Promo Review: Kit Kat's The Perfect Break

Promotions & Incentives 26-Jan-09, 09:15

Exposure joint-CEO Tim Bourne reviews The Perfect Break, the latest promotion from Nestle Kit Kat.

Nestle’s latest on-pack promotion for Kit Kat is said to be its biggest ever campaign for the brand, with a cost of around £16m. Consumers have the chance to win their own ‘Perfect Break’ by entering a promotional code on the chocolate bar’s competition site.

 

Offering consumers a chance at a perfect break during these bleak times seems like a no-brainer. But its very obviousness is where this promotion falls down. On first glance, the perfect break sounds like a holiday in the sun or maybe a weekend in a spa.

Closer examination of the website though reveals prizes ranging from pampering in an igloo to having your mortgage paid for a year. Nestle seemed to have used a scattergun approach to satisfy any demographic but there’s no hint of the myriad of possibilities from the pack itself. It merely says, ‘win your own perfect break’.
 
It’s a stark contrast to Kit Kat’s last major on-pack promotion, the controversial Golden Ticket Big Brother campaign that ran in 2006. Consumers had the chance to win a place in the house if they found one of 100 tickets in their wrappers.

The concept was simple and highly effective. Everyone knew what they were getting and the uniqueness of the opportunity differentiated the competition from anything else in the market.

Rolling forward three years, the online entry mechanic here is strong, the communication simple. I think many people will be put off entering by the inevitable spam they will expect to receive in return for registering their details and this is a big watch-out for brands seeking to engage audiences meaningfully online.

But this current campaign seems determinedly bland. If they had pulled out only one of the interesting prizes up for grabs they could have brought some focus and interest to this giveaway. A trip to see the Superbowl or even a stay on a private island. Cadbury’s recent ‘Is there a carnival in the box?’ on-pack even had one of the prizes Kit Kat offers but its message was far clearer.
 
By getting that wrong, even the fun elements on the website and the heavy-duty television ads may fail to capture the imagination.

Rating: 6 out of 10

Comments

Martin Harris

Martin Harris - 04/02/2009

I have to agree with Tim that Nestle - or their agency - do make some simple errors that mean they miss great opportunities to engage better with their customers. I reviewed their Win Twenty Quid promotion last year and they could have done so much better with a little thought or understanding of mobile. Does anyone know who does this work for them? If so, I'd be happy to have a chat. Martin at Bango.

 
 
 

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