I've mentioned this before on Marketing Mulligans, but it's often quite difficult for digital marketers to predict exactly which online videos will capture the imagination of consumers and go viral. At a basic level, viral marketing success is typically determined by offering short (because we all have limited attention spans), unique (i.e., never before seen by users), humorous (laughter is the best medicine), timely (current and relevant are a powerful combination), and entertaining (we all like to escape reality for a few fleeting moments) content. However, even with these elements nailed, many videos simply never catch on. Why? Because we, as consumers, are fickle, cynical, and judgmental.
But not here. And that is what makes Snickers' latest TV ad, simply called "Grocery Store Lady," such an intriguing case study. Created by New York-based BBDO Worldwide, the 30-second spot, if you can believe it, is the first Halloween-themed ad ever for the highly-popular candy bar brand, owned by worldwide candy conglomerate Mars, Inc. Instead of alienating consumers, the commercial's creepy (and in a non-Halloween way) has scared up tons of views and traffic on multiple sites, including BuzzFeed, Huffington Post, and Consumerist, and is generating scores of comments in the blogosphere and on social media platforms.
The ad is relatively straightforward. While walking down the candy aisle of her local supermarket, an innocent shopper, Mrs. Jensen, is accosted by a very tall and imposing Halloween-costumed figure (pictured below) with an unusual mask and disconcerting voice. The figure addresses the customer in a high-pitched voice, disturbingly caresses her face, and then throws a heap of Snickers bars into the frightened customer's cart. As the customer walks (read: runs) away, the figure turns to a small child who suddenly appears out of nowhere in the folds of her dress, and the kid says to the figure, "We're definitely going to her house."
But not here. And that is what makes Snickers' latest TV ad, simply called "Grocery Store Lady," such an intriguing case study. Created by New York-based BBDO Worldwide, the 30-second spot, if you can believe it, is the first Halloween-themed ad ever for the highly-popular candy bar brand, owned by worldwide candy conglomerate Mars, Inc. Instead of alienating consumers, the commercial's creepy (and in a non-Halloween way) has scared up tons of views and traffic on multiple sites, including BuzzFeed, Huffington Post, and Consumerist, and is generating scores of comments in the blogosphere and on social media platforms.
The ad is relatively straightforward. While walking down the candy aisle of her local supermarket, an innocent shopper, Mrs. Jensen, is accosted by a very tall and imposing Halloween-costumed figure (pictured below) with an unusual mask and disconcerting voice. The figure addresses the customer in a high-pitched voice, disturbingly caresses her face, and then throws a heap of Snickers bars into the frightened customer's cart. As the customer walks (read: runs) away, the figure turns to a small child who suddenly appears out of nowhere in the folds of her dress, and the kid says to the figure, "We're definitely going to her house."
Media reaction has been mixed. The Riverfront Times, an alternative news weekly in St. Louis, offers a very interesting take on the Snickers spot in which it points out there is a slightly "pervy undercurrent," but still heralds the brand's viral success and the broad consumer reaction to the ad. In a critical post on AdFreak, a popular Adweek blog, journalist David Kiefaber writes the "distressing 'Grocery Store Lady' ad for Snickers doesn't compel me to buy candy so much as call child services." And the Huffington Post calls the old lady figure "one of the scariest things we've ever seen."
Personally, I find the ad to be creepy and humorous at the same time, and it is also very different than any spot I've ever seen — and this is what ultimately accounts for the spots' viral marketing success. What do you think of the ad? Watch it yourself, and then feel free to comment below:
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