A breakthrough shopper marketing campaign using cutting-edge technology to reposition milk as a performance drink for active families has earned accolades for MilkPEP and The Mars Agency in the Association of National Advertisers’ 40th Annual REGGIE Awards competition.
The omnichannel “Make the Trade” campaign employed pioneering NFT tools and a unique in-store activation to revitalize dairy milk sales by putting a next-gen spin on marketing in the milk aisle.
Tapping into MilkPEP’s existing partnerships with three professional football players, the program successfully modernized the perception of milk among physically active families through a sweepstakes awarding exclusive NFT prizes. (Read the case study here.) The effort, which also featured a unique, QR code-driven in-store execution, was recognized with a REGGIE in the Promotion Marketing category.
“At MilkPEP, we try to tell the brand story through the confluence of culture, creativity and connectivity. By leveraging an emerging technology in a unique way to engage with young, active families, this campaign did exactly that,” says Al Dejewski, MilkPEP’s Vice President of Marketing. “Our partnership with The Mars Agency is helping us leverage the latest tech, earn industry recognition like this REGGIE award — and most importantly, it’s helping us win with shoppers at the shelf.”
“Strong client partnerships like the one we have with MilkPEP foster true collaboration, and that leads to breakthrough campaigns like Make the Trade,” says Rob Rivenburgh, Global CEO of The Mars Agency. “Congratu- lations to everyone who envisioned this program and brought it to life. And thanks to the ANA for continuing to recognize the importance of marketing innovation that does what it’s supposed to do: drive conversion.”
Since 1983, the ANA’s REGGIE Awards have recognized the best marketing campaigns activated by brands and agencies across all disciplines and channels. The name “REGGIE” was originally chosen because it symbolizes the need for effective marketing to “make the cash register ring” by driving product purchase. More than 300 high-level industry executives are recruited each year to serve as judges.
This year’s award winners will be recognized during a special REGGIE gala on April 27, in Bonita Springs, Florida, as part of the 2022 ANA Brand Masters Conference. Winning campaigns will be presented with Gold, Silver or Bronze awards based on their judging scores.
In fall 2022, the “Make the Trade” campaign earned an OmniShopper Award for “Best Digital In-Store Activation” from the Path to Purchase Institute.
Also in 2022, The Mars Agency and Henkel won a REGGIE for “We Speak Laundry,” a first-to-market, solution-based campaign that reinvigorated laundry category sales at Walmart by offering shoppers a distinctive, curated regimen of fabric care solutions.
