Unwrapping Cadbury’s Digital Marketing Strategy and Campaigns – A Case Study

Updated on: Jan 28, 2023
Cadbury’s Marketing Case Study - Featured Image

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My name is Aditya Shastri and I have written this case study with the help of my students from IIDE's online digital marketing courses in India.

Practical assignments, case studies & simulations from Harvard Business Review helped the students from this course present this analysis.

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The marketing strategy of Cadbury has helped the brand create such a place in the hearts of Indian customers that the first thing that comes to our minds when someone says “chocolate” is “Cadbury”.

A certain class of Indians does not even say the word “chocolate”, they’d say “Would you like to have a Cadbury?” Such has been the influence of Cadbury on its consumers’ minds.

Let us start the Cadbury case study and know a little more about Cadbury.

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About Cadbury India

 

 Marketing strategy Of Cadbury - Cadbury logo

 

Cadbury was established by John Cadbury in 1824 in Birmingham, England. Later, In 2010, it was acquired by Kraft Foods and is currently managed by Mondelez International.

Cadbury India was established in 1948 in India and is currently headquartered in Mumbai, Maharashtra. Its headquarters in Mumbai is popularly also called “Cadbury House”.

At present, Cadbury India operates in five categories – chocolate confectionery, beverages, and biscuits. Its popular products include Dairy Milk, Oreo, Tang, Bournvita, etc. The company has also tied up with Hindustan Unilever Limited (HUL), another FMCG giant in India to produce collaborated products such as Kwality Walls Cornetto Oreo, and Kwality Wall gems.

The company has evolved over the years in India and has included an array of quality products that have helped the company target loyal customers. So, let us understand its target audience by assessing it further in the coming section.

 

Cadbury’s Marketing Case Study - About Cadbury India

Brands of Cadbury

The company has evolved over the years in India and has included an array of quality products that have helped the company target loyal customers. So, let us understand its target audience by assessing it further in the coming section.

Target Audience of Cadbury

Cadbury India’s segmentation of its products has been a mix of several factors. Consumers from every stratum of society are enjoying Cadbury products.

Cadbury Bournvita, for example, has been positioned as a must-have for growing children and has been targeted to the parents of small children between the age of 2-8 years old. These days Bournvita is also quite popular among millennials. It is an affordable product and can be purchased by any income class.

Whereas, Cadbury Temptations and Bournville are premium chocolates that can be afforded by higher-income consumers. Dairy Milk Silk has been targeted at millennials and those who cannot resist chocolates.

So let’s understand the target audience in a better way by comparing its product offerings to age-wise demographics.

Age-wise breakdown of Cadbury India’s offerings
Age Product offerings
Kids Dairy Milk, Bournvita, 5 Star, Fuse, Tang
Millennials Silk, Celebrations, Ice Creams
Adults Bournville, Temptation, Celebrations, Ice Creams

 

The above table summarizes how Cadbury India has placed its offerings toward various age segments. Now let us go through what are the steps undertaken by Cadbury India which have helped them market these products and become one of the finest brands in India.

Digital Marketing Strategy of Cadbury

Cadbury has been around for a long time. As one of the leading confectionery companies in the world, it has managed to create innovative ways to market its products.

In this section, we would go through popular Cadbury Digital Marketing campaigns such as Dairy Milk’s advertising campaigns, Oreo’s marketing campaign, and other strategies which have helped them stay relevant in the minds of consumers. From its social media marketing outlook, and its marketing campaigns to places where they can improve, all bases will be covered.

So Let’s start with Cadbury India’s Social Media strategy.

Cadbury’s Social Media Marketing Overview

Cadbury India has separate social media profiles for its various brands. This also helps them promote their brands effectively. Let us first now understand Cadbury India’s social media presence by looking at the number of followers for its different brands across Facebook and Instagram.

1. Facebook and Instagram

Cadbury India’s Popular Brands on Facebook and Instagram
Brand Instagram Followers Facebook Followers
Dairy Milk Silk 174K 5.9M
Oreo 29K 41M
Bournvita 8381 196k
Gems 5463 141k

 

From the above table, we can infer that Cadbury has a relatively more audience on Facebook than it has on Instagram. However, all the posts shared on Facebook and Instagram is moreover similar.

2. Cadbury’s Brands on Youtube

Cadbury India uses Youtube as its primary medium for campaigning its marketing activities. It has separate channels for its various brands and is updated regularly. So let’s now take a glimpse at the overall subscriber count of their brands on Youtube.

Cadbury India’s Popular Brands on Youtube
Brand Subscribers Count
Dairy Milk 813K
Dairy Milk Silk 609K
Bournvita 113K
Perk 124K

 

Now that you have an overview of how it fares on Youtube and other social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram. Let us go through some of the most memorable Cadbury marketing campaigns in the coming section.

Marketing and Advertising Campaigns of Cadbury

We all know for a fact that Cadbury India is one such company in India that creates a lot of news and talks for its unique and successful marketing campaigns.

In the section below, we would go through some of Cadbury’s marketing and advertising campaigns which have left a lasting impact on their branding and sales as well as creating a strong presence in the mind of consumers.

So let’s start with Cadbury India’s most recent campaign first.

1. Stay Home Stay Safe: At Home with Oreo – A Cadbury Oreo Campaign

Cadbury’s biscuit brand Oreo launched a very smart campaign that goes in sync with the current situation we are in: Staying at home.

Oreo launched a campaign called #AtHomewithOreo targeting children. The campaign encourages playfulness among children amid these uncertain times. The slogan of the campaign is ‘Make Way For Play’. Perfect use of the current situation, isn’t it?

