Nestlé bakes UGC, social media Q&A into National Cookie Day celebration

Brief:

Nestlé is celebrating National Cookie Day today (Dec. 4) on social media by hosting a Q&A session with Nestlé Toll House's head pastry chef, who will answer questions from fans and serve up baking tips, according to an announcement shared with Mobile Marketer. Meredith Tomason will respond to queries in a video stream on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter.
Nestlé is using the occasion to celebrate the bakers behind the classic cookie dessert, just as the holiday season gets into full swing. Tomason will offer tips and tricks to encourage bakers to experiment with unique spins on their favorite recipes.
The effort comes after Nestlé found that 71% of survey respondents said cooking and baking helps them feel creative, while 80% like to try new recipes.

Insight:

Nestlé's social media event for National Cookie Day aims to showcase the company's expertise in sweet treats as millions of people fire up their ovens to make cookies for the holidays. By deploying the initiative on social media, Nestlé is hoping to drum up more awareness and engagement than had it turned to a strictly Nestlé-owned platform, as consumers often share tweets and posts from their favorite social channels.

The move appears to be tapping into the marketing trend of encouraging user-generated content (UGC) on social media, in order to expand Nestlé's content offering that appeals to a wide audience and potentially extends the effort's reach to Tomason's social network. Nestlé's Q&A with Tomason may also boost engagement among users who could be motivated to participate to interact with a head pastry chef and share her responses to their questions with friends online.

Meanwhile, several national cookie brands such as Mrs. Fields and Great American Cookies are celebrating the food holiday with free cookies or discounts, according to Thrillist. Nestlé isn't alone in promoting its products on a day of observance. For years, Dunkin' has celebrated National Doughnut Day on June 1 and National Coffee Day on Sept. 29 with social media promotions. To drive people to download their respective mobile apps around National Ice Cream Day on July 15, Baskin-Robbins celebrated with special offers, while Dairy Queen gave visitors a free item, according to U.S. News & World Report.