While Mentos is a well-established brand, it had been steadily losing shares in the Canadian market. Customers are generally aware of the brand, but less-than-optimal in-store placement among many competing brands, combined with lack of significant innovation in the past years, had led to diminishing sales. Mentos’ uniqueness, between candy and mint, gives it an edge, but its competitors in the breath-freshener category are considerable: Tic Tac, Ice Breakers, Excel, etc.

The challenge was to stand out in a category where some competitors have a much bigger budget. The team relied on originality and innovation to make a lot of noise with limited means.

The idea was to partner with an entertainment franchise popular with the target group and in line with the brand’s fresh and playful personality. The Amazing Race Canada (TARC), the most-watched show of the summer, was a natural fit for more than its personality and popularity, as unlike its first season, TARC was about to take contestants beyond Canada’s borders. As an internationally recognized dragée, with a fun-loving and daring voice, Mentos became the ideal partner for the show’s venture out into the world.

The campaign focused on entertainment and engagement. The team wanted to refresh Canadian minds about Mentos and reclaim its status as a top-of-mind brand. The brand was looking for direct results from a boost in awareness; sales increase, partnership recall and consumer engagement. Partnering with TARC, whose media target is men and women from 18 to 34, enabled the brand to reach its target market (men and women between 18 and 25). Once it had their attention, it needed a 360-campaign that would keep them engaged both in-store and online.

The strategy was to fully integrate into TARC, namely by creating exclusive content during and around the show. Every show began with a 30-second “The Amazing Race Canada Refresh, brought to you by Mentos,” a recap of the previous episodes. There was also a four-minute challenge dedicated to Mentos. Contestants, while in Paris, had to recreate an art piece by Bastek using coloured Mentos on a punctured canvas. The artist himself oversaw the results. Additionally, exclusive content was aired on Canadian entertainment news program eTalk.

In order to leverage exposure gained through the partnership, a browser-based contest was created. Using Facebook Connect and the Google Maps API, Google Maps was transformed into “The Amazing Journey Contest,” a Mentos-themed three-question quiz. With the help of humorous descriptions, users picked the Mentos roll pointing to their answer on a map. If they needed hints, they were invited to “refresh their minds” by clicking on a Mentos. A 3D layer was added to Google Street View and a Mentos roll would fall into user’s chosen locales. Nearly a third of the chosen spots were in Canada, strengthening the bond between Canadians, TARC and “The Amazing Journey Contest.” Supported by over 400 questions and hints and $25,000 in personalized prizes, as well as a fully responsive design (functioning on both iOS and Android), users could return to the contest every day for another chance to win their own Amazing Journey.

While the TARC partnership generated much of the site’s initial traffic, the contest ran once the show’s second season came to an end, with print and TV support. For the first time in Canada, the contest was promoted on the Mentos mint and fruit rolls, as well as on the multi-pack packaging. It was also the first time that TARC allowed the use of its brand territory on packaging. The 3D roll was turned it into a snipe that appeared on CTV-aired shows popular with the demographic, such as The Big Bang Theory. Additionally, a 30-second TV spot showed a high-rendered version of the Mentos roll crashing into various scenic locales.

There were also multiple executions in print for B2B magazines, as well as an ad in Walmart’s magazine. The medium was used to warn convenience store owners that Mentos supplies should be replenished during the fall 2014 season. The geographical merits of the contest were also communicated to parents doing their back-to-school shopping.

The campaign led to a 15% increase in sales while TARC was airing, with 60% of viewers remembering the Mentos challenge (which was the show’s third most memorable that season). The campaign garnered 492,991 visits to the site, 169,758 unique participants and 415,919 completed games. It also yielded a 476% increase in Facebook engagement.