Here’s How Hershey Fought the Pandemic with Friendship

It’s been an extremely challenging couple of years – yes, it’s really been that long – and people the world over are still searching for some relief from the ongoing global anxiety circulating the COVID-19 crisis.

People naturally feel an emotional attachment to the brands they enjoy – a fact which is well known among marketers and has been exploited for decades to build vast followings of dedicated fans which are ready and willing to go to bat for their favorite companies (such as with Xbox versus PlayStation, or Apple versus Android).

However, these attachments can also be used as a force for good and can help socially conscious brands spread messages of happiness and fun – something which is sorely needed during times such as these.

Friendship Day

As many of these things are, International Friendship Day was initially conceived by greetings card companies looking to fill a time of year when sales were low. However, despite such cynical beginnings, the day has grown in esteem around the world and has become a fun date of the calendar to show appreciation for the friends we have in our lives.

Celebrated on the first Sunday of August (although some sources have it placed at the end of July) International Friendship Day has gained particular traction within the chocolate and confectionary industry and, thanks to the spread of the internet, has been particularly well received in countries such as India, Bangladesh, and Malaysia.

Being both a renowned chocolate company and based in a part of the world where International Friendship Day is particularly popular, the Indian arm of Hershey decided that it wanted to give the occasion particular attention in 2021, due to the stresses and challenges caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

"Our life is full of surprises, and heart-warming moments," said the company in a statement. "The first thing we do at any moment which is memorable, happy, sad is to call or text a friend and share the story with them. In times of social distancing, since our consumers are so eager to connect and rejuvenate their bond in every way possible, we thought as a chocolate brand that believes in celebrating simple moments of bonding with our loved ones it would be ideal to create a campaign which focuses on shareable experiences."

Hershey

Taking to Instagram – India has the 2nd highest Instagram user base in the world (80 million monthly active users). A staggering 65% of them are Millennials and Gen Z and the average time spent on the photo sharing app each day is around 45 min – Hershey India announced a special contest for its followers.

Utilized a first of its kind Instagram shareable grid, Hershey invited fans to tag their closest friends and share their favorite story from their joint friendship. Aside from spreading a bit of good cheer, each friend tagged bagged the user an entry into a special prize draw. Nine lucky winners, chosen at random, were selected to receive a special Hershey hamper filled to bursting with delicious chocolatey treats to share with their friends.

On top of this, the person judged to have the best story from all the entries would receive a year’s supply of free Hershey bars.

The contest was promoted on Instagram with a #MeantToBeShared and help from famous Indian pop stars and actors, Teen Tigada, who appeared live on the platform to discuss their own favorite friendship stories. Once all was said and done, the campaign delivered over 10.3 million impressions, with a reach of 4.2 million unique consumers on Instagram.

"Enabling everyone to savor simple moments of joy, is at the heart of the Hershey’s brand. We have showcased this innovatively through our digital campaigns," said Marketing Director for Hershey India,  Ankit Desai. "With the #MeantToBeShared campaign, we wanted to topically bring alive the core values of sharing and bonding moments. Despite the challenges of today, we have all managed, in our unique way, to maintain a strong bond of friendship. This campaign, and the stories which we shared through this campaign, is to acknowledge and appreciate our friends who continue to bring about a ray of hope and positivity in our lives."

Final Thoughts

Despite the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic, or perhaps because of it, people have been leaning on the people close to them more than ever – even if they can’t always be together physically.

By promoting the act of friendship and driving new levels of engagement through its social channels, Hershey is demonstrating that sweetness isn’t only to be found in its chocolate bars.

You can hear The Hershey Company CMO for Hershey International, Santhi Ramesh, speak at Digital Food and Beverage 2022, taking place in July at the Hyatt Regency, Austin.

Download the agenda today for more information and insights.