar Y3000. Similarly, companies like Unilever, Nestlé, and Mondelez have been using GenAI to create advertising. Footnote 2 Despite the disruptive potential of GenAI in marketing, the marketing literature that explores the impact of GenAI for consumers and firms is still nascent (Huang & Rust, 2023 ; Li et al., 2024 ; Reisenbichler et al., 2022 ), thus prompting this effort to propose a roadmap that describes both GenAI’s current status as well as its potential to impact consumer and firm behavior in innovation and marketing processes.

We start with a brief overview of the technical specificities of GenAI, as well as its capabilities and current limitations. Then, we propose research opportunities across two main domains. First, we focus on GenAI’s potential to alter both internal marketing activities that mainly deal with innovation, as well those interface activities for which firms try to leverage consumers’ creativity. With our research questions, we aim to investigate how GenAI can impact the entire innovation process, distinguishing among four phases: developing , testing , communicating , and engaging with the firm’s innovative output (Knight, 1967 ; Mumford & Simonton, 1997 ; Rubera et al., 2016 ). We validate these research questions via in-depth interviews with managers from different industries, spanning from high-end fashion and fast-moving consumer goods to insurance and utilities. These interviews reveal that, beyond their interest in understanding how to harness the innovative potential of GenAI, managers are concerned with the effects of repeatedly using GenAI on marketing capabilities and consumer behavior. Thus, we develop a second set of research questions to investigate the consequences of repeated GenAI use by firms and consumers. For firms, we develop questions related to the effects of employing GenAI on how marketing contributes to create firm value. Similarly, for consumers, we offer research questions related to the potential impact of GenAI on consumer skills, preferences, and role in the marketing processes.

This paper makes two main contributions to the marketing literature. First, several papers have offered a research map for the applications of AI in marketing (Davenport et al., 2020 ; Huang & Rust, 2021 ; Puntoni et al., 2021 ). These papers mainly investigate either mechanical or thinking AI (Huang & Rust, 2021 ). However, GenAI is a different type of AI that is poised to transform marketing in a completely different way. Recently, Huang and Rust ( 2023 ) have analyzed how GenAI can be used to move the customer along the customer care journey. They consider GenAI as the most advanced, so far, form of feeling AI. Complementing their perspective, we analyze the impact of GenAI on a different yet fundamental activity for firms (i.e., innovation). Second, previous papers outlining research questions about the effect of AI on marketing have focused on either the consequences on firms’ activity (Davenport et al., 2020 ; Huang & Rust, 2021 , 2023 ) or consumer response (Puntoni et al., 2021 ). This article aims to bridge these two perspectives by developing research questions both at the consumer and firm level. At the consumer level, we focus on how GenAI can impact consumers’ creative behavior. Since firms try to leverage consumer input throughout the innovation process, we maintain that analyzing the potential impact of GenAI on consumers’ creative behavior is a prerequisite for investigating the impact of GenAI on the firm innovation process (Hamilton, 2016 ). In this way, we hope that this roadmap can help marketing scholars pursue research across various areas of specialization.

GenAI: A technical overview

In technical terms, we can define GenAI as deep neural networks, pre-trained on large amounts of data to create a foundation model, which is then fine-tuned to produce new content by following human instructions (Bommasani et al., 2021 ). In this section, we provide a technical overview of how GenAI models are trained and how they produce content. Given these technical specificities, we then explain why the output of GenAI can be helpful for firms, as it is both novel and appropriate–and, hence, creative (Amabile, 2018 ; Scopelliti et al., 2014 ).

Training on extensive, unannotated datasets: Self-supervised learning

GenAI is the outcome of a renewed focus on self-supervised machine learning rather than the supervised learning approach that characterized much previous AI developments (Bommasani et al., 2021 ). In a supervised learning approach, during the training, machines learn by comparing model output against a given correct answer. These correct answers are provided in forms of “labels” or “annotations,” which require human involvement in labor-intensive tasks. The significant cost of annotation severely restricts the volume of data available for model training, limiting the ability to generalize effectively to novel settings (Bommasani et al., 2021 ).

In contrast, self-supervised learning models are trained with no need for annotated datasets. Instead, training occurs by removing parts of the data and asking the model to “predict” the missed parts. For instance, with textual data, we can input a sentence like “This is a <…> article” and train a model to predict the omitted word, given its surrounding text. At the end of the training, the model should have learned that the words “review” or “scientific” are more likely to be omitted compared to, say, “umbrella.” Similarly, with images, we can mask some patches and train a model to predict the content in the masked patches based on the remaining image information.

Self-supervised training yields two direct consequences that define GenAI’s ability to generate new, plausible content. First, since the original data contains the correct part to predict (i.e., the missing part), the training process can scale to very large datasets, which would be challenging to annotate by hand. These large datasets come in many forms, such as text, images, audio recordings, and videos. Second, by being forced to predict parts of the inputs, self-supervised learning models develop a deeper understanding of the context. This enhanced understanding, coupled with training on significantly larger datasets, makes it easier to generalize to novel settings than was the case with past, supervised AI models.

Producing new content: Inherently random and conditional on the prompt

The adoption of a self-supervised learning approach, coupled with advancements in computing power (e.g., GPU) and a novel model architecture known as Transformer (Vaswani et al., 2017 ) that allows faster training, led to the emergence of foundation models . A foundation model is a large, pre-trained model used as a base for developing more specialized and task-specific models (Bommasani et al., 2021 ). Foundation models underpin generative capabilities. Specifically, they create new content (e.g., text, image, video, data) by using patterns learned during training to predict the next item in a sequence. For instance, OpenAI and Microsoft have deployed GPT-3 in a variety of downstream tasks, such as Bing, Duolingo, GitHub Co-pilot, and ChatGPT. To understand how foundation models produce new content, let us take the example of Large Language Models (LLMs), a subset of foundation models that have gained significant prominence as they are trained to facilitate user interaction through natural language. A language model (LM) is a statistical representation of a language, which computes the probability of a given sequence (a word, phrase, or sentence) occurring in this language. Similar to LMs, LLMs are trained in a self-supervised logic to predict a masked word within a sequence of words. Because they are trained on large amounts of data as well as frequently trained on different languages, they are called Large LMs. If we consider words and punctuation signs as tokens, we can depict an LLM as a conditional probability distribution p ( x n |x 1 , … , x n  − 1 ) over tokens, in which each x i is drawn from a fixed vocabulary. An LLM generates text by iteratively sampling from the learned distribution to select the next token. At each generative iteration, the model estimates a probability distribution, indicating the likelihood that any token in the vocabulary would be the next observed x i if the model were reading a pre-existing text. To initiate text generation, an LLM requires “conditioning,” meaning it must be supplied with initial input tokens x 1 , … , x n  − 1 . Such input is called prompt . The prompt conditions the probability of selecting one token over another. For instance, if we input the prompt “This is a review…,” the token “article” would have a higher probability of selection than the token “bus.” Using a distribution function, the model randomly selects among a list of probable candidates (e.g., “article,” “paper”). The new x i is then added to the text, initiating the repetition of the entire process (Argyle et al., 2023 ). The generation of novel images, music, videos, or data follow a similar approach.

