Hershey’s advertising leader Mohnshine on assembly client calls for, media and that Mars transfer

Navigating a extra health-conscious tradition

For a logo synonymous with indulgence, the frenzy towards more fit life is usually a industrial curse. But Mohnshine sees it as a possibility for growth, now not contraction. “We want to make sure that we understand consumers – who’s moving in a healthier direction, who’s moving in a healthier direction overall, versus just for certain occasions,” he defined. “And say, okay, what do we need to do to our portfolio to ensure that we’ve got something for everyone?”

That portfolio evolution has already yielded robust effects. Hershey’s 0 sugar vary has quietly turn into one of the vital corporate’s fastest-growing segments. “We’ve tripled the business over the last five years,” mentioned Mohnshine. “And we continue to see strong response from consumers in that area.”

But this isn’t about turning Hershey’s right into a fitness meals corporate. The group recognises that for lots of shoppers, indulgence nonetheless issues – it’s simply on new phrases.

“You might have someone who is just looking to indulge every now and then, but in a more permissible bite, so to speak,” he mentioned. “That spans everything from Hershey Kisses to Reese’s Thins to our snack size products. Making sure you’ve got small pieces, individually wrapped, available for those treat occasions is really critical for us now.”

Life on Mars

The dialog inevitably grew to become to the new large headlines in chocolate-land, particularly, Mars’ high-profile account transfer from WPP to Publicis, with IPG’s Weber Shandwick choosing up the PR transient. As a consumer of Publicis himself, Mohnshine introduced a realistic view of what one of these transfer alerts for the trade.

“We’re never totally shocked, given the media landscape and the consolidation within media – there is always a risk that you’re going to have multiple players using the same agency,” he mentioned. “I think the way you deal with it is just to make sure you’ve got really strong relationships with that agency. Publicis have assured us that firewalls are in place, there are the appropriate protections and all of that.”

For Hershey, which most effective not too long ago onboarded Publicis as its new company spouse, the transition was once treated with a methodical depth.

“There was a very rigorous stepwise process by which we onboarded them to our business,” Mohnshine defined. “You’ve got to make sure that you put a ton of effort up front in ensuring that everybody is seeing the world the same way, everybody understands the state of the business.”

Mohnshine believes a success company transitions depend on extra than simply procedure – they hinge on shared values and the willingness to construct true trade partnerships.

“I typically like to view our agency partners as total business partners. So, we talk a lot about how the business is performing overall, and not just how the advertising is performing. I think that’s the foundation of a good relationship.”

Asked how lengthy it normally takes to discover a rhythm with a brand new company, he responded candidly: “In my experience, there’s usually about a six-month period where you might go through some growing pains, but you plan for that, and you do your best to keep communication very strong during that period.”

Mohnshine’s adventure to Hershey started at Kraft, which later turned into Mondelez, the place he honed his talents in logo technique and innovation. Based in Pennsylvania, he’s been with Hershey for almost 14 years now and has often ascended into one of the crucial influential advertising roles in American FMCG.

Operating in an unpredictable political local weather

In an age the place presidential coverage bulletins can arrive mid-tweet and price lists will also be imposed in a single day, contingency making plans is now not a back-office serve as – it’s a strategic necessity. How does Hershey get ready for a trade atmosphere that may shift as abruptly as a Trump-era commerce directive?

“We evaluate a lot of scenarios,” Mohnshine explains, with a wry smile. “Scenarios that may ultimately never come to pass. Constantly evaluating scenarios and broadening the range of possibilities within those scenarios. And some of it could have to do with government and law, some of it could have to do with consumers in the economy, some of it could have to do with the environment.”

“It’s really all of those factors that say, okay, here’s what the world may look like six, 12, 18 months from now, and how are we going to respond?”

AI and the selling renaissance

No fashionable advertising dialog is entire with out pertaining to AI. Mohnshine’s group started proactively mapping out the worth of synthetic intelligence a few years in the past, figuring out key use circumstances and trying out them throughout purposes.

“Some of those use cases center on consumer insights gathering. Some of them center on concept and innovation development and speed to market on that front. Some of them center on generative advertising, of course, and then also media deployment,” he mentioned.

He’s additionally the usage of AI to higher package deal advertising insights for inner stakeholders. “The summarisation, the packaging of information, making it very digestible for our sales teams to go to customers, is another area for us.”

Crucially, he sees company companions as collaborators on this AI adventure. “If someone – a partner – is happening to find success on that journey and wants to share it back, we’re certainly open to that. I would say the opposite is true as well.”

Up for the win

Despite the transferring tides, this night is a party. Hershey is nominated for 2 awards at The Drum Marketing Awards (Americas), together with popularity for its Reese’s Lava Super Bowl marketing campaign and its Shakalicious gummy release advanced in partnership with Shaquille O’Neal.

“We’ve been very excited with our Reese’s Lava launch, which is coming on the heels of the Reese’s Caramel launch, which was also a Super Bowl initiative for us in 2024,” mentioned Mohnshine. “We’ve seen really strong consumer response.”