“Another Level” of Advertising
In a recent marketing campaign, Doritos managed to achieve smashable branding. It launched a whole anti-advertising campaign called “another level” without featuring its brand name or logo even once across the different touch-points.
Doritos used the triangle shape at the same angle it is found on the packets instead of writing the brand name for instant recognition in their communication efforts. Also, they replaced the triangle shape with *the logo goes here* to signal the absence of their logo.
Goals_Go_Here
Doritos de-branding strategy targeted Gen-Z and the new generations who are easily turned off by promotional and traditional marketing efforts and who are familiar with ad-free experiences.
The aim of this campaign was to reach Doritos target audience in new methods and to engage and interact with them in the process.
Doritos also tried to emphasise on the other brand elements it wants to be remembered by such as the dust that remains after eating its chips and its iconic triangle shape.
Game of Media
To do so, Doritos integrated their marketing communication efforts across different online and offline platforms. It extended the “no logo” identity from the offline world, which included billboard ads without its brand name, to the online one in which it removed the brand name from its website and its different social media channels (Instagram, Twitter, and Snap-chat).
- Doritos added new content on its Instagram account which was crowd-sourced from its fans who shared what “Another Level” means to them.
- It welcomed consumers on its website with a blank page stating “What products? You already know”.
- Doritos also partnered with Snap-Chat to create a lens that will allow consumers to “Triangle themselves”.
- Doritos ran an outdoor ad campaign featuring no logo and only hashtags to describe the different flavors to attract the tech-savvy generation. The experience was enhanced by the statement “An ad with no logo, that’s Another Level”.
- A 60 second “Anti-Ad” video was aired during the MTV Music Video Awards in which no “Doritos” or brand name was mentioned.
Smashable Branding
In addition to aiding in the brand recall and familiarity, Doritos wanted to showcase their authenticity. They wanted to show that they care about their audience to the point that they’re willing to adopt innovative techniques to reach them wherever they are.
This helped Doritos to establish positive relationships with their audience and to turn every touch-point into a positive event.
Moreover, this campaign encouraged and motivated the consumers to share the marketing efforts, interact with the brand, and increase the word of mouth. It helped Doritos to enhance its brand strength and to become at the top of mind of its consumers.
Most importantly, this campaign highlighted that Doritos product is so iconic, that people can relate it to the brand without having to actually see the name and logo.
By doing so, it allowed Doritos to signal that they’re a strong brand and a rule breaker in terms of showing that they can still thrive in the market even after having removed their logo and brand name.
The anti-ad campaign reinforced Doritos as a brand leader in their category.
The Art of Tactics
Doritos managed to align its resources to achieve synergy. The usage of different tools allowed for achieving different goals such as viral marketing, when using the online tools, and word of mouth when using the offline ones. This also allowed it to decrease intrusion and to make the brand perception positive.
Extending the campaign through social media allowed to increase the campaign’s sharing. It also managed to boost the online reach and interaction, for people got curious to check if Doritos had really removed their logo.
In addition, the vivid colours and shapes present in the ads acted as triggers which eased the brand recognition process.
“De-branding” Done Right
The key aspect of this de-branding strategy is that Doritos have managed to apply the right messages in the right places.
They communicated the same message using different communication tools according to the customer’s resources, motivation, and attention span.
Also, since consumers tend to be more focused on their social media feed and more likely to pay attention to it, this justifies the fact that Doritos relied on vivid and salient images in its offline channels to achieve concreteness in the consumers’ minds and to make the brand more memorable and authentic than ever.
The synergy achieved across the various channels allowed Doritos to attain a smashable brand which could be identified from elements other than its logo.
BBB- Buyer's Black Box 