Thus, GenAI outputs novel content that is conditional on the prompt that it receives. Given how foundation models choose the next word, note, or image feature, such content however is random and different at each iteration, making it possible to produce several, unique responses from the same prompt. This inherent randomness explains why it is hard to detect content generated by GenAI (Else, 2023 ).

In sum, training foundation models is a highly resource-intensive process that demands substantial computational power and can take months to complete. For instance, it is estimated that the cost of training GPT-4 is over $100 million (Korinek, 2023 ). However, while training GenAI is financially viable for only a handful of companies, use costs are very low. Thus, firms no longer compete on developing proprietary machine learning and AI algorithms, but rather on their ability to fully harness the capabilities of existing foundation models.

The potential of GenAI for marketing and innovation

Having reviewed how GenAI models are trained and how they produce new content, we next describe the capabilities and current limitations of these models. Huang and Rust ( 2023 ) conceptualize GenAI as feeling AI, namely a type of AI that can communicate and interact with humans based on an emotional understanding derived from analyzing emotion data. They argue that these models differ from previous AI models, which were better suited for mechanical AI (i.e., performing repetitive tasks) and thinking AI (i.e., supporting analytical decisions) (Huang & Rust, 2021 ). We embrace their view of GenAI as a novel type of AI; to complement this view, we focus on GenAI’s capability to create new content. Since we are interested in how firms can leverage GenAI in their innovation and marketing processes, we examine whether GenAI’s output can be both novel and appropriate, two key elements that influence consumer evaluations of new products, marketing programs, and advertisements (Rubera et al., 2010 ).

The associate theory of creativity maintains that novelty stems from the ability to connect weakly related concepts to form novel ideas (Dahl & Moreau, 2002 ; Toubia & Netzer, 2017 ). Since foundation models have been trained on extensive datasets, these models can retrieve concepts from a vast array of diverse domains. Leveraging this capability, scientists started exploring how LLMs can be used to discover new hypotheses to test (Hutson, 2023 ). The inherent randomness in the way foundation models produce content is a prerequisite for identifying this output as novel. Indeed, throughout history, significant innovations have emerged as serendipitous discoveries, ranging from medical breakthroughs (Meyers, 2007 ) to new consumer products like Post-its or shatter-proof glass.

However, randomly connecting concepts from different domains is not sufficient per se for generating something that consumers appreciate; rather, this content must also be appropriate (Rubera et al., 2010 ). Since foundation models have been trained on extensive datasets, it is very likely that they have memorized in the training phase what humans consider to be appropriate. Girotra et al. ( 2023 ) conducted a comparative study, pitting a pool of ideas generated by MBA students against those generated by ChatGPT-4 in two distinct conditions. In the baseline condition, ChatGPT-4 received an identical prompt to that of the MBA students (i.e., generate ten ideas targeting college students in the U.S.). In the “prompted with good examples” condition, the authors supplemented the prompt with a set of highly rated ideas. They find that ideas generated by ChatGPT-4, regardless of the condition, exhibit higher average scores on purchase intentions compared to ideas generated by MBA students. Interestingly, they report no significant difference between the two GPT conditions (i.e., baseline versus prompted with highly rated ideas). A possible explanation for this finding is that GPT had already seen those highly rated ideas (or, at least, similarly appropriate ideas) during the training. Thus, providing further examples of good ideas in the prompt is redundant, as GPT has already memorized what humans consider to be appropriate.

In sum, the stochastic nature of foundation models enables them to generate novel content. The extensiveness of the data they have been trained on allows this novelty to also be appropriate.

Current limitations of GenAI

Although GenAI is able to create new content, it sometimes produces content that, while semantically or syntactically plausible, is factually incorrect or nonsensical (i.e., hallucinations) (Huang & Rust, 2023 ). For instance, on February 6, 2023, Google announced its ChatGPT competitor named Bard with an image of Bard answering the question “What new discoveries from the James Webb Space Telescope can I tell my 9 year old about?” As several astronomers pointed out, one of the three replies that Bard provided was factually wrong. As a consequence, Google stocks lost $100 billion. Similarly, just two weeks before OpenAI launched ChatGPT, Meta released Galactica, which the company positioned as a “large language model for science.” The open source LLM survived for only three days before Meta withdrew it in response to criticism for releasing a model that produced scientific-sounding text but that was nonetheless factually wrong. Capitalizing on Galactica’s failure when it launched ChatGPT, OpenAI explicitly acknowledged that it could make mistakes. The Bard and Galactica cases clearly indicate the limitations of initial GenAI. It works better when it is tasked with generating novel content for which there are no right or wrong answers (e.g., artistic content, novel product ideas).

To help marketers apply GenAI effectively, we provide in Table  1 a summary of studies that investigate GenAI’s emergent capabilities that are most closely related to innovation. These capabilities include idea generation, divergent thinking, analogical thinking, and inductive reasoning, which are all traditionally considered prerequisites for creativity (Dahl & Moreau, 2002 ; Vartanian et al., 2003 ). Additionally, our interviews reveal that an increasing number of managers rely on GenAI, or wish to, for decision-making support. Therefore, we also focus on capabilities related to reasoning, such as causal reasoning, logical reasoning on new cases, and making causal inferences.

Since different foundation models are trained on different data and have different architectures, and also since the same released model can be updated over time, we report the model used and time of the test. Table  1 indicates that current models have limited reasoning capabilities with respect to making causal inferences. Computer scientists attribute hallucinations and these limitations to the absence of physical data in most GenAI models, which constrains their understanding of the world (Webb et al., 2023 ; Zečević et al., 2023 ). Indeed, most studies conducted so far have focused on LLMs trained exclusively on text-based inputs, which lack embodiment, sensory stimuli, or grounded experience that are crucial for human decision-making (McClelland et al., 2020 ). However, the emergence of multimodal models like GPT-4 V(ision) (i.e., capable of processing text, image, sound, and other sensory data) may pave the way for GenAI to develop a more integrated understanding of the world (McClelland et al., 2020 ; Webb et al., 2023 ). Thus, we note that GenAI is rapidly evolving and that these limitations could potentially be addressed in the future.

