In the Japanese ice cream market, companies compete by creating new flavors, resulting in a never-ending race to develop niche items and sell them at cut-rate prices. To us at Lotte, this seemed to take away from the fun of eating ice cream—and also went against the “stop worrying, be happy” brand value of our SOH ice cream. We wondered if there was a way to shift the focus of ice cream marketing from flavors to experiences.

Following a press conference and video launch, we distributed 480,000 spoons to supermarkets around Japan, where they were handed out to customers for free. TV ads showed famous people displaying their ice cream art. Meanwhile, we solicited works from thirty celebrities—including illustrators, comedians, rock bands, and baseball players—and asked them to upload their ice cream art to social media. We then incorporated these works in outdoor and online advertising. We also organized ice cream drawing events in areas of central Tokyo that get a lot of foot traffic, and we displayed works created by the public. In the process, we generated enthusiasm for a brand new eating experience that involved playing with one’s food.