Intro
When Pringles sought to transform their brand perception from an 'occasion crisp' to an everyday snack, we identified an opportunity to connect with an audience that was already snacking while engaging in their favourite activity. By creating an innovative gaming campaign that literally broke through screens, we helped Pringles become gamers' snack of choice while delivering impressive business results, despite being outspent by competitors.
The Challenge
Pringles faced a significant brand perception challenge. They were viewed as the 'occasion' crisp – something enjoyed with friends or taken to parties – which limited consumption moments. To drive growth, they needed to become part of consumers' everyday snacking routine. Additionally, Pringles was being outspent 2:1 by their closest competitors, requiring an innovative approach that would maximise impact with efficient spending.
Insight
Our research uncovered a compelling opportunity: 71% of gamers regularly snack while playing, and crisps are their number one snack of choice. Not only that, but Pringles' unique non-greasy design makes them the perfect gaming companion, maintaining optimal controller grip during intense gaming sessions.
However, gamers are notoriously difficult to engage with using traditional advertising. We needed an authentic approach that would resonate with this discerning audience and establish Pringles as gaming's perfect snack companion.
Strategy
Rather than simply telling gamers why they should love Pringles, we developed a disruptive strategy that would demonstrate our understanding of gaming culture while creating an unforgettable brand experience.
Our approach centred on three key elements:
- Create a memorable character connection by bringing Frank, a Pringles-loving zombie cowboy from the game "West of Dead," into the real world
- Partner with Twitch, the world's leading live-streaming platform for gamers, to reach this audience authentically
- Blur the lines between entertainment and advertising by creating show-stopping content that actively involved the audience, eliminating barriers between the virtual and real world.
Execution, Solution and Innovation
We orchestrated a first-of-its-kind campaign where a character literally broke out of a video game and into the real world – all triggered by the iconic pop of a Pringles can.
Working with popular streamer Leahviathan, we created a mini-drama rather than just a typical gaming stream. What began as a normal streaming session took an unexpected turn when Frank, a character from "West of Dead," began acting strangely within the game. Suddenly, there was a loud thud as Frank broke through the screen and into Leah's room – not to eat her, but to get his hands on her Pringles!
For two hours, the pair created bespoke, live content playing games and engaging directly with viewers in the chat. This unprecedented event blurred the line between advertisement and entertainment, allowing the audience to interact with Frank, teach him how to game, and compete in challenges to win prizes.
The campaign extended beyond this initial event:
- Frank visited seven other streamers across Europe
- He starred in Twitch Premium ads for three months
- He ultimately returned to the game as a non-playable character, Pringles in hand
Result and Business Effect
By bringing Frank out of the game, we put Pringles at the heart of gamers' lives with remarkable results:
- Frank's stream became one of the most-watched Twitch streams ever
- The campaign generated overwhelmingly positive sentiment
- Brand fit between Pringles and Twitch increased significantly
- 42% of Twitch's audience came to see Pringles as their snack of choice
- The campaign helped deliver Pringles' strongest ever Xbox promotion
- Frank even inspired his own fan art, demonstrating deep audience engagement
Most importantly, despite being outspent by major competitors, Pringles increased sales by 8% – making this their most successful campaign ever.
This groundbreaking initiative demonstrated our ability to drive performance in the moment while setting our client up for accelerated growth. By understanding both gaming culture and the unique attributes of Pringles, we created an innovative solution that delivered real business impact – truly performing and transforming for our client.
