Uber Eats grabbed headlines with a creepy candy-led campaign that cut through culture during Halloween. Well known horror director Dan Trachtenberg was paired with Nope star Keke Palmer to tell a cautionary tale about the cost of unpreparedness on one of the biggest consumer holidays of the year. Uber Eats engaged fans with a piece of branded entertainment embedded with $1 million worth of hidden discount codes. While the film’s chill-inducing tone certainly played into the spirit of the holiday, it also added an urgency that underscored the brand’s aim to be a trusted resource in the time of need.

Uber Eats has expanded beyond restaurant food delivery to grocery, alcohol, and convenience stores. Uber Eats wanted to create a compelling reason to order for those in suburban markets looking to buy candy for Halloween.

An urban legend known as the Candy Snatchers becomes real for three friends when they run out of candy on Halloween. This is the premise of Don’t Run Out; keep your candy bowls stocked or you might suffer the ultimate consequence.

Horror films are not just films, they are an experience, an atmosphere, a cultural contagion. The genre is embedded deep into the zeitgeist of American pop culture. The relaxing of the pandemic has driven more people to get excited for Halloween and more people comfortable with an in-home experience where Uber Eats convenience store delivery can add value.

Known horror director Dan Trachtenberg was paired with Nope star Keke Palmer to tell a cautionary tale about the cost of unpreparedness on Halloween. Palmer starred as the wary roommate whose only aim was to keep the candy bowl stocked. When she discovers it empty it means only one thing—the candy snatchers are coming. So, she places an order with Uber Eats for an emergency candy delivery hoping to stave off the urban legend. The full length film was featured on the Uber Eats YouTube channel and offered a major incentive to drive repeat viewership—$1 million worth of promo codes hidden in plain sight. To redeem the codes, users headed to the Uber Eats app to redeem savings up to $830.

Uber Eats “Don’t Run Out” drove immediate breakthrough and virality across US & Canada, surpassing creative benchmarks and engagement in nearly all executions. The campaign performed significantly above benchmark across all channels with nearly 1 of every 5 consumers engaging with the TikTok ads (17% CTR vs 2%average) and 65k organic YouTube views in the first 24 hours (+14,000% over benchmark). Campaign reached maximum redeemable code applies within 90 minutes of the film’s debut. Nearly 1 of 5 consumers who saw ads on TikTok clicked through to the Uber Eats app, driving +400K sessions across all paid placements. The campaign garnered significant organic media attention and notable industry recognition. Adweek placed the campaign #5 on Top 30 Ads of 2022. Record-breaking engagement built confidence in the campaign’s construct and the next frontier of shoppable creativity.