Advert Alchemy: Supernatural Skittles
In this series, Squideo has examined the best ways to turn advertising content into gold. Now that we’ve broken down the eight key ingredients, it’s time to dive deep into some examples of stellar advertising. This week, the advert in question was picked by Squideo’s Marketing Executive, Emily Woodcock.
When asked why this Skittles advert has become her favourite, Emily said: “I saw it on television while I was on holiday. Maybe that's why it stuck in my mind. The dark humour certainly caught my attention and I loved the reference to Midas (of Greek mythology). Despite the video's resolution quality, I also think it's aged really well.”
Skittles Dance
This is the second appearance of the Mars Inc. company in our Advert Alchemy series. We’ve dived into the background of this American business, so let’s focus on Skittles. The history of its creation is a bit murky, but it’s widely accepted that a small British manufacturer first launched Skittles in the mid-1970s. They were soon bought by Wrigley, which is also owned by Mars Inc., who took over distribution and brought the sweets to an international market in 1979.
Greatly resembling another Mars Inc. product, M&Ms, Skittles are distinguished by a small letter ‘S’ on their shell. The range of flavours has changed several times over the decades like many other Mars products, and variation flavours have also been sold such as Tropical and Wild Berry. Unlike other products under Mars Inc., there hasn’t been any major rebrands attached to Skittles. The name has never been changed and the branding remains recognisable decades apart.
The product was marketed a very specific way from the start, and was so successful it stuck. A rumour spread about the origins of the sweet that it was invented by a British confectioner who looked up at a rainbow and wondered how it would taste. The slogan – “Taste the rainbow” – wouldn’t be introduced until 1994, but the sweet has always had this colourful association which Wrigley’s marketers have loved to centre their campaigns around.
Somewhere Over the Skittles
Launched in 2007, Skittles’ advert was created by TBWA, Chiat and Day. The brand had already run a series of successful adverts, in terms of viewership and commercial impact, and audiences started to have high expectations from the brand.
According to the Art Director Craig Allen, “We wrote a lot of scripts [and] thought it would be funny to do a slightly sad spot for a candy brand.” Former GCD Ian Reichenthal said, “We had a lot of conversations with the guys in advance about trying out new voices, but still keeping it Skittles.” The brand guidelines were firmly in place for the creative team, unlike previous entries in the Advert Alchemy series who were looking to shake things up.
Skittles adverts often feature technically challenging shoots, such as the one centred around a Skittles tree growing out of a human being. Recreating the powers of Midas also proved to be difficult:
“The effects in the spot had never been done before so we had a lot of technical problems, which made for a very long shoot day. So long in fact that the police came to try and shut us down during the last hours of shooting. Luckily, Tom (Kuntz) is a very smooth gentleman and persuaded them to let us finish.”
Their hard work paid off, and the Midas Touch advert was ranked as Creativity Online's most watched spot of 2007. But why was Skittles’ Midas Touch such a big hit?
Skittles Connection
Mesmerizing Mythology
Named for the myth that inspired the advert’s plot, the Midas Touch gives the main character Tim a superpower: everything he touches turns into Skittles. Yummy. On the other, everything he touches turns into Skittles. Yikes. This is a spin on the Greek myth of King Midas, who wished that everything he touched would turn to gold. Unfortunately, he didn’t think his wish through and Midas soon found he can’t eat. And when he tried to hug his daughter, he turned her into a gold statue.
This Greek myth remains popular in modern storytelling, which is why this fun spin on a well-known story worked so well. It also fits into the wider Skittles marketing strategy, which often uses the sweets in bizarre ways. In one advert, Bleachers, there is an outbreak which makes people break out in Skittles.
Snappy Slogan
“Taste the rainbow” was introduced as the Skittles slogan in 1994, but the marketing team have always kept this slogan adaptable and flexible. Usually it is accompanied with a tagline which can change to reflect the nature of the advert. In Midas Touch it’s “touch the rainbow, taste the rainbow” in reference to Tim’s superpower. In an advert featuring a tree which grows Skittles, the slogan is changed to “harvest the rainbow, taste the rainbow.”
The taglines use of verbs also reinforce that Skittles is an experience that the audience needs to actively participate in. Skittles isn’t just a snack, like the sweets aren’t just multicoloured. It’s a taste of the rainbow. And in the case of Midas, it’s as good as gold.
Cackling Comedy
Tim can’t hold his infant child, he can’t dress himself, or feed himself… then he tells the story of turning a man into Skittles that very day when they shook hands. Is that murder or manslaughter? Either way, Skittles’ Midas Touch is definitely running with dark comedy which helps make the advert even more memorable. Yet the plot is kept just light enough to avoid crossing into the macabre, by showing Tim’s power only used on inanimate objects.
Comedy is a staple of the Skittles brand, ranging from the bizarre to the grisly. They carry this over in all of their marketing, from adverts to their website. Customers now expect it of the brand, which has let the marketing team get ideas from well outside the box.
Content Worth Gold
What do you think? What made Skittles’ Midas Touch advert so successful? Watch the full advert below and let us know in the comments.
Get in touch with the Squideo team today to find out how we can improve your advertising strategy with video production, motion graphics, social media management and much more!
