Blue Bunny ice cream has been around for 80 years, but a new campaign is updating the bunny to be an animated helper around the house who pushes ice cream treats.
The new brand campaign by FCB Chicago aims to appeal to adult consumers, and Blue Bunny is on a mission to do whatever it takes to get people to say yes to fun and ‘Give In To The Bunny.’ The brand is launching its first fully integrated campaign that reinvents its mascot Blu the bunny, while also highlighting two premium ice cream products, the Load’d Sundaes and new flavors of an existing line, Bunny Snacks.
Additionally, Wells Enterprises, the company behind the ice cream, is introducing a new light ice cream brand, Chilly Cow, a protein packed, lower sugar ice cream. The multifaceted advertising campaign goes against the grain of how consumers typically view the better-for-you ice cream category with an honest tone.
For ‘Give it to the Bunny,’ the brand instigates ‘giving in’ among consumers, with spots that feature Blu the bunny being helpful around the house while pushing families to enjoy the new Blue Bunny treats. In one spot, Blu confesses that he took a family’s pants because they had said that they wanted a Sunday where they didn’t have to put on pants. So he took them and filled the freezer with ice cream. Another finds a man coming to his flattened basketball, which Blu said he took the air out of because the man wanted to be able to palm a basketball.
“Everyone wants to say yes to fun, but we put up a lot of restrictions and conditions around actually doing it,” said Jon Flannery, FCB Chicago executive creative director. “From the beginning, Blu has always been about instigating fun, and by reinventing Blu, we were able to encourage adult consumers to knock down their hang-ups and ‘give in to the bunny.’”
For Chilly Cow’s ‘Save Yourself From Yourself,’ the brand highlights that, in a world of kale obsessions and imitation ice cream, people are trying to eat too healthy that they don’t even eat food with flavor. Chilly Cow says not to deprive yourself and instead eat the first protein-packed light ice cream to use ultra-filtered milk.
In one spot, we see an annoying guy working out way too hard and eating bland-if-healthy food. In comes the Chilly Cow treats to save the day for those who don’t want to be that guy.
The campaign features online video, content partnerships with leading digital publications, and social media support, as well as a multi-layered influencer program and an experiential road tour.
“We created Chilly Cow as a way to stir up the crowded light ice cream category by providing health-conscious consumers with a delicious, creamy frozen alternative. This campaign not only challenges the category with our unapologetic tone, but our consumers as well,” said Josh Tubbs, brand manager of Chilly Cow.
Added Lisa Bright, FCB Chicago executive creative director: “Instead of fueling the health craze like the brand’s competitors, we decided to stand out and take a bold, more realistic creative approach by calling out our consumer’s craziest health habits.”
This is FCB Chicago’s first work for both Blue Bunny and Chilly Cow since winning the accounts. See the spots and ads by clicking the Creative Works box below.
FCB Chicago: Blue Bunny 'Give in to the Bunny and Save Yourself from Yourself'
