Cadbury’s “Made to Share” is More Than a Pack Redesign
Last month, the internet went into a frenzy over Cadbury’s latest pack designs. Eagle-eyed shoppers spotted the new look in stores before any official announcement, sparking speculation, intrigue, and of course, cravings among chocolate lovers.
In collaboration with agency VCCP, Cadbury created limited-edition packaging that reimagines how its bars should be shared. The clever design divides portions based on who deserves the biggest piece, celebrating the often-unsung heroes of everyday moments.
Cadbury UK and VCCP have been a powerhouse duo since 2017, consistently delivering campaigns with a signature heartfelt style, centred in generosity. The “There’s a Glass and a Half in Everyone” series has been a standout, consistently performing exceptionally well on System1’s Test Your Ad Premium platform. While the latest campaign, Made to Share, is another brilliant example of how Cadbury blends creativity with generosity, it marks a unique shift for the brand. Recently, Cadbury partnered with Alzheimer’s Research UK to produce one of the most emotionally impactful campaigns of the year, whilst last year, they revived their iconic Mum’s Birthday, achieving a 5.9-Star Rating and sparking the most happiness across all ads in 2024.
Both campaigns stayed true to Cadbury’s signature storytelling, featuring relatable characters in everyday situations, with the chocolate bar acting as a catalyst rather than the hero. This time, Made to Share takes a different stance. Here, the chocolate bar itself becomes the object of generosity rather than the people. But does this shift reinforce Cadbury’s message of generosity, or does it risk losing the emotional impact that has made its past campaigns so resonant?
Seeping Strategy or Consumer-Led Creativity?
As with anything that goes viral on LinkedIn, the pack redesigns quickly sparked debate. While many praised the idea for its innovative approach, humour, and relatability, others criticised it for being “too obvious” and straying from the brand’s traditionally subtle approach to generosity.
It made me wonder whether these designs were as consumer-led as they initially appeared. Was this a case of strategy seeping into product, or would chocolate lovers feel as excited as LinkedIn’s marketing enthusiasts? We put them to the test to find out.
Leveraging the predictive power of consumer emotion through System1’s Test Your Innovation platform, we put all 12 pack designs to the test to see which would be a true favourite among chocolate lovers. Using a rating scale from 1.0 to 5.9 Stars, Test Your Innovation quantifies emotional responses, offering a clear benchmark for evaluating product ideas, taglines, slogans, and pack designs against a nationally representative audience of consumers. Here’s how we assessed them:
- Emotional Pull: Using our FaceTrace® tool, we measured emotional resonance to determine how effectively the designs resonated with consumers.
- Share Trading: We gauged consumers’ willingness to “buy” or “sell” the design, revealing key insights into purchasing behaviour and preferences.
- Decision Speed: We tracked how quickly and instinctively consumers engaged with the designs. Fast reactions were positively weighted, while slower responses were penalised, offering a nuanced view of enthusiasm and spontaneous engagement.
The limited-edition packs have not only landed on UK supermarket shelves but are also being featured on outdoor posters and in Cadbury’s latest digital series with Charity Shop Sue, the witty comedic digital star. Here, the packs take centre stage as the hero of the narrative, showcasing a bold and performance led approach alongside Cadbury’s well established brand-building focus.
So how does it fare? Could this be another example of The Multiplier Effect or The Long and the Short of It, where brand equity and performance marketing work together to drive growth? And will it resonate just as deeply as the human led narratives that have defined Cadbury’s storytelling?
Let’s find out.
Sharing the Results
Remembers Everyone’s Birthday – 4.6 Star Rating
It’s no surprise that the most universally appealing pack redesign taps into something we can all relate to: birthdays. The standout design, “Who remembers everyone’s birthday”, earned an impressive 4.6-Stars and a remarkable 45% happiness score. Consumers described it as a “funny statement that would make the recipient laugh,” highlighting its playful charm.
One of the most interesting insights from the feedback is the gifting angle, as many consumers saw this as a bar to give rather than keep for themselves. This suggests that the redesign does maintain the brand’s spirit of generosity, just with an added touch of humour. The bar was frequently described as “unique,” “memorable,” and “something different that I haven’t seen before,” all real-life consumer verbatims that bode well for shelf appeal.