Research opportunities

Given our focus on GenAI’s capability to create new content, we propose research opportunities related to how firms can harness the innovative potential of GenAI throughout the firm innovation process. Consistent with past views of the innovation process (Knight, 1967 ; Mumford & Simonton, 1997 ; Rubera et al., 2016 ), we depict this process as a circular one that encompasses four main stages–developing, testing, communicating, and engaging–during which firms interact with customers to gain different types of input, ranging from creativity to customer knowledge.

We validated these research questions via in-depth interviews with managers from different industries, spanning from high-end fashion and fast-moving consumer goods to insurance and utilities. They point out that firms’ repeated use of GenAI will fundamentally alter marketing capabilities, for instance by making some of them obsolete or less valuable. Also, they expect that consumers’ skills and preferences will likely change as an effect of widespread GenAI use. Thus, they fear that firms will necessarily face a very different customer in the near future. The inputs from practitioners motivated us to complement our framework with research questions about the consequences of GenAI use, both for a firm’s market-based assets, marketing capabilities, and resources, as well as for consumer skills, preferences, and role in the marketing processes. We present our roadmap in Fig.  1 .

GenAI in innovation and marketing processes

Harnessing the innovative potential of GenAI

Our framework views the innovation process as a circular process that encompasses several interactions with customers throughout the four stages. In the developing phase, firms frequently involve consumers in co-creation activities through open innovation platforms and crowdsourcing initiatives (Bayus, 2013 ; Cillo et al., 2021 ; Luo & Toubia, 2015 ; Rubera et al., 2016 ; Stephen et al., 2016 ). These initiatives aim to augment internal creativity with customer ideas. In the testing stage, firms conduct market research to gain customers’ perspective in order to select the one with the best chances of meeting market needs, given the various inputs generated in the previous phase (Kahn et al., 2006 ). In the communicating stage, firms interact with customers to persuade them to change their behavior and adopt the firm’s offering (Castaño et al., 2008 ). After consumers buy the firm’s novel offering, firms continue interacting with customers to keep them engaged beyond economic transactions (Blut et al., 2023 ; Pansari & Kumar, 2017 ). This engagement enables firms to access key consumer resources (e.g., knowledge stores, creativity) (Harmeling et al., 2017 ) that offer further creative input to the innovation process, thus constituting a continuous cycle, as illustrated in Fig.  1 .

For each phase, we start by discussing the potential impact of GenAI on consumer behavior and propose consumer-level research questions. The only exception is the testing stage in which, as we will discuss, GenAI can help firms partially replace customer inputs when conducting market research. These customer insights help us investigate how firms can harness the innovative potential of GenAI. In so doing, we bridge these emerging customer insights with corresponding firm marketing strategies, presenting research questions at the firm level (Hamilton, 2016 ). We summarize our proposed research questions in Table  2 .

In the past decade, firms have devoted much effort in involving consumers in the idea development phase through open innovation platforms and crowdsourcing initiatives (Bayus, 2013 ; Luo & Toubia, 2015 ; Stephen et al., 2016 ). Through these initiatives, firms outsource to consumers either part of or the entire creative process, which comprises two cognitive, iterative processes: generative and exploratory (Moreau & Dahl, 2005 ). In the generative stage, preliminary mental representations of a solution are created. In the exploratory stage, these representations are evaluated. If the exploration is not successful, a new generative stage occurs until a satisfactory idea is achieved.

While past studies investigated how AI can enhance idea screening (Bell et al., 2023 ), GenAI can clearly support participants in the idea-generation phase. Specifically, GenAI can potentially decouple the two cognitive processes that underpin creativity: it can create differing solutions (i.e., generation), while consumers then can be solely responsible for modifying the proposed solutions (i.e., exploration). In this case, we envision an iterative process in which consumers engage in a conversation with GenAI to refine the created solutions until a satisfactory idea emerges. Future research is needed to investigate the consequences of this decoupling at both the consumer and firm level.

At the consumer level, the literature indicates that people’s ideas are influenced by those around them who are working on the same task (Mason & Watts, 2012 ; Stephen et al., 2016 ). Exposure to others’ ideas might lead consumers to engage in either cognitive fixation (Bayus, 2013 ) or cognitive stimulation (Luo & Toubia, 2015 ). Thus, we can expect consumers to either conform to a GenAI suggestion or further diversify in their efforts to reaffirm their diversity from machines. We theoretically expect that both conforming and diversifying consumers achieve higher levels of creativity when supported by GenAI, but through two different mechanisms.

Conforming consumers outsource the generative stage to GenAI. Since GenAI is trained on very diverse data, it can provide conforming consumers with more diverse, initial representations of a solution from which these consumers can select in the exploratory stage. Since they can select from a wider pool of ideas, doing so should translate to a final solution that is more creative than if consumers had no access to GenAI input (Dahl & Moreau, 2002 ). In contrast, diversifying consumers engage further in the generative stage in order to find more initial representations that differ from GenAI input. This extra cognitive effort would encourage diversifying consumers to explore more distant alternatives, thereby increasing the creativity of the final solution (Luo & Toubia, 2015 ). However, future research is needed to empirically investigate the mechanisms that increase the creativity of the final, GenAI-augmented solution for different types of consumers:

Through what cognitive mechanisms does GenAI influence the creativity of an individual consumer? Do different consumers follow different cognitive mechanisms?

Luo and Toubia ( 2015 ) show that domain knowledge determines whether consumers fixate with others’ ideas or not. Lysyakov and Viswanathan ( 2023 ) find that prior success determines whether designers conform or diversify in response to the introduction of an AI system for logo designs in a crowdsourcing design platform. Thus, future research should investigate the elements (individual or contextual) that encourage consumers to either conform or diversify to solutions proposed by GenAI:

What individual traits and contextual factors influence a consumer’s decision to either conform to or diverge from GenAI solutions?

