Reaching a high-intent, high-spending target audience using a data-driven content and UGC strategy

Whether for birthdays, celebrations, or just as a surprise: few gifts are as popular as chocolate. With myRitterSport—a project from the well-known chocolate manufacturer Ritter Sport—customers can make their chocolate bars even more personal by customizing the wrappers. There are two product categories to choose from: classic 100g bars and mini-sized bars, both of which can be personalized with your own photos, symbols, and messages.

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The primary goal of myRitterSport was to build awareness for this new business unit, increase sales, and achieve the target ROAS. A key priority was acquiring new customers—in this case, primarily women, as they are often the ones planning occasions and celebrations like birthdays, weddings, etc., and are on the lookout for a sweet gift or party favor.

Since myRitterSport had not previously been active on social media, the partnership began with an entry into the Meta platforms Facebook and Instagram. Given the defined target audience (older and female), the advertising focus was primarily on Facebook. Special attention in the ads was given to the myRitterSport Minis, as they achieve a higher average order value (AOV) and appeal perfectly to this specific target group.

To achieve the desired outcomes, our Paid Media team worked closely with the Paid Content team to set up a comprehensive testing campaign. This approach included several key elements:

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1. Creative synergies

In our content strategy, we leverage the strong recognition of the traditional Ritter Sport brand to build trust and interest among the target audience. At the same time, we experimented with fresh, innovative elements in UGC and static ads to highlight the uniqueness of myRitterSport. This balanced approach allowed us to maintain brand integrity while exploring new creative paths.

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2. Performance-based ASC+ campaign

As soon as ads in the testing campaign reached the predefined ROAS threshold, we used these best performers for an Advantage+ Shopping Campaign. Instead of uploading them as new ads, we copied the post while retaining the post ID. This method allowed us to preserve engagement, existing comments, and thus the strong social proof.

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3. Data-driven decision-making

Through post-purchase surveys conducted after myRitterSport orders, we gained deeper insights into customer preferences and needs. Specifically, we were able to identify the occasions for which the personalized chocolate was most frequently gifted. Based on these findings, we adjusted our communication strategy and focused our messaging and content on these events. This data-driven approach allowed us to specifically address the needs of the target audience and increase the relevance of our advertising messages.

A key element of the campaign was the use of User Generated Content (UGC)—a single video featuring emotional storytelling about an elderly couple generated over 300 comments and contributed significantly to scaling the campaign. Despite the current skepticism surrounding UGC, this example perfectly demonstrates that genuine emotions, a focus on emotional moments, and authentic content—even if they appear slightly unpolished or rough—can resonate strongly with the target audience.