Mars Candy Call It at Super Bowl LV
The Brief
Mars was looking for an impactful program for Super Bowl LV. That’s it. Oh, and due to a competitor somehow getting approval through and launching their own Super Bowl Squares-centered game, Mars had to scrap the team’s original idea to go in that direction, so we needed to come up with a whole new program with just a few months to spare.
The Insight
This being my first project since joining the Mars team, and being the resident huge football fan on the squad, I wanted to make a big impact right out of the gate. So I pitched an idea centered upon the emerging trend of prop bets, which were big in the Super Bowl house party space, but hadn’t made much of a splash yet on the national stage (this being just before networks would do their own pregame bet programs and betting apps became ubiquotous).
The Approach
This was a fun one. We crafted an immersive game-within-the-Big-Game featuring multiple betting categories—everything from stat-based picks for football fans to choices around commercials, the broadcast, the halftime show, and the wild card possibilities for casual partygoers. Buying our participating Mars products would unlock choices in each of our six Call-It categories. Working with a stellar production team, we crafted unique, branded prizes like a blinged-out Snickers chain, custom Skittles kicks, NFL Shop merch, and high-end home electronics. We wrapped it all in a fun interface with party recipe and game ideas for a campaign that (super) bowled over client expectations.
The Result
An immersive, authentic program unlike anything Mars had ever done before for the Super Bowl. A big sales spike drove entries leading in, with winner taking home all of our amazing prizes.
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So Many Ways to Play
Wanting to attract as wide a range of fans as possible, we created 50+ total picks in six different categories: commercials, in-game, broadcast, commercials, halftime show, wild card, and the Super Bowl matchup—each pick having a corresponding fun prize.
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That Winning Feeling
With the help of our production team, we collected an impressive range of prize options, including game tickets, electronics, NFL merch, and specially created branded gear to help drive program engagement.
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Party Plus-Ups
Elevating the role of our Mars products at Super Bowl watch parties, we created a series of recipe videos, decor shortcuts, and game ideas.
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Teamwork Made the Dream Work
The aspect I’m most proud of with this project is how quickly we created it from scratch after a long-sold-in initial idea had to be scrapped due to forces outside of our control. In just a few months, this all come together, from conception to implementation.
