How do you sell M&Ms to Italians?
As we prepared for the launch in Italy, we had to grapple with three inconvenient facts:
#1: The M&Ms product design was not unique in Europe. European children ate pastel-colored Smarties which looked remarkably like M&Ms. Furthermore, Italian Moms had eaten Smarties as children and they bought Smarties for their own children.
#2: Chocolate wasn’t a popular snack in Italy. The only country I could find that had lower per capita consumption of chocolate candy than Italy was Japan. In fact, in Italy they didn’t even sell chocolate candy during the summer because it would melt on the shelves. So, Italians weren’t accustomed to eating chocolate often. They loved small, bite-size luxurious chocolates like Ferrero Rocher and Baci that were even packaged like precious things.
#3: American chocolate wasn’t popular in Europe. Even in countries that liked chocolate (such as Germany and the UK), American chocolate was not a popular choice. Cadbury’s chocolate was regarded as creamier and more luxurious.
Make M&M’s as American as Bruce Springsteen
The decision was taken to market to the Panineri - the teens who hung out at fast food places, sped around on Vespas, ate hamburgers, and wore blue jeans and Timberland shoes.
While teens weren’t crazy about American chocolate, they loved MTV (called Video Musica in Italy) and they really loved Bruce Springsteen. The year we planned the launch, Bruce Springsteen had an incredibly successful worldwide tour, MTV was flooding the world with videos of American rock stars, Levi’s had launched a surprisingly successful campaign in the UK, and suddenly everyone wanted to look a little bit American. M&Ms was positioned as the American candy that was perfect for the teenagers who were hanging out with their friends.
MTV Appeal
The commercial was developed by Ted Bates Italia, produced at Cinecita in Rome, directed by a young Spanish director, and the teenage cast was international. The actors were told to invent a talent show and asked to memorize the theme song. They improvised, mimicking popular TV stars, and struggling to enunciate “M&Ms.” In the end, crew members stood holding cue cards that read “em-en-ems.” From the first day it aired, the commercial entered the teen culture and was solidly identified with popular music. As of 2022, M&Ms sales consistently rank among the top 10 European candy brands.
