Forget energy drinks: chocolate milk is the ‘performance beverage’ of TwitchCon
Got game? To get gen Z gamers drinking more milk, MilkPep is meeting them where they’re at: sponsoring their favorite streamers at TwitchCon and releasing video game-inspired content on TikTok.
MilkPep’s setup at TwitchCon 2022 / Credit: MilkPep
Move over, soda and energy drinks, for the next big gamer drink: chocolate milk.
‘You’re gonna need milk’ went live today at TwitchCon, a three-day convention running from October 7-9 in San Diego. MilkPep’s experiential activation puts some of the platform’s most popular livestreamers – QTCinderella, Ninjayla and Hungrybox – head-to-head in a live competition, while they promote the performance benefits of milk to their audience. The campaign was created by MilkPep, an organization funded by America’s milk companies that encourages the consumption of milk, along with the Stagwell-owned creative agency Gale.
To kick it off, MilkPep first enlisted fantasy sculptor and Twitch streamer CNotBusch to create a stunning chocolate milk-themed trophy for the winner. Each player will have 30 seconds to hit as many light-up buttons as they can and move their milk up the neon straws behind them. The first player to reach the top of the straw, or hit the most light circles, will be deemed the winner. They will be announced on October 9 at 3pm PT.
Tune in for some epicness. See y'all in chat. https://t.co/DBvS1a0aGe
— Milk (@GonnaNeedMilk) October 4, 2022
MilkPep also released a humorous 15-second spot on TikTok that shows a gamer girl breaking a refrigerator open to earn a bottle of coveted chocolate milk.
@gonnaneedmilk Chocolate Milk = The Performance Drink of Gamers. Going to #TwitchCon? See you there #gaming #chocolatemilk #gonnaneedmilk #fyp ♬ original sound - Milk
“My mission has always been to modernize milk and position it in a more relevant and contemporary way,” said Yin Woon Rani, chief executive officer at MilkPep. “It’s a fabulous product. [The amount] of nutritional value that it offers is very superior to almost anything I’ve worked in ... I think it needs some help celebrating that as well as finding its place in culture today.”
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The strategy leans into milk’s history of powering athletes for thousands of years. “Gaming really has come into its own as a sport, with nearly as many league endorsement deals as actual athletes,” added Lindsey Brand, creative director at Gale. “The creators are earning six figures and the space is becoming bigger and bigger, especially with gen Z and millennial audiences, so we knew we had to get into that space.”
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’You’re gonna need milk’ isn’t aimed solely at “gamers who play Call of Duty every single night, nor athletes who bench press 300 pounds” said Brand. “It’s also about mobile gamers that play on the Switch ... [celebrating their] speed and coordination, being able to hit that button at the right time to get that shot at the last minute. It’s just a different type of consumer that milk can also speak to.”
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So far ’You’re gonna need milk’ has been well received by the gaming community. “They love the fact that their favorite streamers are getting sponsored, making money and doing things. They’re embracing it,” said Brand. “On a stream for Hungrybox ... his whole chat was blowing up with people saying ‘gonna need milk’ over and over again.”
The effort is not the first time MilkPep has entered the gaming space. It integrated with Roblox last year as well. The two activations represent steps towards reaching MilkPep’s new target audience. “We are adopting a more agile marketing approach,” said Rami. “I feel pretty confident in saying that you should watch the gaming space ... We’re big believers in piloting, testing, learning and expanding, so I think gaming is a pretty safe bet.”