When it talks to its retail customers, the conversation turns to leveraging the popularity of the Mars brands. The ice cream sales team piggybacks off the candy brands. Mars talks to retailers about moving shoppers through a store from the candy aisle to the freezer case. On-pack messages are used to promote the company’s other novelties.

Taking care of customers comes down to three things, says Hall, the general manager. Mars must offer quality products, and deliver them on time with a high level of service. The ice cream division does not offer exclusive products to retailers, but it does tailor them to the channel. For example, for the “impulse” channel (Mars’ term for c-stores), a 2.8-ounce Milky Way bar is packaged as a single SKU; grocery stores are offered a six-count box of 2-ounce bars. Dollar store customers can buy a five-count value box of the popular Snickers Ice Cream Bar.

Marketing and advertising

The company advertises on television, in print and online. It uses special events to generate public relations buzz. A “Summer Movie Mania” promotion will run from June to August this year, offering consumers a chance to score movie tickets for a year in an instant-win game. A future-consumption program has consumers receiving $9 in movie cash when they purchase three bags of Mars products. The program is offered in club, c-store, drug, grocery and mass channels. Mars is supporting the initiative with free-standing inserts, coupon tear pads, and in-store merchandising, including counter units, floorstands and pallets.

Last summer, Mars sent an “adults only” ice cream truck to Baltimore, Chicago and Minneapolis to promote its Dovebar Ice Cream. Entry into the trucks was limited to those 18 years or older. The trucks offered massages and nail treatments (as well as ice cream) to appeal to a mostly female audience. Former Dancing With The Stars contestant Ralph Macchio (“Karate Kid” and “My Cousin Vinnie”) appeared at some events. Mars sent the trucks to certain Target stores as well.

Another retail partnership involved 7-Eleven stores. That promotion offered a coupon for an ice cream SKU with the purchase of a Slurpee. A 2010 sweepstakes centered around Dove Ice Cream Miniatures awarded a grand-prize trip to Napa Valley, Calif., and lesser prizes, including spa services for a year and a home makeover.

Snickers Ice Cream is an official sponsor of the National Football League and will be featured at the 2012 Super Bowl. A 2010 sweepstakes offered a grand prize three-day trip to an NFL training camp and one-on-one time with a player. Prizes in a related instant-win game included a Madden NFL 11 prize pack from EA Sports, a Canon camera and Visa prepaid debit cards.

For a company whose origins are rooted in candy, it might seem odd that it has nutrition on its mind. But in fact, the corporate office has a website (www.marshealthyeating.com) devoted to healthy eating. For its part, the ice cream group made the decision to produce novelties with 250 calories or fewer. While the novelties appeal to children and adults, Mars knows that moms are making the purchase decision in grocery stores. By lowering calorie count and offering portion-controlled sizes, Mars works to gain the approval of these gatekeepers of the freezer. The Dove Ice Cream Miniatures are 90-calorie novelties for snacking. “These are like fun-size candy bars,” Thompson says.