Marketing Morsels: M&M’s Become Ma&Ya’s, Twix’s Snowboard and More

Welcome to Marketing Morsels, Adweek’s weekly sampling of the most delectable brand stunts and campaigns we saw this week (but weren’t able to cover elsewhere). This week, discover offerings from M&M’s, Coca-Cola, Twix and more. Enjoy the assortment!

Morsel #1: Are Ma&Ya’s a Super Bowl stunt?

Most of the internet will have heard or seen by now that M&M’s has decided to pause with its spokescandies in favor of turning to comedian Maya Rudolph—but it also claims to have rebranded to become Ma&Ya’s and placed her face on an M&M as well. The brand released this video showing her announcing the supposed name change. Smart money is on this being a Super Bowl stunt, but still no official word yet.

Morsel #2: Coca-Cola’s family of rabbits celebrate Chinese New Year

With the passing of Chinese New Year, we have entered the Year of the Rabbit, which Coca-Cola jumped on to celebrate in a new animated campaign featuring a family of furry critters as they reunite for dinner.

The rabbit is seen to be the luckiest of the 12 animals represented by Chinese zodiac signs, and Coca-Cola hopes to have struck luck with this one-minute animated film. It focuses on the grandparents of a family of rabbits as they come together to celebrate the holiday, with them all enjoying their meal together over a can or bottle of the brand.

Morsel #3: Twix takes its new cookie dough snowboarding for the X Games

Timed to the X Games in Aspen, Colo., Twix has teamed up with snowboarder and Olympian Maddie Mastro to create a splitboard—a snowboard that can come apart to make two skis—inspired by its new Twix Cookie Dough. Mastro will design one half, while fans can enter designs to be featured on the other half, with 100 of the winning design available in a giveaway come spring.

Morsel #4: Maybelline and Winnie Harlow touch the sky

Maybelline New York is taking the name of its Sky High Mascara literally in a campaign starring model and activist Winnie Harlow, who went skydiving over NYC with the makeup in hand. The campaign emphasizes the product’s high impact and the fearlessness of its audience.

Morsel #5: Would you drink this Hormel Chili Cheese-inspired beer?

Hormel Chili and Modist Brewing Co. teamed up to create a beer brewed with chili cheese-inspired spices that aims to pair with the brand’s gameday snack staple. The limited-edition beer, which launches on Jan. 24 in time for the Super Bowl, is being sold for $24 via a dedicated website.

Morsel #6: Puppies grow in pumpkins in Nutro’s adorable new campaign

Pet food brand Nutro has launched its first campaign in three years with BBDO. The campaign, called “Let’s Grow Healthy Pets,” sets up pet health food as a heart-meltingly adorable metaphor of picking furry friends from patches of veggies and fruit, hatching puppies from eggs and more.

Morsel #7: Barilla’s Valentine’s Day pasta comes with a full-blown romantic getaway

Ahead of Valentine’s Day, Barilla is feeling the love with heart-shaped pasta as part of its Barilla Love Pasta Kit—as well as offering customers a shot at taking their loved one on a romantic vacation to Italy. Fans who visit BarillaLove.com can enter to win airfare, hotel, tours, experiences and more in Parma and Florence.

Morsel #8: This matcha brand cha chas into Web3 with Hang

Matcha brand Cha Cha Matcha has launched a first-of-its-kind Web3-powered loyalty program through Hang, a membership platform that enables brands to generate points and rewards for in-store and online purchases. The platform doesn’t require cryptocurrencies to sign up, but instead uses email and credit card registration with rewards including event tickets, merch, product drops and sweepstakes for vacations.

Morsel #9: Gatorade’s Fast Twitch energizes brands to run through the Super Bowl stadium tunnel

To accompany the launch of its first-ever energy drink, Fast Twitch, the brand will select fans who make the best videos of themselves running and send them to Super Bowl 57, where the winners will be able to run through the stadium tunnel that NFL players usually use to take the field.