Brief:
- Sparkling water brand Spindrift updated its nationwide summer campaign with digital audio on Spotify and Pandora. In addition, Pandora has a mixtape curated by actress and brand "superfan" Kristen Bell, per an announcement shared with Mobile Marketer.
- Her fruit-themed mixtape includes songs with fruit in the title or artist name, interspersed with 15-second audio ads with her voice-overs. In addition to making the mixtape, Bell appears in video spots that will run on the Condé Nast network, NBCUniversal and Hulu.
- The campaign aims to highlight Spindrift's real fruit ingredients that differentiate it from rival products made with artificial flavoring. The brand's integrated campaign includes print, video, social, audio, search, influencer outreach, in-store media and experiential sampling. Spindrift developed the campaign with ad agency The Many and media buyer AMP.
Insight:
Spindrift's campaign on Spotify and Pandora likely will help the flavored seltzer brand reach an audience that's more likely to consume media on mobile devices. Pandora is estimated to have about 72.4 million listeners in the U.S., most of whom listen to its free, ad-supported streaming service, compared with 65.3 million for Spotify, about 60% of whom listen to its ad-supported tier, based on press reports.
Spindrift enlisted Bell as a spokesperson last year with its first national campaign that included print, out-of-home, digital and social media posts featuring Bell and the hashtags #yupthatsit and #realfruittastesbetter, as well as humorous 60-, 30- and 15-second video ads on digital channels. The campaign appeared to take aim at competitors like LaCroix and PepsiCo's Bubly while emphasizing Spindrift's product characteristics. Bell, who is also a brand ambassador for La-Z Boy, has become a reliable, down-to-earth celebrity influencer known for her sense of humor and social media presence.
The efforts on Spotify and Pandora come as musical branding strategies have become more popular to capture audiences tuned in to streaming audio and podcasting. Procter & Gamble's Febreze air freshener brand in March released an eight-track album of musical advertisements that gained a following on social media. Hamburger Helper, Wendy's and Wingstop have also have released branded mixtapes in the past few years.
