Reese’s partnered with Oreo for their spot, “The Biggest Drop,” a product launch designed to highlight the power of surprise brand collaborations. The 15-second ad leaned into Reese’s signature orange branding while spotlighting the new Reese’s-Oreo mashup.
The campaign behind this ad tapped into the momentum sparked by Taylor Swift’s announcement of a new album that launched the artist’s “Orange Era,” as announced on brand partners Jason and Travis Kelce’s New Heights podcast. Reese’s existing relationship with the podcast provided a natural tie-in that brought attention and excitement to the launch.
Ultimately, consumers were won over by the product itself. The Reese’s-Oreo combo sounded almost too good to pass up, and that excitement carried the campaign beyond its cultural hook. Reese’s stood out in a crowded moment and underscored the strong appetite for well-executed brand pairings.
Here’s what iSpot’s Creative Assessment platform revealed on actual viewer response to the :15 spot.
The Details:
- Despite a nod to Taylor Swift’s “Orange Era” which was unsurprisingly not caught by most viewers, Reese’s :15 “The Biggest Drop” was a standout in the candy & snacks category (past 90 days) based on the sheer pull of the product itself:
- While Reese’s unaided brand recall (open-end response) fell below normative levels, as a tie-in the ad performed well for both brands, with 63% recalling Reese’s and 67% recalling Oreo.
- Appeal was very strong across all age/gender audiences, leading to a positive intent rate +13 pts over category norms (Top 2 Box 73%).
- The spot also delivered above-norm breakthrough for the candy brand while viewer comments appreciated the Prodtastic new item as well as the humor. The ad worked even though many viewers did not seem to catch the multiple nods to the Taylor Swift announcement (the surveys were fielded after the 8/13/25 podcast.)
- While ties to Swift were not necessary for the success of this particular launch, the social chatter and level of attention earned will only push results even higher. Still, the Information on the new Reese’s Oreo (Change) placed the spot in the top percentile.
- While Reese’s unaided brand recall (open-end response) fell below normative levels, as a tie-in the ad performed well for both brands, with 63% recalling Reese’s and 67% recalling Oreo.
Sample comments on “The Biggest Drop” :15
“MAN!!! I had no clue this delightfully detailed, deliciously delectable invention existed UNTIL TODAY, please and thank you!!!”
Male 36-49
“The visual part was very good and informative. You were introducing Reece’s peanut butter cup into the Oreo cookie which looks very tasty and amazing. Good job on visuals. The music was also a good choice.”
Female 50+
“Yeah, so I did think to myself one time that Oreos and Reese’s should Collab and the fact that you guys did is crazy. I definitely will buy it if I see it in the store near me or online. I definitely will see what it feels like to try some.”
Male 21-35
“I am interested in the product shown and would very likely purchase it if I found it in stores or online.”
Female 16-20
“Ooh, another drop from Reese’s and this one’s a good one with Oreo cookies. Can’t wait to try it.”
Male 50+
“Oh my, I cannot wait to get my little hands on that sweet treat. It looks absolutely delicious. I would definitely want to try after seeing how it looked in the ad.”
Female 21-35
“It looked delicious and caught my attention. I wasn’t aware that Reese’s and Oreo make a product together.”
Male 16-20
“I think this combo is epic. It’s what everyone wanted and needed. I need this now!”
Female 16-20
“A Reese’s Oreo is so exciting. I had no idea. I am very excited. Such a cool ad.”
Male 21-35
“I like both the brands Oreo and Reese’s and I did not know that they were doing a collaboration on a snack cookie. I think that the Oreo and Reese’s combination will be great and I’m ready to try it.”
Male 36-49
“I’m excited for this collaboration. I think it would be delicious and fits perfectly with Reese’s branding.”
Female 21-35
- “The Biggest Drop” was the third best-received candy & snack ad of the past 90 days (amongst multiple M&M ads) but tied for best in driving consumer intent:
- M&M’s “Full of It” also featured the peanut butter and chocolate flavor combination but “The Biggest Drop” managed to outpace this ad in driving Top Box intent.
- Although not designed for linear and/or streaming, this creative could be expanded to air in these channels to maximize reach given the very encouraging results (assuming the brand has production capacity).
- M&M’s “Full of It” also featured the peanut butter and chocolate flavor combination but “The Biggest Drop” managed to outpace this ad in driving Top Box intent.
- To analyze the persuasiveness of Reese’s advertisements, a model was created using three years of Reese’s historical ad data. The model breaks down the key creative KPIs that drive stronger consideration within the gen pop audience:
- The Optimal Profile below (on the right side of the chart in blue) reveals that Likeability and Relevance have historically been the key creative aspects that have set more persuasive Reese’s ads apart.
- Information, Change, and Attention were also contributive but to a lesser extent. This is not to say that Reese’s ads are not necessarily informative, but rather, Information was not a strongly distinguishing characteristic of higher intent creatives.
- “The Biggest Drop” did not follow the historical approach in terms of breakthrough (reflecting the different strategy for other/social media channels); however, it significantly outpaced on Change and Information as well as Relevance, leading to an expected purchase intent impact that still placed higher vs historical Reese’s ads (presented by its placement in the upper right hand quadrant, on the left side of the chart).
- The strength of the new product tie-in was enough to blow viewers away and motivate them to purchase.
- The Optimal Profile below (on the right side of the chart in blue) reveals that Likeability and Relevance have historically been the key creative aspects that have set more persuasive Reese’s ads apart.
“The Biggest Drop” shows how Reese’s continues to balance creativity with consumer demand, delivering an unexpected campaign that feels fresh while staying true to its brand identity. By pairing a bold new product with eye-catching creative capitalizing on current events, Reese’s and Oreo not only captured attention but also set the stage for what could be one of the most talked-about snack launches of the year.
Schedule a demo to find out how your brand can partner with iSpot to quickly solve both challenges simultaneously, delivering high-performing creative while boosting the effectiveness of planning and in-market execution to achieve—and outperform—campaign objectives.
Creative Agency: Anomaly & Universal McCann (UM)