At the firm level, the path that consumers pursue (i.e., AI conformity or diversification) has direct consequences on the collective creativity of the pool of co-produced ideas from which a firm can select, which is a key output of co-ideation initiatives. Since consumers who conform select solutions from the same (or similar) GenAI-generated content, it is likely that these conforming consumers end up generating similar content, as they are anchored to the same set of GenAI-generated ideas. Indeed, studies on ideation platforms have shown that when customers draw inspiration from similar sets of ideas, they tend to develop less innovative ideas (Stephen et al., 2016 ). If this is the case, then co- ideation initiatives bear ideas that are not creative enough to warrant further internal development, a common problem for these initiatives (Stephen et al., 2016 ). To curb this drawback, scholars suggest that firms limit the quantity of others’ ideas that participants can access (Luo & Toubia, 2015 ; Stephen et al., 2016 ). Such a feature is clearly not possible for GenAI, as consumers access it on their own device. Further, the fact that consumers conform to solutions proposed by GenAI defies the purpose of co-ideation initiatives: employees within the firm can access these ideas directly without tapping into consumers’ creative resources. Huang and Rust ( 2023 ) propose an intriguing approach, which they call response engineering , in which GenAI probes consumers’ preferences iteratively through multiple rounds of question-asking. Firms could employ a similar response engineering approach in which GenAI asks questions (rather than provides answers) that would nudge consumers to deviate from the original idea in order to help them develop, at each iteration, more creative ideas. That said, this is a workaround solution at the moment because GenAI is not designed to ask questions (Huang & Rust, 2023 ). Thus, future research should investigate:

How can firms design co-ideation platforms to reduce the AI-conformity effect?

The generation phase is typically considered a variation phase, during which firms are concerned with simply generating as much creative input as possible (Girotra et al., 2010 ). In the next stage, a selection process starts, which is aimed at selecting the idea with the highest chance of gaining market acceptance once it is introduced in the market (Girotra et al., 2010 ). To do so, firms conduct market research (Kahn et al., 2006 ). The latest research on GenAI suggests that this technology can offer firms several ways to conduct market research.

Marketing research has shown how AI can lead to biased outcomes in service (Ukanwa & Rust, 2020 ) or ad delivery (Lambrecht & Tucker, 2019 ). Such bias derives from “algorithmic bias,” in which machine learning models tend to replicate the gender, race, and economic biases of the data upon which they have been trained (Davenport et al., 2020 ; Plangger et al., 2022 ). However, LLMs have been trained on a vast set of diverse data, which means that they potentially could have memorized several biases, not just one. If true, then researchers can take advantage of this variety of biases to replicate different marketing sub-populations of consumers (i.e., different consumer segments). Investigating this possibility, Argyle et al. ( 2023 ) show that LLMs are characterized by what they call algorithmic fidelity : namely, “by conditioning a model on simulated ’individuals’ with targeted identity and personality profiles,” it is possible to gain insights “into different patterns of attitudes and ideas present across many groups (e.g., women, men, White people, people of color, millennials, baby boomers) and also the combination and intersection of these groups (e.g., Black immigrants, female Republicans, White males) (p. 338).” Leveraging algorithmic fidelity, Argyle et al. ( 2023 ) show that, by providing a prompt that describes the sociocultural characteristics of a specific demographic group, it is possible to generate response distributions that strongly correlate with that group’s survey response distributions. Similarly, Horton ( 2023 ) demonstrates that various LLMs from OpenAI respond to economic scenarios in ways that are consistent with intuition and experience.

Algorithmic fidelity paves the way for marketers to potentially conduct market research with fewer requirements to involve human subjects. Indeed, an emerging body of studies has begun investigating how LLMs can substitute for market research. Brand et al. ( 2023 ) show that when prompted as if it were a randomly selected customer, GPT generates responses that exhibit sloped demand curves, lower sensitivity to changes in price as income increases, and state dependency (i.e., inertia in their product choice), all three of which are well-known features of real customers. Given these characteristics, the authors show that GPT generates estimates that are similar to those generated by human-based conjoint studies; they thus conclude that GenAI can represent a viable alternative for learning about consumer preferences in a fast, low-cost, and iterative way. Similarly, Li et al. ( 2024 ) show that GPTNeo and GPT4 can successfully match perceptual maps obtained from human surveys. The authors also show that these two GenAI applications can replicate survey differences along demographic variables and across time. Finally, Ringel ( 2023 ) investigates whether ChatGPT-4 can act as a surrogate for human expertise in classifying tweets that discuss marketing mix variables. He finds strong agreement between labels provided by ChatGPT4 and those provided by experts across all four metrics of the marketing mix, while labels provided by Amazon mTurk workers exhibit substantially lower agreement with expert labels. He concludes that “generative AI is a viable alternative to scarce and costly domain experts for labeling text.”

Collectively, this emerging research suggests that GenAI can substitute, at least in some cases, for human subjects and experts in marketing research. It is, thus, important to investigate what other marketing variables or constructs marketers can obtain through GenAI that will reduce the need to refer to surveys, focus groups, or expert opinions. Thus, we propose the following research question:

What market research can be conducted with GenAI rather than human participants or experts?

As research about GenAI’s capability to replace human subjects emerges, it is important to keep in mind that this capability depends on the training data of the foundation model deployed to “conduct” market research. Indeed, Horton ( 2023 ) infer from OpenAI’s GPT replies that these LLMs must have been trained on a corpus more comparable to revealed preferences than to stated ones. Also, Li et al. ( 2024 ) report that LLMs work better for higher involvement products and for some brands than others. We speculate that this finding is due to the fact that GPT4 has more product reviews for these products in its training sample. However, future research is needed to determine which product categories/brands GenAI is better suited to replace human subjects /experts:

What are the boundary conditions of GenAI’s capability to replace human subjects/experts in market research?

Finally, Hartmann et al. ( 2023 ) show that images generated by different LLMs display significantly different performance in terms of click-through rates. The classic approach in marketing has been to compare different models in order to select the best one. We propose a different approach that is based instead on assembling predictions of different LLMs. Indeed, each LLM has been trained using different datasets, architectures, and hyperparameters, implying that each LLM has heterogeneous expertise in different tasks and domains, as well as idiosyncratic strengths and biases. Thus, assembling different LLMs can potentially harness the diverse strengths of each model, while exploiting the complementarities between them. Although the computer science community has started investigating different ways to assemble LLMs (Jiang et al., 2023 ; Lu et al., 2023 ), the ensemble method used always depends on the task at hand (Yang et al., 2023 ). Hence, it is important that marketers develop their own ensemble method that accounts for domain-specific goals. Thus, we propose the following research question:

How can we assemble different LLMs to better replicate human/expert responses?

