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In today’s rapidly evolving marketing landscape, brands are leveraging the power of holidays far beyond the traditional end-of-year season. The integration of cultural moments throughout the year has become a strategic focus, with companies tapping into portfolios like Disney’s to go beyond conventional advertising methods. Disney’s vast content and media ecosystem is offering new opportunities for brands to engage with audiences during key times of the year. A recent example of this is the collaboration between Hershey and Disney, particularly around the Halloween season.
Hershey’s Partnership with Disney for Halloween Campaigns
Hershey’s relationship with Disney exemplifies how brands are using partnerships to maximize their marketing impact during important holidays. Vinny Rinaldi, head of U.S. media for CMG and salty snacks at The Hershey Company, emphasized how their collaboration with Disney is about more than just buying ad space. It’s about integrating their messaging with Disney’s content. During an Advertising Week New York panel discussion, moderated by Chris Kelly from Marketing Dive, Rinaldi spoke with John Campbell, senior vice president of entertainment and streaming solutions at Disney Advertising, about the significance of this partnership.
For Hershey, Halloween is a critical time of the year. Rinaldi described it as Hershey’s version of the Super Bowl, with Halloween being one of the company’s major tentpoles alongside Valentine’s Day, Easter, and the holiday season. Hershey’s strategy revolves around creating impactful, integrated campaigns that resonate with consumers, and Disney’s “31 Nights of Halloween” on Freeform was the perfect fit. However, selling this idea to internal stakeholders took time. It took nearly 18 months to bring this integration to life, but the result is a natural alignment between Hershey’s brand and Disney’s content.
Disney’s Approach to Holiday Moments
John Campbell discussed Disney’s unique approach to holiday marketing, highlighting how Disney views many events as holidays. Whether it’s a major studio release, sports events like College Football GameDay, or iconic award shows like the Oscars, Disney recognizes these moments as opportunities for brands to connect with audiences. For Disney, a holiday doesn’t have to be the traditional Halloween or Christmas – even days like Groundhog Day can be transformed into a significant cultural moment with the right brand partnership, as they demonstrated with Frito-Lay.
This approach allows Disney to create custom, immersive experiences for brands looking to capture the attention of consumers. According to Campbell, it’s all about understanding the moments when fans are already engaging with Disney content and finding ways to integrate brands into those moments authentically.
The Power of Content Integration and Customization
One of the key benefits of working with Disney is its ability to offer custom content integrations that go beyond standard advertising. Rinaldi explained that in today’s media-saturated world, brands need to do more than just run a 15-second spot. It’s about making that content stand out by integrating the brand message seamlessly into the content audiences are already consuming. Whether it’s through Disney, Hulu, or Freeform, Disney offers a wide range of platforms and opportunities for brands to connect with consumers in a more meaningful way.
An example of a successful content integration is Hershey’s collaboration with basketball star Angel Reese. Reese’s fans were already referring to themselves as “Reese’s Pieces,” and Hershey saw an opportunity to capitalize on this organic connection. By quickly pulling a team together and reacting in real time, Hershey created a campaign that felt authentic and relevant to consumers. This demonstrates the importance of being agile and responsive to cultural moments in today’s marketing landscape.
Measuring Success and ROI
While these kinds of content integrations are powerful, they also require substantial investment, which raises the question of how brands measure the success of such campaigns. Rinaldi explained that Hershey’s partnership with Disney took 18 months to finalize, largely because of the challenge of measuring ROI in a way that makes sense to both the marketing team and company leadership.
Hershey traditionally uses a media mix model to assess the performance of its campaigns. While cheaper media buys often generate higher returns on investment (ROI), Rinaldi emphasized the importance of looking beyond just the cost of media. More expensive media, when used effectively, can drive greater revenue and brand effectiveness. In the case of Hershey’s Halloween integration with Disney, they saw not only a two-times return on investment but also a three-times growth in overall effectiveness, contributing to Hershey’s first-ever billion-dollar Halloween season.
Rinaldi highlighted the importance of changing the internal narrative around marketing investments, explaining that when leadership can see the impact these campaigns have on driving revenue during key times of the year, they are more likely to support similar initiatives in the future. By surrounding important moments, like Halloween, with a fully integrated campaign, brands can significantly enhance their marketing performance.
Conclusion
The Hershey and Disney partnership serves as a prime example of how modern marketers are redefining holiday campaigns. By tapping into Disney’s expansive media and content portfolio, brands like Hershey are able to create more personalized and impactful connections with their target audiences. The partnership not only illustrates the power of content integration but also underscores the importance of agility and responsiveness in today’s marketing world.
As marketers continue to embrace the concept of cultural moments throughout the year, the lines between traditional holidays and everyday moments are becoming increasingly blurred. This shift represents a significant opportunity for brands to create memorable, meaningful campaigns that resonate with consumers in a cluttered media landscape.
For companies like Hershey, this strategy is paying off, with measurable results that demonstrate the effectiveness of integrated marketing campaigns. By focusing on authenticity, collaboration, and real-time engagement, brands can successfully navigate the complexities of modern marketing and deliver impactful results during key holiday moments and beyond.
