Why Gelato Messina’s Game of Thrones marketing campaign hits all the right notes

Gelato Messina will unveil a new Game of Thrones-inspired gelato flavour every Monday over the next five weeks in a bid to tap into Australians’ love affair with HBO’s popular television series.

The ‘Game of Cones’ campaign last night saw cult gelato brand unveil the “Ramsey Bolton’ – a white chocolate and hazelnut gelato creation with pieces of mud cake.

To top it off, gelato lovers were able to receive the Game of Thrones flavour without having to brave wintery weather, thanks to free food delivery service Foodora.

Declan Lee, co-owner of Gelato Messina, told SmartCompany this isn’t the first time his business has made Game of Thrones-inspired gelato.

However, he says this is the first time a new flavour will be released each week.

“I’d like to think there’s some great, magic marketing theory behind it, but the truth is we’re just all big Game of Thrones fans,” Lee says.

“One of the things about our business is we’re quite nimble, because we make everything ourselves. Because we make everything ourselves, we can do whatever we want.”

And just in case you were getting your hopes up for a Red Wedding flavour, hold onto your ice scream spoons – at least for now.

“What would that taste like?” Lee asks.

“It’s not to say we wouldn’t do it, it’s just at the moment the flavours are based off characters.”

Why the Game of Cones campaign is genius 

Michelle Gamble, chief executive of Marketing Angels, told SmartCompany the Game of Cones marketing campaign is so clever it could have been cooked up by Olenna Tyrell herself.

“It taps into popular culture and it’s something people feel extremely passionate about,” Gamble says.

“It’s a great way to get people to try something new and to introduce new customers to Gelato Messina. They’re competing with all those chocolate brands spending millions of dollars on expensive ads on free to air television during those prime-time spots, but these guys have a much cleverer way of doing it.”

Nicole Reaney, founder of InsideOut PR, agrees.

“Game of Thrones is the most watched series in Australian subscription television history,” Reaney says.

“It’s smashing rating figures for Foxtel.”

However, Reaney points out Gelato Messina will now have to keep Game of Thrones fans engaged so as to not lose traction from competitors who also jump on the Westeros bandwagon.

“The concept itself does leave it vulnerable for multiple brands to copycat,” she says.

“Once you have multiple companies playing on a particular theme, consumers tire and the campaign loses its appeal.”