This argument suggests that the true potential of GenAI is represented by the combination of different LLMs, not an individual model. As such, we warn scholars intending to compare human performance with that of GenAI that a fair comparison should always require assembling different foundation models.

Communicating

Gartner predicts that GenAI will produce 30% of brands’ marketing messages by 2025, Footnote 3 thanks to GenAI’s ease of use, multimodality (i.e., capability to integrate various types of data like text and images), and scalability. We pinpoint two crucial areas deserving further investigation: (1) the extent to which firms can rely on GenAI to convincingly persuade consumers, and (2) the consequences of disclosing GenAI use for a firm’s brand equity.

Persuading consumers

A key marketing activity involves crafting persuasive marketing content. GenAI potentially excels in this task due to its ability to swiftly generate new content at minimal marginal cost. Meta, for instance, has announced its intention to use GenAI for automatically creating ads. Footnote 4 So far, there is limited research that explores consumer responses to GenAI-generated content. Bai et al. ( 2023 ) and Kreps et al. ( 2022 ) in political science, and Zhang and Gosline ( 2023 ) in decision making represent notable exceptions. Interestingly, these studies report differing findings. While Bai et al. ( 2023 ) and Kreps et al. ( 2022 ) report no difference between GenAI and human-generated text, Zhang et al. ( 2022 ) find that ChatGPT-4 creates messages associated with higher satisfaction and willingness to pay than those produced by humans, even experts.

These initial studies aside, we argue that further research is necessary to examine the connection between GenAI’s objective parameters and human subjective perceptions of its output. For instance, users can control the behavior of LLMs in three main ways. First, we have discussed earlier the relevance of prompts . Second, users can adjust the level of randomness (or creativity) in the output generated by modifying the temperature parameter. A temperature of 0 makes the model deterministic, always selecting the most likely token. As the temperature increases, the model becomes more random, leading to more diverse and creative output. Third, users can employ top_p sampling to restrict the model’s selection to a subset of tokens (the nucleus), rather than considering all possible tokens. For instance, setting a top_p value to 0.2 means that the model will only select from those tokens that represent the top 20% of the probability mass for the next token. Given these technical nuances of GenAI, we identify avenues for future research, both at the consumer and firm level.

At the consumer level, the limited research on persuasiveness of GenAI-created messages has primarily focused on prompt strategies (Karinshak et al., 2023 ), with limited attention given to the role of temperature and top_p sampling. Hence, future research should explore whether variations in the objective parameters of LLMs are associated with variations in subjective evaluations of message per- suasiveness. Learning more about this aspect could be crucial for crafting messages that are consistent with recipients’ psychological characteristics. Thus, we propose the following research question.

Does variation in objective LLM parameters translate into different subjective perceptions of persuasiveness?

Second, initial studies have started to explore differences in GenAI-generated content compared to that generated by humans. Bai et al. ( 2023 ) find that humans perceive messages crafted by GenAI to be more factual and logical but also less angry and likely to rely on vivid story-telling. Karinshak et al. ( 2023 ) report that GPT3-crafted pro-vaccination messages are perceived as more colloquial, authentic, and positive. While these studies uncover some differences between GenAI- and human-generated content, they do not explain how objective parameters influence human subjective perception. Our preliminary analysis seems to show that increasing the temperature causes ChatGPT-3 to generate more verbose output, even when the model is constrained to produce a maximum number of tokens. In the context of idea generation, verbose ideas have been observed to receive better evaluations (Kornish & Jones, 2021 ). This verbosity effect potentially extends to evaluations of message persuasiveness. As such, we call for future research to investigate the theoretical mechanisms linking objective LLM parameters to subjective perceptions. Additionally, gaining a deeper understanding of why these parameters influence persuasiveness in different ways could provide insights with respect to consumer heterogeneity. Thus, we propose the following two research questions:

What are the theoretical mechanisms through which objective LLM parameters influence subjective perceptions?

What theoretical constructs cause heterogeneity in consumer responses to variations of objective LLM parameters?

At the firm level, understanding the psychological mechanisms that link objective LLM parameters to persuasiveness, can help firms tailor messages to increase their customer base’s purchase intention by defining message parameters ex-ante. Furthermore, since the marketing field has transitioned from transactional to relationship marketing (Morgan & Hunt, 1994 ) and further still to customer-engagement marketing (Blut et al., 2023 ; Harmeling et al., 2017 ; Pansari & Kumar, 2017 ), marketers today have a plethora of goals to pursue, all of which extend well beyond mere purchase. It is hence important to account for such heterogeneity of marketing performance metrics when assessing GenAI’s capacity to craft persuasive messages.

To date, the computer science community has devoted much effort to developing prompt strategies aimed at improving LLMs’ performance in analytical tasks. We present a summary of the most relevant strategies in Table  3 . Marketing research is needed to investigate and propose innovative prompt strategies that can not only augment LLMs’ efficacy in analytical tasks but also do likewise in various relevant marketing endeavors, such as empathy (Huang & Rust, 2021 ), recovering from negative events like product recalls (Raithel et al., 2023 ), or convincing consumers to adopt socially-relevant behavior (Winterich et al., 2023 ). Thus, we propose the following research questions:

How can firms vary LLM parameters to create more persuasive messages?

Which LLM parameter is most conducive to different marketing goals?

Consumers appear to struggle in distinguishing GenAI-generated content from human- generated content (Jakesch et al., 2023 ). However, several governments (e.g., the U.S. and its AI Disclosure Act) and social platforms (e.g., TikTok, YouTube) are increasingly enforcing clear disclosure of AI-generated content. Therefore, research is warranted to explore the implications of such disclosure requirements for both consumers and firms.

At the consumer level, a growing body of marketing studies has focused on consumer responses to AI, such as robots (Mende et al., 2019 ), chatbots (Luo et al., 2019 ), or applications in medicine (Longoni et al., 2019 ). This research has unveiled the phenomenon of algorithm aversion , wherein humans tend to distrust and reject algorithms, even when they outperform humans (Dietvorst et al., 2015 ). These studies have identified factors such as uniqueness neglect (Longoni et al., 2019 ), perceived lower empathy (Luo et al., 2019 ), and cost-cutting motives (Castelo et al., 2023 ) as drivers of consumers’ reluctance to adopt AI applications. This research has also identified contextual conditions that seem to mitigate algorithm aversion: consumers are more inclined to trust algorithms for tasks perceived as objective (Castelo et al., 2019 ; Longoni et al., 2019 ) and in contexts with low identity relevance, such as numerical estimation or forecasting tasks (Logg et al., 2019 ). Conversely, aversion is exacerbated when AI performs tasks that consumers deem central to their identity, thus invoking self-enhancing and self-protective biases (Morewedge, 2022 ; Leung et al., 2018 ).

