Gimme a break: Google and Nestle create innovative cross-marketing campaign

Published September 16, 2013 at 8:22 pm

“Break me off a piece of that KitKat bar!”

Everyone knows the words to the long-running jingle for Nestle’s popular KitKat candy bar, but a recent commercial takes the familiarity of the chocolate bar to a new level.

Following Jelly Bean, Google’s newest operating system for its Android phones is called Kit Kat—continuing a trend of naming these systems after sweet treats—and the company apparently contacted Nestle several months ago for permission to use the name.

The commercial describes Kit Kat—with the space—as a “perfect handheld device” that can fit in an individual’s pocket and go with him or her anywhere. Also, the four sections of the candy bar are made to look like the power bars on a cellphone in certain shots, trying to show that the Kit Kat has “global coverage.”

“The obvious benefits for Google include massive exposure in convenience stores and supermarkets,” explained a TechCrunch article. “While Android devices big to small will bear the Kit Kat moniker, resulting in a swath of brand recognition boosting for the candy maker.”

John Lagerling, director of Android global partnerships, told the BBC that the idea was not to create a business deal that involved money, but just to do something that was fun and unexpected.

Whether a company is creating a localized marketing strategy or wants its product to go nationwide, a memorable ad can go a long way. Not every business will be able to create cross-company promotions with firms like Nestle, but using a bit of humor could draw in customers.

After all, no organization wants its consumers to say “gimme a break” when it comes to its commercials. Except, maybe, for Nestle.