Cadbury Dairy Milk pays homage to the unsung heroes behind the success of our beloved cricket stars with its #ThankYouFirstCoach campaign. Through a 2-part series of heart touching films, the campaign shines a spotlight on the mentors aka our beloved cricketer’s first coaches who were the first ones to recognize and nurture their talent from grassroots to grandeur.
Echoing the brand’s purpose of generosity, Cadbury Dairy Milk’s #ThankYouFirstCoach campaign features the coaches of cricketers Surya Kumar of Mumbai Indians (MI) and KL Rahul of Lucknow Super Giants (LSG), depicting their heartfelt tributes to their first coaches, who played pivotal roles in shaping their careers. From the vibrant streets to the electrifying stadiums, these films capture the profound gratitude and emotion exchanged between players and mentors. The campaign also encourages fans to participate by expressing gratitude to their own first coaches, highlighting the transformative power of appreciation in nurturing talent and fostering aspirations.
Over the years, Cadbury Dairy Milk has built on its core guiding principle of evoking generosity by regularly shining a spotlight on often unnoticed or unacknowledged people of the society. As #ThankYouFirstCoach sweeps across the nation, Cadbury Dairy Milk invites everyone to share in the sweetness of gratitude and recognize the profound impact of first coaches in shaping the future of cricket.
Commenting on the campaign, Nitin Saini, VP- Marketing, Mondelez India said, “Over the past few years, the marriage between cricket and generosity at the back of impactful story-doing has driven strong consumption growth and saliency for our brand. And the aim is to only accelerate this journey in 2024 with Cadbury Dairy Milk’s #ThankYouFirstCoach campaign epitomizing the brand’s purpose of ‘generosity’. Through this emotional odyssey, we not only celebrate the transformative power of gratitude but also champion the profound impact of these guiding lights in shaping dreams and fostering talent- the first risk takers, the first believers, the first mentors. As we honor the silent architects behind cricket’s success stories, we invite everyone to join us in this heartfelt tribute, embracing the sweetness of appreciation and the joy of acknowledging those who paved the way for greatness.”
Sukesh Nayak, Chief Creative Officer, Ogilvy India added “Cadbury Dairy Milk has been using the biggest cricketing event in the country, IPL, to shine the spotlight on those important aspects of the game that don’t get the due recognition. This year it’s the first coaches of the stars of cricket. Our starting point was a simple question, when fans cheer for the players every time they play their famous shots, do they really know who would have helped them develop that shot before they become popular? We simply wanted to acknowledge these GURUs of the game and nudge the country to thank them for their contribution towards the game, moreover towards turning our favorite players into stars.”