Given this context, consumer responses to a firm’s disclosure of GenAI use appear ambiguous. On the one hand, GenAI demonstrates superior capabilities in generating empathy and unique content that is specifically tailored to consumer needs, compared to other types of AI (Huang & Rust, 2023 ). Therefore, algorithm aversion should theoretically be lower for GenAI than for other AI applications. On the other hand, creating novel content is a subjective task and creativity is widely regarded as a quintessential human capability (Koivisto & Grassini, 2023 ). Thus, prior studies suggest a negative response towards GenAI use (Castelo et al., 2019 ; Morewedge, 2022 ). In light of such conflicting predictions emerging from the literature, further research is needed to investigate consumer responses to a firm’s use of GenAI and how the disclosure of GenAI-generated content differs from that generated by other types of AI.

Additionally, anecdotal evidence seems to suggest that disclosing GenAI use triggers new considerations for consumers, beyond those typically described in the algorithm aversion literature. For instance, when Levi’s announced its decision to use GenAI to create models of more diverse body types and skin tones, the company faced strong criticism from consumers who feared that this decision would ‘deprive people of opportunities’ Footnote 5 . Thus, future research should investigate whether novel theoretical mechanisms drive consumer responses to the disclosure of GenAI-generated content, beyond those that influence consumer responses to the disclosure of other types of AI. Hence, we propose the following research questions:

Do consumers respond differently to the disclosure of GenAI compared to the disclosure of other types of AI? What novel theoretical mechanisms explain consumer responses to a firm’s disclosure of GenAI-generated content?

At the firm level, there is a need for research to explore how firms can effectively balance the benefits of GenAI use with potential negative consumer reactions to such use, particularly in light of increasing enforcement of disclosure by governments or social platforms. As the literature that explores how firms can mitigate algorithm aversion tends to analyze either consumer characteristics (Longoni et al., 2019 ; Luo et al., 2019 ) or task characteristics (Castelo et al., 2019 ; Morewedge, 2022 ), we advocate for future research on the role that brand associations (i.e., beliefs that consumers associate with a brand) play in mitigating or amplifying the effect of GenAI disclosure on brand equity. For instance, in terms of brand innovativeness (Brown & Dacin, 1997 ), two reactions are equally plausible theoretically. On the one hand, disclosing GenAI use might help amplify consumer perceptions of a firm’s innovativeness. On the other hand, consumers might perceive inconsistency between a firm’s self-described innovative image and that firm’s use of GenAI to enhance internal creativity. Such a contrasting effect might amplify the negative effect of disclosing GenAI use for innovative firms (Brown & Dacin, 1997 ). Brand innovativeness serves as just one example, and future research is needed to investigate the moderating effect of this disclosure and other brand associations, including brand authenticity (Moulard et al., 2021 ) or corporate social responsibility. Thus, we propose the following research question:

Which brand associations amplify the negative effect of GenAI disclosure on brand equity? Which associations mitigate this effect?

Further, research has investigated ways to mitigate negative reactions to a firm’s use of AI, such as postponing disclosure time (Luo et al., 2019 ), framing AI as assisting rather than replacing humans (Longoni et al., 2019 ), reframing tasks as relatively objective (Castelo et al., 2019 ), and emphasizing the salience of utilitarian attributes (Longoni & Cian, 2022 ). We call for future research to investigate how firms can align their disclosure messages with their brand associations. For instance, underdog brands (Paharia et al., 2011 ) could frame the use of GenAI as a strategy for leveling the playing field, while innovative brands could frame their GenAI use as a demonstration of the firm’s commitment to cutting-edge technology adoption. Hence, we propose the following research question:

How can firms align disclosure messages to their firms’ brand associations in order to mitigate the potential negative effect of disclosing GenAI use?

After consumers buy a firm’s offering, it is important to maintain their engagement beyond mere transactions (Pansari & Kumar, 2017 ). Customer engagement marketing represents “the firm’s deliberate effort to motivate, empower, and measure a customer’s voluntary contribution to its marketing functions, beyond a core, economic transaction” (Harmeling et al., 2017 , p.312). Among various initiatives aimed at enhancing customer engagement (CE), a recent meta-analysis reveals that task-based initiatives are particularly effective (Blut et al., 2023 ). These initiatives “deliberately exist to push customers’ resource contributions” (Blut et al., 2023 , p.497). Moreover, Harmeling et al. ( 2017 ) identify four key resources that consumers can voluntarily contribute to the firm’s marketing function, including creativity .

We argue that GenAI and its use have implications for both consumers and firms. At the consumer level, an individual’s ability to participate in task-based customer engagement (CE) initiatives is often limited by her own creativity and skills. GenAI can alleviate this constraint as consumers can employ different tools such as Midjourney or Stable Diffusion Footnote 6 to augment their limited creativity. For instance,

Coca-Cola partnered with OpenAI to launch the Real Magic platform, which enables users to generate original images cards using GPT-4, DALL·E, and historical pictures from Coca-Cola’s archives. Winners of the competition had their work featured on Coca-Cola’s digital billboards in prominent locations like New York’s Times Square and London’s Piccadilly Circus. By leveraging GenAI, even users with minimal graphic design skills could participate in Coca-Cola’s initiative. However, the marketing literature suggests that customer engagement stems from the mental effort customers exert to create something novel, which fosters a sense of psychological ownership (Blut et al., 2023 ). In the absence of this sense of ownership, GenAI may potentially have a negative effect on customer engagement. Therefore, future research is essential to investigate the net effect of employing GenAI-based tools on customer engagement. Specifically, research should investigate the optimal level of GenAI use from the consumer’s perspective, so firms may enhance creativity while preserving a sense of ownership among consumers, ultimately promoting sustained customer engagement. Accordingly, we propose the following research question:

What are the consequences of employing GenAI-based tools for consumers working on customer engagement initiatives?

