See how Mars is giving new life to old ads

Mars is repurposing old ads as a way to connect with consumers concerned about climate change. Ad Age A-List & Creativity Awards Final deadline approaching for annual program Enter here The campaign, called “Healthy Planet Productions,” involves putting a sustainability spin on old spots for Twix, M&M’s and Bounty candy bars through animation and new voiceovers. The approach uses animated mouths to change character dialogue from the original ads. For instance, one spot reimagines a 2013 “left Twix vs right Twix” ad by having an employee tell his boss that the factory will now use wind-powered electricity to make Twix. (Mars has made a significant investment in wind power.) In another, M&M’s spokescandies are back in a boardroom from a 2013 ad, now talking about how their employer is reducing carbon emissions. Also: 16 ad leaders working to reduce industry’s carbon footprint The Bounty spot uses a 1995 “Taste of Paradise” ad, but instead of lounging, the man now explains that Mars is protecting forests. The 15-second spots from Revolt London will run on Meta platforms, YouTube and out-of-home in the U.S., U.K. and Mexico. M&M’s, Twix and Ben’s Original reused ads will run in the U.S.; M&M’s, Twix and Bounty ads will run in the U.K.; and Mexico will be served M&M’s ads. The ads reduced emissions by removing the need for travel, filming and set production, according to Mars. The campaign comes on the heels of Mars publishing its Net Zero Roadmap in September, outlining the company’s goal of cutting its carbon emissions in half by 2030 and achieving net zero emissions by 2050. Mars also partnered with Ipsos for a global survey of 14,000 people and found that nearly 70% of adults want businesses to focus on tackling climate change as much as, or more than, economic issues. Related: The 4A’s will help agencies measure carbon footprint “Consumers share our urgency in tackling climate change, but it’s not always clear what companies are doing to deliver real change,” said Andrew Clarke, global president of Mars Wrigley, in a statement. “That is why we decided to use our iconic brands in the adverts consumers know and love and deliver a message of hope and optimism on climate change.” This isn’t the first time that a brand has given old ads a new life. In 2019, BMW ran a campaign for its certified pre-owned vehicles and recycled the ads that were used for the then-new cars. Insurer Geico ran 10 old ads as part of a contest asking viewers to vote for their favorite Geico ad for a chance to win an appearance in a new ad (see the contest winner and the ad here).

See how Mars is giving new life to old ads

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