The connection between birthdays and chocolate is both familiar and intuitive, reinforcing the product’s relevance and boosting its appeal. A few consumers suggested adding balloons to the packaging to emphasise the celebratory theme even further. Interestingly, 14% felt the bar should be split evenly down the middle rather than unequally divided, reinforcing the idea that birthdays, and chocolate, are best shared. This same feedback appeared in online discussions, highlighting the value of consumer testing before taking a product to market. Nonetheless, it is clear that the redesign not only reinforces Cadbury’s commitment to generosity but also adds a layer of humour and creativity that sets it apart within the category.
Who cooked – 4.2 Star Rating
The second most resonant bar was “Who cooked, who cleaned, who ate”, a familiar scenario that consumers felt was primarily targeted at women and families. This design elicited more personal feedback, with many consumers relating to it as the primary cook and household cleaner. As a result, the gesture behind the bar was seen as especially appealing and warmly received.
Once again, consumers highlighted how distinctive and visually impactful the bars were, reinforcing their strong shelf presence and potential sales advantage. The only suggested improvement was to incorporate Cadbury’s signature gold lettering, a testament to the brand’s ability to leverage its distinctive assets so effectively that they remain top of mind even when absent.
Other standout concepts focused on universally relatable scenarios, such as “Who did the shopping” versus “Who carried the bags” or “Who bought all the snacks” versus “Who just bought the vibes”. The less impactful variations leaned into more niche and targeted scenarios, such as corporate humour and group chat tropes, which will no doubt complement the more broadly appealing designs well, even if they might not perform as strongly on their own.
Cadbury and VCCP have created pack designs that stand out on the shelf and have broad appeal, whether targeting younger Gen Z chocolate eaters, office snackers, or families. They recognise that their consumer is everyone, making the selection of 12 limited-edition bars far more wide-reaching and inclusive than a smaller collection. There is a different bar for different people and occasions, all cleverly rooted in humour, an effective tool for driving long-term brand appeal, as Orlando Wood highlights in Lemon and Look out.
Humour is also a highly distinctive strategy, in addition to emotionally resonating with consumers. Across all bars, memorability and distinctiveness were the most common responses, suggesting that short-term sales success and strong shelf standout are likely. At its core, the concept remains rooted in sharing and generosity, while also offering something fresh and unique. This approach is clearly working, as the limited-edition range is designed to spark immediate interest while reinforcing the brand’s identity. Cadbury and VCCP have delivered this perfectly, creating a collection that is engaging, relevant, and built for success.
The Compounding Effects of Consistency
One of the key reasons “Made to Share” resonates so well with consumers is its consistency, not just with Cadbury’s core brand identity but also across channels, as seen in the brand’s digital and outdoor additions. Using data from the IPA, System1 launched The Magic of Compound Creativity, which demonstrated that such consistency leads to better creative quality and greater profitability. A key finding was that longer agency and brand partnerships help maintain consistent positioning, leading to longer-running creative ideas, something that is certainly evident in Cadbury’s approach.
Cadbury and VCCP have continually reinforced a strong and recognisable brand identity, maintaining a consistent tone of voice, leveraging distinctive brand assets, and ensuring cohesion across channels. They have even re-aired previous campaigns such as Secret Santa Postal Service and Mum’s Birthday, further strengthening their presence. “Made to Share” is no exception. While it takes a slight departure from their classic communications, it ultimately reinforces existing brand sentiment.
More than just a pack redesign, “Made to Share” is proof that a consistent strategy fosters creativity. It enables brands to make their performance advertising work harder and ultimately drives results in both the short and long term.
Create with Confidence
Want your share of success? System1’s Test Your Innovation platform enables you to test new products, packaging, messaging, taglines and more, predicting in-market success so you can launch innovations that consumers will love.
Our Test Your Ad platform and team of advertising experts can also help you test early-stage concepts, scripts, animatics and more to give you consumer insights on new campaign launches, or can help uncover what’s working well from past campaigns. Contact our team to get started on your testing journey!