Cadbury's: Gorilla
Cadbury's approached Fallon London. The client wanted to revitalize its Dairy Milk brand, which was perceived as somewhat traditional. The challenge was to inject unexpected joy and excitement into the brand, making it relevant and emotionally resonant for a broad audience. They sought a campaign that would generate significant buzz, shift perceptions, and ultimately boost sales by celebrating a spirit of pure, spontaneous delight.
Creative Idea
Cadbury created an advert with a gorilla playing drums to inject pure joy of chocolate.
Cadbury created a surreal, unexpected advertisement featuring a gorilla dramatically playing drums to Phil Collins' "In the Air Tonight," aiming to inject pure joy and surprise into their brand personality. The campaign sought to make people smile and associate Cadbury chocolate with a sense of spontaneous, playful excitement that goes beyond traditional food advertising.
Creative Strategy Deconstructed
Company
Cadbury's held a legacy of being a 'glass and a half' brand, giving them the permission to pivot from product functionalism to pure emotional resonance. Their market dominance allowed them to take a bold creative risk by removing the product entirely from the screen.
Category
Chocolate advertising was dominated by clichés of 'food porn'—slow-motion melting shots and people reacting with exaggerated sensory pleasure. The category was stuck in a cycle of functional messaging that failed to create a distinct brand personality.
Customer
Consumers were tired of being sold to and craved authentic, shareable moments of entertainment and surprise. They sought an emotional 'high' that mirrored the indulgence of eating chocolate, rather than a literal description of the product's ingredients.
Culture
The emergence of viral internet culture and a growing appreciation for surrealist humor created an appetite for the 'random' and unexpected. Leveraging 80s nostalgia through Phil Collins provided a familiar emotional anchor for the bizarre visual.
Company
Cadbury's held a legacy of being a 'glass and a half' brand, giving them the permission to pivot from product functionalism to pure emotional resonance. Their market dominance allowed them to take a bold creative risk by removing the product entirely from the screen.
Category
Chocolate advertising was dominated by clichés of 'food porn'—slow-motion melting shots and people reacting with exaggerated sensory pleasure. The category was stuck in a cycle of functional messaging that failed to create a distinct brand personality.
Strategy:
Pivot from selling product taste to delivering pure, unexpected joy to make the brand synonymous with emotional release.
Customer
Consumers were tired of being sold to and craved authentic, shareable moments of entertainment and surprise. They sought an emotional 'high' that mirrored the indulgence of eating chocolate, rather than a literal description of the product's ingredients.
Culture
The emergence of viral internet culture and a growing appreciation for surrealist humor created an appetite for the 'random' and unexpected. Leveraging 80s nostalgia through Phil Collins provided a familiar emotional anchor for the bizarre visual.
Strategy:
Pivot from selling product taste to delivering pure, unexpected joy to make the brand synonymous with emotional release.
Strategy Technique
Break a Category Convention
The brand was perceived as traditional, so the strategy was to break from typical chocolate advertising conventions. Featuring a drumming gorilla created unexpected joy and shifted perceptions, making the brand relevant.
Explore Technique
Creative Technique
Celebrate an Attitude
The campaign aimed to inject pure joy and surprise, making Cadbury chocolate synonymous with spontaneous, playful excitement. The gorilla dramatically playing drums embodies this spirit, creating an unexpected and memorable brand personality.
Explore Technique
