The OREO cookie brand has taken the world by storm and its popularity only continues to grow year on year. Don’t believe us? Just check out these numbers:
The brand is available in more than 100 counties and approximately sells 34 billion OREO cookies every year, which is about
92 million cookies in a day!
Additionally, an estimate of 500 billion OREO cookies have been sold since the first one was developed.
So, what exactly makes this marketing so tasty to consume?
Let’s get to the crunch of the matter:
1. OREO creates a buzz on social media
There are two types of OREO fans: There are those that only like the cookie part and then there are others that prefer only the cream filling. OREO is well aware of this and so it creates content that suits
both audiences, leaving room for a lot of engagement from
all its fans.
It also focuses on creating creative content to intrigue its following. For example, it took an OREO cookie and shaped the cream into a campfire.
So, what can brands learn from this? Being creative in your marketing efforts is
vital if you want to reach your audience and actually capture their attention. So be sure to set time aside to research your audience and discover their preferences in order to come up with a creative marketing recipe that will be the
crème de la crème of all.
2. OREO is inclusive
On Friday, 9 October, OREO launched its first-ever Rainbow cookie. These cookies are in honour of its partnership with
PFLAG National, which is the largest organisation supporting LGBTQ+ people and their parents. By buying a rainbow pack of OREO cookies, consumers help create awareness for this community and it additionally allows the buyer to have some fun with these colourful cookies.
By being inclusive with its brand, OREO draws in a bigger audience that is able to relate to it. It also educates people more about accepting human differences and varying preferences. This is something that marketers
definitely should look into; and, this can easily be done by being authentic in their own marketing efforts and making sure that they make
all people feel included.
3. OREO makes use of humour
Earlier in 2020, there were talks about an asteroid that was heading to earth. With so many events that have been taking place in 2020, people moved over to humour tactics to deal with the stress of the change.
Olivia Gordon posted a tweet on Saturday, 3 October saying, “So apparently there’s an asteroid coming close to earth soon ...”
She then posted another tweet: “I wonder who will save the OREOs?” Here, OREO saw an opportunity to get involved in the Tweet and posted an Instagram post that stated the following: “We’ll save the OREO cookies, Olivia. Official announcement coming soon.”
A few days later, the brand took to Instagram again and shared a five minute video where it announced that it had built a Global OREO Vault in Norway. This was to save the cookies from any danger and to keep it for future generations.
By humouring one of its fans, the brand received 11 884 likes and 66 601 views on the IGTV video about the vault. Brands can definitely learn from this and, if they want to succeed in the 21
st century, they
need to make an effort to use engaging humour in their marketing campaigns, when applicable.
4. OREO cookies are customised
A
big reason why OREO stands out so much more from its competitors is because it customises its cookies.
Recently, the brand said that consumers can now customise their own OREO too.
By doing this, the brand caters to a bigger audience. For example, back in 2019 when the finale of
Game of Thrones aired, it made a limited edition cookie inspired by the show, allowing fans to stock up on the product and associate it with a current trend that their consumers were invested in. This gave the brand the opportunity to find a common interest with its target audience, and therefore, build a more loyal following.
OREO also makes use of holidays to customise the cookies so that people can associate fun times with friends and family with the brand. In 2020, it had a black cookie with a ghost saying ‘boo’ on it with orange filling to celebrate Halloween.
What can your brand take from this? Well, you need to take a look into where you can customise your product and marketing efforts to allow your consumers to have a personalised experience with your brand.
You can do this by trying out new strategies that incorporate upcoming holidays to test out what works and what doesn’t, as well as to see what your consumers are more likely to engage with.
5. OREO keeps its content relatable
If there’s one thing that’s been extremely clear in 2020, it’s that consumers want marketing efforts and products that are
authentic and
relatable. OREO hits the nail right on the head when it comes to these two essentials.
A great example of this is this image of a jar full (or not so full) of OREO cookies:
The image above shows audiences that having a nice jar of cookies on your kitchen counter might be the expectation but in reality, OREOS are so delicious you probably won’t be able to leave them alone. And let’s face it, this is something
everyone can relate to as most of us would reach for a cookie every few minutes.
As a brand, you therefore need to work on making sure that your content is relatable and unique as this will encourage more people to engage with, as well as relate to, your brand.
Why else do you think OREO is the number one selling cookie in the world? Be sure to let us know in the comments section below.
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*Image courtesy of Unsplash