Nutella spikes sales and brand engagement with QR code-enabled Italian landscape jars

20 Nov 2020 --- The COVID-19 pandemic has stunted tourism in Italy, so Ferrero has brought Italy to Nutella enthusiasts instead.

In partnership with the Italian national tourism agency (ENIT), Ferrero has launched 30 limited edition Nutella jars vividly depicting prominent Italian landscapes and cities.

The Ti amo Italia journey across the country continues on a reverse-side QR code. When scanned on smartphones from the comforts of consumers’ homes, users can immerse in a 360° virtual reality experience of the landmark displayed.

Speaking exclusively with PackagingInsights, Matteo Conti, area marketing manager, Nutella and Snack Europe at Ferrero, reflects on how the multisensory launch strengthened Nutella sales and brand engagement in the past six weeks.

Double-digit online interaction
From the waterfalls of Santa Maria del Molise to the mountain ranges of Stromboli and Gran Paradiso, each jar grants a glimpse of the scenery surrounding Italy’s colorful villages, towns and cities.

A selection of the colorful Nutella jars yielding sharp rises in sales and online brand engagement.Both the jar and the QR code-enabled AR experience aimed to bring these extraordinary Italian places close to consumers, “especially in times like these,” says Conti.

The Ti amo Italia initiative doubled accesses and the time spent per session on the Nutella website during the activity period. More than 20 percent of the traffic was originated organically by the QR code placed on the back of the jar.

Ferrero also reported thousands of Nutella jar photos and videos have been uploaded by consumers on social media: on average, one post every seven minutes.

“Even in terms of sales, the results were outstanding,” adds Conti. “During the weeks of activity, the sleeved jars recorded a trend of over 20 percent versus the previous year.”

“You are holding an Italian beauty in your hands. Scan the QR code and continue your journey,” reads the backside label.Supporting a suffering tourism sector
Making up for lost sales is a struggle companies across the globe faced this year. But earlier this year, the COVID-19 crisis hit Italy especially hard, a country whose economy greatly relies on its tourism sector.

“The projected 2020 loss from overseas visitors to Italy is €24.6 billion (US$29.2 billion) and even domestic traveler spending is down €43.6 billion (US$51.8 billion),” ENIT president Giorgio Palmucci shared with CNN in September.

“In this difficult moment for the strategic tourism sector, Nutella purposely clings to ENIT to enhance its greatest national wealth among Italians: the beauty of Italy itself,” said Alessandro d’Este, CEO of Ferrero Commerciale Italia during the initial launch of Ti amo Italia.

Ti Amo Italia resulted from “great teamwork,” affirms Conti, considering all departments involved organized the launch remotely due to social distancing requirements.

“Despite [logistical] difficulties, the power of the idea and the eagerness of providing a great consumer experience allow us to bring to life a project like this,” he maintains.

Sacrificing branding space on-pack for vibrant national landscape scenery paid off for Ferrero, now considering a second rollout.Love for limited edition
“Seasonal special” and “limited time only” are stalwart marketing phrases triggering purchasing urgency and excitement in consumers – difficult to generate during a pandemic that is keeping life at a stillstand.

Limited edition packaging initiatives are widespread ahead of holiday seasons, the latest in Western markets being Halloween and Christmas.

“We would not exclude the possibility to roll out this idea again,” says Conti when asked about a follow-up project, “potentially also in other markets.”

The idea would be to continue using the iconic Nutella jar as a lens to look at “some unexpected details of beauty,” he explains.

In the words of Ferrero’s CEO: “To grasp the goodness in life, you don’t need to look far; sometimes you just need to look around.”

By Anni Schleicher