In a recent chat with Doritos Global Head of Marketing Fernando Kahane, we explored ideation, development and campaign distribution across its new international brand platform, For the Bold in Everyone. Below is Part 2 of our conversation, where Kahane reflects on influencer and creator partnerships, gaming integration, experiential marketing, and the balance of branded media in his mix.
Chief Marketer: Does the new brand platform accommodate more creators? Will there be collaborations in the future?
FK: We are starting to build a long-term partnership. It is market driven and here they have complete autonomy. We provide guidelines for story and brand positioning. But it is completely locally driven. In addition to content from brands, there will also be fun ads from creators.
CM: This is a trend in marketing in general. How has collaborating with creators to tell their stories impacted your work and the industry as a whole?
FK: I think we're all trying to learn how to do that. Because the rules of the game have changed significantly in terms of how we test, how we choose influencers, and whether we're making the right choices. Not only because it impacts your brand, but also because it impacts people. They bring a lot of trust and confidence. So that's something that we're very carefully considering and discussing. We want to make sure we partner with people who share the same values as our brand.
CM: Shifting gears a bit…what is the brand’s global strategy for experiential marketing?
FK: Gaming is a source of great passion for Doritos. We have launched Crunch Cancel activation in over 10 markets as a pilot and plan to expand next year. Gamers usually play with friends via headsets. Doritos is the number one snack food in terms of market share for gamers. But what happens is, when they're playing, they stop eating. And why do they stop eating? Because the crunch of Doritos gets in the way of play. That's why we developed silent, or crunch-cancelling, AI technology. Recorded over 5,000 crunch sounds [for the] Artificial intelligence model. In other words, you can still talk when you eat Doritos, but you won't hear the crunching sound. They pretended to be releasing a real product called “Doritos Silent.” There was a huge, subversive billboard in London and a lot of positive press and reach.
We lean towards thinking more about the experience and not just the event. [instead], how can you create true technology and programmatic software that can improve people's product experience? Here, it's a case of solving a pain point for Doritos' key group: gamers. It significantly improves the product experience while maintaining the same crunch. This is an innovation that does not require any changes to the product. We'll be thinking more about how technology can help drive experiences and make brands more relevant at some key moments, of which gaming is one.
CM: What marketing channels are brands investing in this year?
FK: That's a challenge. How do we balance the reach of television with the relevance of digital channels and the fragmentation of media? That is the key challenge…TV has a role in many different markets due to its wide reach, but digital is becoming increasingly relevant. Additionally, some markets have completely switched their investments from TV to digital (e.g. 90%). In some markets, it's more of a 50/50 split, depending on penetration and cost per reach. There is flexibility, but the macro trend is that digital will grow.
But it's not just about channels. It's about the content. This investment will relate to how we interact with consumers. We've gone from a brand that just puts content out there to a brand that grows content everywhere. And that's not just going to impact creative, it's going to impact media choices, the ratio of digital to non-digital, and different touchpoints.
On top of that, we're talking about delivering more experiences that make the brand more relevant and meaningful. Games are a very clear example of this. This is not a traditional advertising campaign. It's a way to reach consumers in a more engaging way. Experiential technology will be a big part of future investments in terms of how we build our brands.
