LO1- Analysis of advertising campaign

Ben and Jerry's: Netflix and Chill'd

Aims and objectives

Ben and Jerry's teamed up with Netflix to create a new ice cream flavour called Netflix and Chill'd. The flavour is a a combination of peanut butter with pretzel swirls and fudge brownie chunks and was introduced to the market in January 2020. The objective of this product is to sell a pint of ice cream to a customer which they can eat while binge watching shows on Netflix. In addition, this a way for Ben and Jerry’s to gain brand exposure by working with a popular company like Netflix and vice versa. 

Target audience

This product is for the mainstream audience because Ben and Jerry's is a product that the succeeder wouldn't be interested in purchasing. They would prefer other desserts or even would go out to a restaurant. The struggler would prefer to purchase cheaper alternatives as they don't have the funds too frequently buy Ben and Jerry's. This means people of Also the audience for the flavour would be a more teenage/young adult as the term Netflix and chill came from the younger generation so the flavour Netflix and Chill'd is a word play on that therefore attracting the younger audience. Statistically, men eat less ice cream than women so this product is ideally for the female market but a large proportion of men will be interested.

Key messages

The key message here is to try and entice younger people to buy Ben and Jerry's so they can eat it while binge watching shows on Netflix. In addition, the message to the younger audience would be come and buy our product, the flavour is named after a phrase you created and is partnered with a company you all use. Also, the use of Netflix shows will maybe make the audience want to check out Netflix therefore giving the company more exposure.

Approach

Ben and Jerry's approached this by creating an video add containing a parts of Netflix show's therefore showing the collaboration between the two companies. This is called a joint venture as two companies come together and make a product. Also, Ben and Jerry's named the flavour after a common phrase used by younger people therefore the younger audience would be interested in purchasing the product.

Representation 

In the video advert, Ben and Jerry's shows a multiple genres on shows on Netflix therefore meaning that no matter what you are watching you can still enjoy a tub of Ben and Jerry's ice cream. It mainly shows young people in the video advert as that is the demographic of the audience that they are trying to reach. This is the same for the shows that they showcase as they are shows teenagers would watch like money heist. Teenagers would watch this it is similar to the popular video game GTA 5 which has millions of players around the world. 

Campaign logistics

Ben and Jerry's planned this product with Netflix by maybe asking to come together and make a product. This is called synergy where two companies work together which will give both publicity and bring in income. The making of the product is called a joint venture where Ben and Jerry’s with Netflix made the Netlfix and Chill’d flavour and released it to the market. A joint venture has combined Netflix’s and Ben and Jerry’s ideas to create a successful product. 

Choice of media

Ben and Jerry's made a video add that went on Tv, YouTube and other internet websites. This is called above the line marketing as it will reach most audiences because the almost everyone watches TV or uses the internet. They also made social media posts advertising the ice cream and alerting the social media community that a new product to try is out. In addition, Ben and Jerry’s sent out emails to customers that were maybe long time customers to the company. The emails contained a poster that advertised the product with additional links to the Ben and Jerry’s website where the consumer can gain more information about the product or even order it. This is called below the line marketing as the emails were sent to chosen people who Ben and Jerry’s felt were their target audience therefore maximising potential sales.

Call to action

Ben and Jerry’s call to action was to send out emails to target customers prompting them to purchase the new Netflix and chill’d flavour. This could be a simple prompt such as ‘buy now’ or in Ben and Jerry’s case they often include an option to ‘Learn more’ which will intrigue the customer therefore increasing the chances of a sale. They also would have distributed advertisement boards around urban areas to try and encourage the public to try the new flavour. The billboards could have information like contact details or the website of Ben and Jerry’s so the public know where to go in they want to try the product. 

Legal and Ethical

Copyright is a major regulation that Ben and Jerry’s and Netflix have to follow. The use of certain content in adverts must be permitted by the original creator. Fortunately for Ben and Jerry’s the content used in the video advert is owned by Netflix themselves meaning they are free to use it. However, if they wish to use something that they didn’t create they would need to contact the original owners to gain permission for use.

Regulation

Both Ben and Jerry’s would have to ensure that they do not violate the rules set by the ASA. This would include not using any offensive language or showing scenes that would upset any audiences. To follow these rules, in the video advert, there were multiple uses of Netflix shows to show the Ben and Jerry’s product. No use of any offensive or violent content out of the used Netlfix shows was showcased in the advert which ensured that the ASA would allow for publication. Risk assessments would have to be completed if any filming was to take place. This is to show the potential hazards of a filming location and what they can do to prevent that. 

How is the message consistently delivered?

Firstly, throughout all media adverts they consistently show the ice cream as they want to showcase the audience what they will be buying. In addition to this, if someone isn’t interested at first glance, the repetitive viewing of the product may persuade the customer to try it out meaning more sales for Ben and Jerry’s and Netflix. Also, Ben and Jerry’s keep using prompts like ‘Try it now’ and ‘learn more’ to try and encourage their audience to purchase their product. This is the same for Coca Cola's 'Share a coke' ad campaign where their message is to bring people together. This is shown consistently as throughout both video and print adverts as they show bottles of coke with peoples names on it to try and unite people. Also, the slogan for the ad campaign is the same so it stays in the audience's head and it is easily remembered.