And just like that, the Halloween season is over. Like every year, the Sweets and Snacks Industry is an essential player in the spooky season, and, every year, marketers turn up the heat to garner the most attention.

Here are some helpful methods the Sweets and Snacks Industry used to reach consumers this Halloween season that you could incorporate in your marketing strategy:

Experiential Marketing + Innovation

Experiential marketing strategies that engage and engulf the consumer into a fantastical experience that they can physically and virtually share with friends is all the rage. CandyTopia, for example, transformed their already sweets-focused museum to focus on Halloween. They also collaborated with Willy Wonka to give the consumer an immersive Chocolate Factory Experience. Reece’s also took a stab at product innovation and released a limited quantity of “Secret Stash Trick-or-Treat Bags,” which were designed to hold candy and included a secret compartment that contained Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups. This was great, particularly for trick-or-treaters who are fans of Reese’s, because it guaranteed them a stash of Reese's Peanut Butter Cups in their bag in addition to the other candy they collected.

Innovation that rewards and provides a memorable experience to the consumer keeps them coming back and even trying new brands, so brands need to leverage experiential marketing in their marketing strategy. According to Convenience Store News, “Experimentation is the key to fueling candy sales” and “43% of consumers report ‘trying something new as a reason for buying a different brand, package size or product type.”
The fact consumers want to try something new from time to time should encourage further experimentation and innovation from marketers, especially during the holiday season.

Thought piece: How are you engaging your consumers in a memorable way?

Unique Strategic Partnerships

Another method brands leveraged during “spooky season” was partnerships. Notable sweets and snacks brand, Mars Wrigley, recently partnered with Rubicon Technologies, a software company focused on waste and recycling, to create a “Trick or Trash” bag. An unlikely partnership gave consumers an opportunity to do something proactive and beneficial by having access to candy wrapper recycling. Although it seems out-of-the-box, this partnership promoted both brands while addressing a relevant need. 

Thought piece: Is there a unique partnership that you could leverage that would check multiple boxes? 

Nostalgia

Marketers of sweets and snacks have also leveraged nostalgia to increase product sales.  General Mills, for example, released a collection of iconic cereal boxes that contain figurines of the mascots at the bottom of the box. They additionally wanted to pay tribute to the 90s, so the mascot toys are dressed in clothes from that era. Because cereal has played an integral role in many people’s childhood, this re-engaged their previous audiences and allowed those audiences to share the experience with younger generations. McDonald’s also recently tapped into nostalgia in the last month by releasing adult Happy Meals, which include a Big Mac or 10-piece Chicken McNuggets, along with fries and, of course, a toy. This offering, although not necessarily “spooky,” appealed to an older generation of consumers who indulged in happy meals when they were children.

Thought piece: How are you tapping into your consumer’s interests?

Brands have plenty to learn from the innovation of the Sweets and Snacks Industry. Ultimately, keeping consumers top of mind and prioritizing their overall experience is the best way to sweeten your marketing tactics to create a successful campaign (and utilizing a certain season to partner with a brand or create an experience certainly doesn’t hurt).