Coffee Makes The World Go Round
Business Wire, Mordor Intelligence, and other online marketing information tracking sites reveal that after oil, coffee is the second most traded commodity in the world, and the highest consumed beverage in developed markets such as the United States and Europe.
Coffee is produced almost exclusively in the developing world, which includes about 17 least developed countries. Based on source type, the global coffee market has been segmented into Arabica, Robusta and Liberica with Vietnam being the world’s largest Robusta producer.
In developed markets, the highest coffee consumption is by purchasers between the ages of 19 to 34, and in rapidly advancing economies like China and India, ‘Café Culture’ for this age group is becoming a fashion symbol and a major contibutor to the further increase of global coffee consumption figures.
The Coffee ‘Sophisticates’
In many cities across the world millennial target audiences increasingly dominate consumer coffee demand as part of their contemporary, urban lifestyles. This trend has greatly influenced the growth of fashionable coffee outlets manned by ‘Coffee Baristas’.
Coffee making machines like Nespresso have seen a dramatic rise in sales. They have become household status symbols of sophistication and discerning taste that no ‘designer’ kitchen should be without.
It is not surprising therefore, that for many Advertising Agencies, a coffee brand has become a ‘must-have’ on their client roster.
Coffee brands and associated products obviously offer great opportunities for creative innovations, social marketing initiatives and consumer activations in an expanding and lucrative food and beverage marketing segment.
1. Lavazza, Ode To Coffee
Advertising Agency: Y&R, Italy
Directed by Augusto Giménez Zapiola and Martìn Romanella, the commercial was filmed in Barcelona, Spain and centers on storytelling scenarios about how a cup of Lavazza helps people get through the challenges of their daily lives.
The soundtrack features Will Miles’s rendition of the song ‘My Girl’ by Smokey Robinson and Ronald White that was a number one hit for ‘The Temptations’ in 1964.
2. Dunkin’ Donuts, Cappu-Chinos
Advertising Agency: BBDO, New York, USA
The growing popularity of barista coffee ‘take-aways’ has inspired the automotive industry to include coffee-cup holders in their interior car designs.
But what if you are not in car? Where do find a safe holder for your favourite ‘take-away’ beverage whilst going about your daily activities?
In this amusing commercial, directed by Jim Jenkins, Dunkin’ Donuts provides the answers.
3. Nestlé Coffee-Mate, Natural Bliss
Digital Marketing and Advertising Agency: 360i, New York, USA
For this Coffee-Mate creamer brand activation campaign, the agency took over an Irving Farm Coffee Roasters Café in New York’s trendy Lower East Side neighbourhood of Manhattan.
Customers were offered a free coffee for the day served by ‘naked’ baristas wearing nothing else but body-paint. Additional actors posed as ‘naked’ patrons.
Hidden cameras recorded the surprised and bemused reactions of customers that were edited for an online campaign and YouTube commercial that went viral rapidly.
4. Café Pelé, The Contagious Yawn
Advertising Agency: Lew Lara/TBWA, Sao Paulo, Brazil
According to a study by the State University of New York, 70% of people yawn when they see someone else yawning.
Café Pelé, the coffee brand named after Brazilian soccer star Pele, set out to prove that yawning is indeed contagious.
Their brand activation campaign involved a poster at São Paulo’s busy Fradique Coutinho station. Fitted with a motion sensor, the person depicted in the poster would yawn when anyone came near.
Hidden cameras recorded the reactions of early morning commuters who, upon viewing the poster, amusingly started yawning uncontrollably.
Fortunately, a strong, Café Pelé yawning remedy was soon on hand.
5. McCafé, Coffee Madness
Advertising Agency: Leo Burnett, London
Directed by Tony Barry the commercial is an entertaining parody of ‘urban hipster coffee culture’ with all its artisanal pretentiousness.
The soundtrack song, appropriately titled ‘Madness’, is by Prince Buster and the commercial motivated over 500,000 views in the first couple of weeks after being released.
6. McCafé, Flat White Mystery
Advertising Agency: Leo Burnett, London
Tony Barry also directed this commercial for the introduction of McCafé’s ‘Flat White’ coffee to their café chain.
It continues with the promise of ‘good coffee without the fuss’ that has struck such a favourable chord with consumers. The commercial is a humorous take on solving the ‘Flat White’ mystery.
7. Death Wish Coffee, Storm A-Brewing
Advertising Agency: RPA, Santa Monica, California, USA
Headquarted in Malta, New York, USA, The Death Wish Coffee company won the Intuit QickBooks ‘Small Business, Big Games’ contest in 2015.
The prize was an Intuit sponsored commercial for airing during during the annual Super Bowl football contest. The accounting software company financed the entire production of bringing the brand’s viking themed story to cinematic viewing life.
The journey of a group of Vikings braving stormy, treacherous waters they know will end in death, was directed by Isaiah Seret with Oscar-winning cinematographer, (Life of Pi) Claudio Miranda.
Actor Diarmaid Murtagh, who played Leif on History Channel’s “Vikings,” is the main Norseman in the commercial for the ‘World’s Strongest Coffee’.
8. Nescafé Café Viet, Blown Away
Advertising Agency: Publicis, Vietnam
Directed by Australian Damon Escott and filmed over three long days in Ho Chi Minh City, also known as Saigon, the commercial is part of the popular Nescafé ‘Blown Away’ campaign series.
The excellent filming and crafting of special effects to visually dramatise the ‘blown away’ consumer promise, makes for entertaining viewing.
9. Nescafé, Instant Connections
Advertising Agency: Ogilvy One, Frankfurt, Germany
Hidden cameras by production company Dropout Films on both sides of a busy street, recorded the reactions of pedestrians heading off to work on a typical morning in Berlin.
The brand activation facilitated contact between 600 Berliners in one day and the resultant video edit of the event motivated over a million views on Facebook and more than 85,000 on YouTube.
Nespresso and the George Clooney Connection
Famous American Actor George Clooney is also a well known activist of social causes. He has been involved with Nespresso for more than ten years as the Swiss brand’s global ambassador, and sustainabilty advisory board member.
Nespresso’s corporate responsibilty commitment is to actively pursue the facilitation of progressive improvements in the lives of coffee farmers and their future security.
10. Nespresso, How Far?
Advertising Agency: McCann, Paris, France
The brand’s sophisticated image and persona in Europe is largely due to George Clooney’s celebrity stature, refined personality and elegant appearance in many Nespresso commercials.
George Clooney is joined by French actor Jean Duardin is this amusing story about gentlemanly one-upmanship, that was filmed on location at a villa on Lake Como in Italy, and directed by Grant Heslov.
11. Nespresso, Training Day
Advertising Agency: McCann, New York
To expand his partnership with Nespresso in the United States, George Clooney teamed up with Danny DeVito for this commercial. Directed by Grant Heslov, the story is about an amusing training cession for DeVito in the art of social decorum and refined taste.