The Sauce - 28/05/2024

By Ashleigh Morris, our Content and Comms Lead.

Welcome to ‘The Sauce’ – your dollop of marketing news from the past week.

This week we’re talking about M&S’s summer campaign, Cadbury’s emotive marketing around Dementia Action Week, and Aston Villa’s rebrand.

The Scent of Summer

In the mood for summer? If not, you soon will be if you pass through the Oxford Circus tube station.

M&S is bringing summer to the city with its latest out-of-home ads with a twist. The tube station takeover includes video content showcasing the brand’s summer clothing range, alongside the ingenious addition of sun cream-scented posters designed to provide an immersive experience and remind commuters of summer.

Ever caught a whiff of a particular scent and instantly recalled a memory? Our sense of smell is closely linked to memory and emotion, so these summer-scented posters are a clever way to invoke memories of past summers and encourage consumers to consider their summer wardrobe – from M&S of course!

The campaign, created by agency Mother London, used technology to add the scent of sun cream to the posters during production, leaving behind microscopic bubbles from the aromatic oil.

We love the ingenuity of this new campaign. It’s original, and it taps into an established channel (OOH) while also adding an unexpected twist. It’s great to see brands experimenting with their marketing. This immersive experience is sure to draw attention and we’re looking forward to seeing what brands come up with next.?

Cadbury Partners With Alzheimer’s Research UK to Create Memory Boxes?

Cadbury partnered with Alzheimer’s Research UK to distribute thousands of memory bar boxes to those living with dementia during Dementia Action Week earlier this month.

The gesture ties into the brand’s ‘Yours for 200 Years’ campaign and the boxes are designed to evoke memories and discussion for people with dementia. It’s part of the partnership between Cadbury and Alzheimer’s Research UK which was announced earlier this year and also involved a ￡200,000 donation from Cadbury.

The campaign was created as a result of requests from care homes, support groups and members of the public, for heritage Cadbury wrappers and posters to support those living with dementia.

Each box features six limited edition retro-packaged Cadbury bars, with designs going back as far as 1915, created to stimulate conversation and support memory activities.

Cadbury is a firm favourite in the Awesomesauce office – both their chocolate and their marketing! I asked our strategy director, James, for his thoughts. He said:

“With Awesomesauce working so closely with Sarcoma UK, we know how important it is to work with a charity in a way that is impactful but also considerate. Cadbury have approached this sensitively, and by donating to the charity they have shown this is more than a hollow gesture. As a brand with such history and which so many people feel nostalgic about, it’s a perfect fit.

“We talk a lot about the importance of customer insights, and the fact this campaign originates from requests from those caring for people with dementia means it’s likely to have a positive impact on recipients.”

Aston Villa Aims For Success With Rebrand

It’s been a busy twelve months for Aston Villa Football Club. A year ago their new president of business operations Chris Heck joined the team, followed swiftly by a change to the brand identity a week later (not Heck’s doing).

In Heck’s own words, he planned to spend the first few months “diving in, observing and laying out a three-year plan.”

And it would have been wise to hold off on the rebrand to the famous crest (the first significant change since 1992) – the backlash from fans to the new circular design was overwhelmingly negative.

It’s important to note this rebrand wasn’t done without due care and attention – Villa consulted fans throughout the process and the final redesign was voted for by 77% of fans, with just 8% voting to keep the existing crest.

In spite of this, just one year later, here we are with another rebrand – this time back to an update on the previous crest which has been in place in various iterations since 1992.

The latest version is an evolution of the iconic crest, rather than the revolution of the circular design. It’s a nod to the club’s history but with a modern twist. And, most importantly, it shows that the club is willing to listen to feedback and admit when they’ve got things wrong.

This rebrand goes further than just the logo. It marks Heck’s aim to globalise the brand and capitalise on the momentum from the team’s on-pitch success. They recently finished fourth in the Premier League, up there above football giants Chelsea, Tottenham and Manchester United, and as a result qualify for next year’s Champions League. Not bad from a team who finished 14th a couple of years ago and were relegated not so many years before that.

To achieve the team’s ambitious targets, Heck (former president of US basketball team Philadelphia 76ers) has conducted a full audit, overhauled the team behind-the-scenes and, crucially, changed the team’s kit provider, ending the deal with Castore a year early to sign with sportswear giant Adidas – a brand fitting for a club aiming to expand globally and further grow its estimated 300 million fans around the world.

We’re super impressed by Villa’s efforts – the club has taken a holistic view of its business, listened to its fans, and is elevating its business processes to match its on-field success as it aims to reach ambitious new goals. We’re excited to see what’s next!

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