Brief
Seasonal refresh of Candy Crush Soda Saga marketing creative across static and video. The first time the team worked with external agencies onseasonal refresh.
The Challenge
Two agencies were brought in – one for static, one for video – because the static agency didn't have video capability. The job was to deliver a single coherent seasonal look across both, while holding both partners to Candy Crush Soda's strict brand guidelines.
Approach
The kickoff set the tone. I led the session, bringing both agencies together with the games team, CRM team, and producer. The goal was to align everyone on the seasonal direction, the brand, and the process before any creative began.
Working with the static agency (UK)
Understood the brand from the start, receptive to feedback, and worked quickly. The static work moved fast and stayed on-brand throughout.
In Game Pop Up – Autumn Season kick off
In Game Pop Up – Autumn Season Winner
In Game Pop Up – Autumn Season time is up
Push Notification – Reach level 5 to start earning boosters
Cross Promo Ads – Earn Boosters
Cross Promo Ads – Gameboard creative
Working with the video agency (US)
Was harder. Time zone friction limited meeting windows. Game mechanics were wrong in early cuts, so I produced a cheat sheet on the mechanics as a reference rather than relying on feedback rounds to surface the same issues. It helped but didn’t fully solve it – animation detail still needed many rounds before the video landed. The video reached the required standard after extensive art direction rounds.
Outcome
One of the more successful seasonal refreshes the team ran. The campaign delivered coherent creative across static and video – the first time the team had managed both through external agencies simultaneously.