Stop weeping on the sofa, start gifting with a poster: How Cadbury won Christmas

IPA Effectiveness Awards Case Study 2024

This case explains how Cadbury became the fastest-growing confectionery brand at Christmas by rewriting the rules of festive marketing and inventing a new ritual of mass participation. Cadbury Secret Santa is a repeatable activation that has transformed the UK’s digital poster sites into Secret Santa post offices and been independently tracked as the season’s most effective advertising. It is estimated that since its launch in late 2022, this campaign has engaged 3.4m people, generated £80m in additional revenue, and grown Cadbury’s Christmas sales by 43 per cent.

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Client Statement

Emma Paxton, Marketing Manager - Cadbury, Mondelez

The UK loves Christmas – it’s the most emotive and meaningful time of the year - and we believed Cadbury could play a big role in the season. But Christmas is a crowded market, so we felt compelled to approach it differently. In essence, to act like a challenger. So instead of just inviting people to emote like other ‘weepy’ telly ads, we invited them to engage in a truly holistic, interactive idea; and rather than creating an expensive one-off campaign each year, we’ve established a new mass ritual that everyone can participate in - something we're committed to build ongoing, not just for years but for decades.

The results have been dramatic: before Cadbury Secret Santa, we struggled to meaningfully grow market share at Christmas - that ceiling has now been smashed. Cadbury Secret Santa is now a best-in-class global example internally - and perhaps even externally - to show how an unconventional approach to a major trading period can drive unprecedented results.

This has been of great significance for the organisation. After all, we all know that the biggest occasions can feel the most pressured: expectation levels grow; internal scrutiny intensifies; levels of sign off seemingly multiply. It’s easy to be buffeted towards convention. In this context, Cadbury Secret Santa is an internal standard-bearer for thinking differently and finding the lateral solution. Furthermore, the campaign’s ability to engage internal teams and retailers, as well as consumers, has demonstrated the way ideas can truly resonate across different audiences.

Above all though, we’re proud that this idea inspires a little more generosity in the world during a time in the year when people need it most. A simple idea with a big impact - Cadbury Secret Santa is heartwarming proof that there’s a generous instinct in all of us.