At the firm level, GenAI opens up brand new opportunities for firms to engage consumers by reducing the cognitive resources consumers need to participate fully in task-based CE initiatives. Firms adopt CE initiatives to access various customer resources beyond creativity, including customer network assets, persuasion capital, and knowledge stores (Harmeling et al., 2017 ). With GenAI eliminating the constraint for consumers to allocate creative resources, firms can engage even those consumers with lower levels of creativity. Thus, the potential risk of individual consumers experiencing lower psychological ownership in GenAI-driven CE initiatives may be counterbalanced by the chance for firms to reach a broader audience and access more relevant resources. Hence, there is a need for research on how firms can devise innovative CE initiatives leveraging GenAI. Specifically, future research could explore how firms can navigate the trade-off between the potential risk of generating lower individual CE and the advantages of accessing a broader consumer base. Hence, we propose the following research questions:

What novel, task-based customer engagement strategies can firms pursue using GenAI?

How can firms manage the trade-off between wider reach and lower psychological ownership in GenAI, task-based CE initiatives?

Impact of GenAI for firms and consumers

Our previous discussion highlights both the opportunities and threats for firms that use GenAI in their innovation process. We expect that as more and more firms and consumers use GenAI, their capabilities will undergo significant changes. Our conversations with top executives across various industries reveal that this is a major concern. Some of the concerns expressed include: “The number one question that everyone is asking is: What can we (marketing) contribute to firm value in the future?” or “How can we convince the boardroom that there is still need for a marketing department? They have always viewed marketing as a cost and now they have the opportunity to reduce that cost. What value can we provide?”. These concerns reflect a broader apprehension among executives regarding the evolving role of marketing in an era increasingly influenced by GenAI.

To address these concerns, we propose research questions that explore the effects of employing GenAI on: (1) the relationship between market-based assets and firm value; and (2) consumer skills, preferences, and role in the marketing processes. We summarize our research questions in Table  4 .

The post-GenAI firm: How can marketing contribute to firm value?

Our previous discussion suggests that GenAI has the potential to fundamentally transform the value of key marketing capabilities, spanning from new product development to market information management to communication (Vorhies & Morgan, 2005 ). Hence, GenAI could redefine the essence of marketing’s contribution to a firm’s sustainable competitive advantage.

Firms create value for shareholders by leveraging market-based assets (Srivastava et al., 1998 ). These key assets, whether capabilities or resources, stem from interactions with customers (Srivastava et al., 1998 ; Slotegraaf et al., 2003 ). Our previous discussion highlights how this technology reshapes interactions between firm and customers throughout the innovation process. Similarly, Huang and Rust ( 2023 ) show that GenAI changes firm-customer interactions along the customer care journey. Thus, it is reasonable to anticipate that the repeated use of GenAI by firms in their innovation and caring processes will fundamentally reshape the market-based assets available to them. For instance, we discussed earlier the potential effect of disclosing GenAI use on a key relational asset such as brand equity. As another example, the reduced reliance on consumers to conduct market research might impede the accumulation of customer knowledge, which serves as a key intellectual market-based asset. Thus, future research is needed to investigate the following question:

How does the use of GenAI alter the development and evolution of relational and intellectual market-based assets?

Second, for a market-based asset to confer a sustainable competitive advantage, it must be convertible, rare, inimitable, and non-substitutable (Srivastava et al., 1998 ). Theoretically, we envision two possible effects of GenAI on market-based assets. On the one hand, the ability to generate numerous messages or new product ideas at minimal cost within minutes greatly diminishes the value of key marketing capabilities (e.g., communication, new product development), making them more susceptible to imitation and less rare. On the other hand, a unique aspect of GenAI is that its output depends on the input that users provide, suggesting a complementary relationship with key market-based assets. For instance, GenAI creates new content based on its world knowledge at the time of training. As of January 2024, the latest knowledge available to some ChatGPT models dates back September 2023. This limitation could severely hinder GenAI’s ability to produce valuable output in supporting new product development, given the frequent shifts in consumer preferences. Firms can curb the risk of creating something misaligned with current customer needs by ensuring they have up-to-date market knowledge to feed GenAI. From this perspective, GenAI necessitates complementary market-based assets to realize its full potential.

Initial empirical evidence in the literature is mixed. On the one hand, research supports a complementary view, as both Reisenbichler et al. ( 2022 ) and Reisenbichler et al. ( 2023 ) show that GenAI alone is insufficient; instead, adopting a “human-in-the-loop” approach is necessary. On the other hand, Girotra et al. ( 2023 ) find that ChatGPT-4 does not require humans to generate more and better ideas than MBA students. Thus, we conclude that the “jury is still out,” underscoring the need for future research to investigate the boundary conditions of the relationship between GenAI, marketing capabilities, and firm value.

Marketing theory suggests that whether firms will use GenAI to substitute or complement marketing depends on the competitive advantage strategy that a firm pursues, as this strategy directly influences the role of marketing in the organization (McAlister et al., 2023 ). For firms that pursue a cost-leadership strategy, marketing is typically viewed as a staff function with no authority on marketing decisions; it is likely that such firms will view GenAI as an opportunity to reduce marketing costs. Even if GenAI were only capable of producing synthetic content comparable to human-generated content, its ability to create such content at nearly zero marginal cost is noteworthy. For instance, Reisenbichler et al. ( 2022 ) demonstrate that LLMs can achieve 91% cost saving in generating text-based SEO content. In these organizations, we anticipate that marketing will limit itself to the use of off-the-shelf GenAI solutions. For firms that adopt a differentiation strategy, marketing can take on either a staff function role with control over brand image and communications only, or a line function role that is responsible for delivering business results (McAlister et al., 2023 ). In the latter case, we expect marketing to play a more prominent role in the firm’s GenAI use. For instance, marketing might be directly involved in fine-tuning GenAI foundational models. In sum, future research is needed to investigate the following questions:

How does the use of GenAI in marketing activities vary across different marketing organizations?

The post-GenAI consumer: What role?

Given the described changes in consumer and firm behavior, we conclude our roadmap of future research by offering an initial portrayal of the post-GenAI consumer and by presenting research questions regarding the role of this emerging customer in future marketing processes.

The marketing field has recognized that new technologies often alter consumer behavior (Giebelhausen et al., 2014 ; Hoffman & Novak, 2018 ). Taking this idea a step further, neuroscientists and cognitive scientists warn that delegating human cognitive abilities to technologies could lead to permanent changes in our brain structure and fundamentally alter the cognitive abilities that govern human behavior (Fajnerová et al., 2018 ). For instance, relying on GPS for navigation reduces hippocampus functioning and related orientation skills (McKinlay, 2016 ), the invention of the printing press made mnemonic capabilities and the use of rhetoric for memorization obsolete (Eisenstein, 1979 ), and the use of smartphones is linked to shorter attention spans (Wilmer et al., 2017 ). Accordingly, we argue that research at the intersection of marketing, neuroscience, and cognition should investigate how GenAI will affect the cognitive capabilities of consumers, especially with respect to creativity.

