Innovation spotlight: Reese’s Medals

Welcome to Innovation Spotlight! Each month we’ll spotlight a brand that’s capitalizing on a current consumer trend with a new product innovation.

This month we researched Reese’s Medals, a new seasonal shape launched in the US and created to celebrate the Summer Olympics in France. Read on to get our analysis of the product's in-market potential, the audiences it appeals to, as well as what you can learn from it to innovate smarter.

While Reese’s is known world-wide for their delicious peanut butter cups, the brand has become an icon in seasonal innovation; launching different limited edition shapes during key moments of the year. We’ve seen Reese’s eggs for Easter, pumpkins for Halloween and an assortment of Christmas shapes including snowmen, stockings and bells. 

In anticipation of the Olympic and Paralympic Games Paris 2024, Reese’s has launched brand new “Reese’s Medals”; their first ever summer season shape.

The medals commemorate a long-standing partnership between The Hershey Company and Team USA and are available nationwide in snack, standard and king size packages.

The launch of the medals is also accompanied by a wider campaign called “Legend vs. Newcomer” which allows the audience to get to know more about returning and new athletes competing for team USA and showcases both the original Reese’s cups and the new Reese’s medals. 

Within the last year, we’ve done some research to uncover what works best when launching seasonal or limited edition innovations. A clear pattern emerged across results when looking at Halloween, Christmas and Easter innovations: That less is more. 

Keeping the base of a core-selling product and enhancing it with a relevant twist like themed packaging and seasonal shapes tends to be more favorable than launching a brand new product or flavor variant. 

Across all seasons we looked at, Reese’s seasonal shapes were top-performing products as they maintained the formula of the much-loved cups. The products definitely benefited from the fact that all seasons are strongly associated with chocolate or chocolate candy consumption, but there is another (even bigger) factor aiding to their success, which is the popularity of the original Reese’s cups all year round. 

We were curious to see whether the medals would be received with as much excitement being the first summer limited edition product from the brand in combination with the support of an event that isn’t necessarily associated with the category. 

1. Innovation does not need to have longevity to be successful. Seasonal or limited edition launches can be a great addition to your range to boost incremental sales over a set period and drive further engagement for your brand and category during a relevant time.

2. By playing with a core product and enhancing its shape, packaging, color, etc. to cater to an event or season, you can drive great levels of engagement to your brand without having to launch a brand new product. Seasonally-relevant enhancements can attract new consumers and increase volume of  purchase among existing consumers. 

3. Market leaders tend to have more freedom to innovate during seasonal periods given the reach of their core range and breadth of their consumer base. However, it’s important to ensure that when innovating, your distinctive brand assets are clear so the power of your brand can be truly leveraged. For example, if your brand is known for a particular color, ensure your innovation still reflects that.

What’s the potential?

Reese’s Medals score in the top 10% of all food innovations we have tested in the US market on trial potential and in the top 45% on breakthrough potential. 

They sit in the right-most “short term trial” box of our potential quadrant, meaning they appeal to a mass audience but aren’t particularly differentiated or superior versus what’s already available in market. Products sitting in this section of the quadrant typically don’t stand the test of time as they might create momentary hype and drive short-term sales, but can struggle to maintain performance in the long-term given the average levels of differentiation and advantage. This is exactly where we expect a successful seasonal or limited edition product to sit. 

Limited edition innovation doesn’t need to have longevity, as they are available for a set amount of time and the aim is to drive incremental sales beyond the core during that period. 

Two thirds of respondents said they would be likely to purchase Reese’s Medals, which is significantly above the norm for a US food innovation (purchase likelihood T2B: 66% vs 59% norm). People who buy chocolate or chocolate candy at least once a week naturally showed greater interest in the product with 84% claiming they would be likely to purchase the medals. 

Reese’s Medals were particularly popular among ‘Early Adopters’ (consumers who tend to try new products or services before the average person) with 93% of them saying they would be willing to purchase the product (compared to an 87% norm for the average US food product among Early Adopters). Early Adopters are a crucial audience to attract when launching a new product; they tend to contribute disproportionately to sales especially during the earliest stages of launch and are also more likely to speak to others about the product, increasing reach. 

Interestingly, parents are more likely to want to purchase the medals (purchase likelihood T2B: 75% vs 61% non-parents); particularly those with kids 12 and under (80%). This could be an indication that respondents also see the product as a treat for the kids during the Olympic and Paralympic season. 

When asked about which size they would go for when first purchasing the product, most respondents opted for the king size pack with two standard size medals (2.4oz). This pack size is the equivalent to the most popular Reese’s cups variant which comes with two standard size cups.

Regardless of the size of the product, almost three quarters of respondents said they would purchase Reese’s Medals in addition to what they typically purchase rather than to replace what they typically purchase (incrementality: 72% vs 63% norm). This showcases a great opportunity for the brand and the category in driving incremental sales through this limited edition product.

When it comes to breakthrough potential, we look at two key measures to determine this:

1. How different (distinctiveness) a product is

2. How superior (advantage) a product is compared to what’s already available in market 

Reese’s Medals score on par with the food norm on both distinctiveness (T2B: 69% vs 68% norm) and advantage (T2B: 51%  vs 52% norm). However, those who know the category and brand best can see how the product stands out compared to what already exists in market. 

People who buy chocolate, chocolate candy or Reese’s at least once a week score Reese’s medals much higher on advantage and distinctiveness. In particular, around 80% of regular buyers of Reese’s find the medals more differentiated and superior compared to what’s already available in market. 

Over half of respondents felt that there are no or only a few good substitutes for the new Reese’s Medals (substitutability T2B: 55% vs 50%). This number goes up to 66% among those who buy Reese’s products at least once a week; significantly above the US food norm. 

What do they like about it?

People enjoyed the shape of the medals, finding them fun and creative. It fits the Olympic theme which is another element respondents really appreciate; they love the support for team USA and think the medals are a great treat to celebrate with. 

The classic taste of Reese’s products with the combination of chocolate and peanut butter was highly mentioned, with some people sharing their loyalty to the Reese’s saying they’re willing to try anything from the brand.

Here’s what people had to say about the medals:

• "I love Reese's peanut butter candy. I like the size and shape of the Reese's medals. It looks like they would be fun and delicious."

• "I love Reese's anything honestly. Just the picture made me want one. I like that it’s for a good cause as well."

• "It’s unique and a really neat idea to support the Olympics in that way. Definitely would buy."

• "I love Reese's. They are definitely my favorite candy. I do like their holiday products like the trees at christmas. Medals are a good idea for the Olympics and I feel like people would buy them."

• "I like the fact that it is a twist on the standard Reese’s chocolate, this time to represent a competition"

• "They're cute and I could get them for a children's sporting event as a treat"

Most of Reese’s seasonal or limited edition products we have researched sit within the “short term trial” areas of our potential quadrant. Only one manages to score a “scale and sustain” spot, likely because it’s the only one that features a variety of seasonal shapes and therefore scores higher on breakthrough potential, being seen as more differentiated and advantageous.

The medals score very much in line with Reese’s Easter eggs, but overall all innovations follow a very similar pattern which is their high potential to drive short term sales.

Reese’s have clearly struck gold with their limited edition shapes and have now expanded into a season in which they typically don’t innovate. We can’t wait to see where they go next!

What did you think? Let us know by interacting with our coverage of the product on LinkedIn.

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