Let’s look at this Video uploaded by Oreo India below,

 

Cadbury’s Marketing Case Study - Cadbury’s Marketing and Advertising Campaigns - Stay Home Stay Safe At Home with Oreo

 

2. A Lovely Campaign: How Far Will You Go For Love? – A Dairy Milk Campaign

Cadbury Dairy Milk Silk is primarily targeted at millennials. However, Dairy Milk Silk has been a hit among teenagers, and launching this campaign for Valentine’s Day was a brilliant move!

The message in this campaign was as simple as this, “This Valentine’s Day, how far will you go for love?” with the hashtag #PopYourHeartOut. The brand also roped in a very famous actor and youth icon, Kartik Aryan, to do promotions for the campaign.

 

Cadbury’s Marketing Case Study - Cadbury’s Marketing and Advertising Campaigns - A Lovely Campaign - How Far Will You Go For Love

 

Cadbury’s Marketing Case Study - Cadbury’s Marketing and Advertising Campaigns - A Lovely Campaign - How Far Will You Go For Love - Valentines Day

 

3. A Heart-Touching Campaign: Kuch Meetha Ho Jaaye – A Dairy Milk Campaign

In India, people have a lot of faith in customs and traditions, especially when they’re about to start something new on an auspicious occasion.

Cadbury Dairy Milk launched this campaign called “Kuch Meetha Ho Jaaye” in which Cadbury India positioned Dairy Milk as a sweet that could be consumed during the happy moments in our happening lives.

Cadbury India showed people belonging to all age groups, celebrating big and small moments of their lives, connecting with people, and making special moments even more special with Cadbury Dairy Milk. The campaign is still remembered with much nostalgia and it was also previously endorsed by legendary Indian actor Amitabh Bachchan.

This advertisement perfectly portrays the idea of “Kuch Meetha Ho Jaaye”

Cadbury’s Marketing Case Study - Cadbury’s Marketing and Advertising Campaigns - Kuch Meetha Ho Jaaye

 

Cadbury’s Marketing Case Study - Cadbury’s Marketing and Advertising Campaigns - Ab Har Match Mein Kuch Meetha Ho Jaaye

 

4. Cadbury’s Valentine’s Day Campaign 2023 Helps Couples Make the Day Memorable

Cadbury Dairy Milk Silk launched a campaign for Valentine’s Day to assist couples in creating an unforgettable day. Ogilvy conceptualized the film to demonstrate how young couples face pressure to make the day extraordinary and offer tips on expressing their love.

The video portrays a relatable scenario of a couple celebrating Valentine’s Day and showcases a creative and fun way of surprising their loved ones with a gift. The twist of the book turning into a cake adds an element of surprise and humour, which can appeal to a wide audience.

The inclusion of the microsite with romantic tips from popular content creators and musicians adds value to the product and can help connect with the audience on a personal level.

These were some of the most memorable campaigns of Cadbury India which cemented a strong brand connection and trust that is visible in its balance sheet to this date.

Now that we understand the marketing aspects of Cadbury’s social media. Let us now talk about a few aspects where Cadbury India has to work out to have an overall better digital presence just like a few of its competitors have.

 

Pain Points

Cadbury India is one of India’s biggest and most loved brands. It has created some of the most remembered campaigns for Indian audiences. It is also one of those brands that have a very strong offline presence.

However, the digital presence of Cadbury India is something that it should work out on about as much as its competitors do.

To begin with, Cadbury India’s digital presence is much lesser as compared to its competitors.

1. Twitter

Cadbury’s Twitter page has 317k followers at the time of writing this article which is higher than its nearest competitor Nestle which has 287k  followers. It has also created Twitter handles for its popular Bournvita, Gems, etc.

2. Instagram

It should also have to work on increasing its followers base on Instagram as it’s popular among teenagers of this generation. The engagement ratio is way less than most of its competitors.

3. Website

It doesn’t have a website with its domain name. It only has a section on its parent company’s website, Mondelez International. The website also needs to be optimized so that it gets the first spot on Google’s Search Engine Results Page (SERP).

Popular brands such as Dairy Milk, and Oreo don’t have websites as well. A separate website for the brand makes it easier for people to know more about the products and also increases transparency between the company and the audience.

These are some of the places we found that Cadbury India has to improve to rival its competitors on the digital front.

With this, our case study on Cadbury India comes to an end. Let us go through the final points in the next section.

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Conclusion

Being an old-school chocolate brand in the sugar-free era, Cadbury has always been successful in its offline campaigns with its engaging and relevant campaigns that have been a hit in the past, and the impact of that can be seen in the present as well.

It has also used digital marketing strategies to its advantage up to the extent there is still room for improvement. Once it successfully utilizes digital fronts to its full potential, it will be able to create a very healthy overall presence. Only time will tell how it works upon its weaknesses and competes for its fair share of the market.

If you are interested in knowing how you can create such amazing digital strategies, be sure to invest in comprehensive digital marketing training. There are various institutes such as IIDE that offer Online Digital Marketing Courses in India. By enrolling in these courses, you’ll be trained in all the essential aspects of Digital Marketing such as SEO, SEM, eCommerce, content creation, and more.

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Aditya Shastri

Lead Trainer & Head of Learning & Development at IIDE

Leads the Learning & Development segment at IIDE. He is a Content Marketing Expert and has trained 6000+ students and working professionals on various topics of Digital Marketing. He has been a guest speaker at prominent colleges in India including IIMs......[Read full bio]

2 Comments

  1. Drishti Jain

    we are design students and we were researching on Cadbury , we found your work . it is very helpful the way you have presented all the imp details in a crisp way with advertisements . GOOD WORK !!

    Reply
  2. Avinash Stephen

    Amazing Work Sir…I got full information I was looking for

    Reply

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