Creativity is an integral part of consumers’ daily life (Moreau & Dahl, 2005 ). Contrary to the idea of the creative genius, the cognitive literature suggests that every individual has the potential for creativity. More frequent involvement in creative cognitive processes enhances the likelihood of generating creative ideas (Ward, 2001 ). GenAI applications have been available to the general public for approximately 19 months, so it is premature to observe any significant changes. However, we anticipate that as more individuals integrate GenAI applications into their daily routines, humans may become less involved in the cognitive processes responsible for creativity. Similar to the impact of GPS on orientation skills (Fajnerová et al., 2018 ), an over-reliance on GenAI for generating novel content could potentially diminish consumers’ appreciation for creativity. Research is hence necessary to investigate what customers with lower levels of creativity will value. For instance, will they still value innovation as much as current consumers do? In sum, we propose the following research question:

How will GenAI change consumer preferences?

Finally, it is worth noting that the marketing literature has evolved in its conceptualization of the customer’s role: from being seen as the target of a firm’s offering, to being viewed as the object of orientation (Narver & Slater, 1990 ), and eventually to being recognized as a co-creator and co-producer (Prahalad & Ramaswamy, 2004 ). As we discussed in the co-ideation section, consumers’ role as co-creators may become less relevant, especially if both consumers and employees rely on the same GenAI input for their creative output. This shift, combined with the changes in consumer’s cognitive abilities and preferences previously discussed, presents an opportunity for future research about the new role that the post-GenAI consumer may assume in the marketing processes:

What is the new role of the post-GenAI consumer in marketing processes?

This paper analyzes the latest type of artificial intelligence, GenAI, and focuses on its capacity to create novel content. We propose a roadmap of future research in two main areas. First, we propose research that explores (a) how GenAI could alter consumer creative behavior, and (b) how firms consequently must re-adapt their strategies to fully harness the innovative potential of GenAI throughout the innovation process. Second, we propose research that analyzes the consequences of using GenAI for how marketing can contribute to firm value, as well as consequences with respect to consumer preferences, skills, and role in the marketing processes. We have chosen to focus our research roadmap on innovation, which represents one of the novel elements of GenAI compared to mechanical and thinking AI (Huang & Rust, 2021 ). We conclude this paper by sketching three further areas of potential interest for marketing research on GenAI: privacy, disinformation, and contribution of marketing to GenAI research.

Previously, we discussed the technical feasibility of fine-tuning existing foundational models with a firm’s proprietary data, thus enabling firms to grasp the unique characteristics of a brand’s image and customer base. However, sharing proprietary data for fine-tuning raises privacy concerns (Huang & Rust, 2023 ). While the marketing literature has primarily focused on consumer concerns regarding data privacy (Martin & Murphy, 2017 ; Martin et al., 2017 ; Thomaz et al., 2020 ), we highlight a major concern for firms: sharing proprietary knowledge poses the risk of diminishing the scarcity of a firm’s market-based assets, potentially compromising its ability to sustain a competitive advantage. Thus, we call for future research that takes the firm perspective in order to investigate: (1) how firms can balance the advantage of supplementing their proprietary data to fully harness GenAI potential with the need to protect the sources of their competitive advantage, and (2) which firms can benefit the most from fine-tuning as well as which firms should instead exercise caution in doing so.

Second, the ability of GenAI to rapidly produce variations of the same content en masse and at negligible cost opens the floodgates to disinformation and diffusion of conspiracy theories. Traditionally, these topics have been considered a public policy issue, as political topics were the main target of these campaigns. The limited marketing research on this topic has mostly focused on providing psychological theories to explain the diffusion of conspiracy theories (Diaz Ruiz & Nilsson, 2023 ) or strategies to safeguard against it (Johar, 2022 ). However, anecdotal evidence suggests the rise of coordinated disinformation campaigns, orchestrated by ideologically motivated actors, to intentionally damage brands that take certain political stances or to favor national brands at the expense of multinationals. This has been observed, for instance, in media campaigns against Western Covid vaccines, Footnote 7 Starbucks, Footnote 8 and H&M (Sohn, 2021 ). GenAI will likely increase the frequency and scope of similar types of attacks against brands, making it a relevant topic for marketers as well. Against this background, we call for future research to: (1) quantify the impact of these orchestrated disinformation campaigns on brand equity, sales, and stock performance, and (2) investigate what mitigation strategies brands can adopt to nullify disinformation campaigns.

Finally, this manuscript offers a roadmap to conduct research about the likely contributions of GenAI to marketing. The opposite paradigm–which we call “Marketing for GenAI”–sounds equally promising. GenAI often operates like a black-box and even its creators have limited understanding of its cognitive nature. Fully harnessing the potential of GenAI requires a deeper understanding of the cognitive mechanisms through which it creates new content; this deeper understanding will help users better understand when GenAI is most likely to hallucinate, so they may develop strategies to reduce hallucination instances. Marketing has a rich tradition of decision making studies that investigate human cognitive biases (Dowling et al., 2020 ). Such knowledge can be fruitfully applied to gain rich insights on GenAI cognition (Binz and Schulz, 2023 ). Further, harnessing the full potential of GenAI requires proper prompting (Huang & Rust, 2023 ). Research indicates that LLMs are susceptible to technical biases, such as majority label bias (i.e., the model produces content that frequently appears in the prompt), recency bias (i.e., the model produces context appearing near the end of the prompt), and availability bias (i.e., the model prefers answers that are frequent in its pre-training data) (Zhao et al., 2021 ). Given the marketing field’s history of developing strategies to mitigate human biases in surveys (Hulland et al., 2018 ), we call for research to explore how these strategies could be adapted to calibrate prompts and enhance the quality of GenAI output.

Data availability

This piece is theoretical and does not include data.

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Paola Cillo

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Paola Cillo & Gaia Rubera

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Cillo, P., Rubera, G. Generative AI in innovation and marketing processes: A roadmap of research opportunities. J. of the Acad. Mark. Sci. (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11747-024-01044-7

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Accepted : 22 July 2024

Published : 26 August 2024

DOI : https://doi.org/10.1007/s11747-024-01044-7

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