Gen Z doesn’t get milk.
According to a report in the New York Times, in 2023, Gen Zers bought 20% less milk than the national average. A ’90s nostalgia-soaked campaign from Les Producteurs de lait du Quebec (PLQ), in collaboration media agency Touché! and creative shop Lg2, hopes to change that, at least in Quebec.
The French campaign, “Filtré par le Lait (Filtered by Milk),” plays on the generation’s love for things from the 1990s and 2000s. It features a “Milkeye” digital filter, created with Rodeo FX and Consulat. The glass-of-milk-inspired prism will allow users to personalize their selfies on TikTok, Snapchat and Instagram.
“Seventy-one percent of Quebecers say they drink a glass of milk every day, so it’s clear it still occupies a special place in their diets,” says Julie Gélinas, marketing director, PLQ. “Our local dairy farmers wanted to promote our flagship product to all ages, so they were keen to understand the values and preferences of 16- to 24-year-olds.”
Gélinas tells MiC that they consulted with Gen Z producers throughout the campaign to gather their feedback. “Capturing the attention of Gen Z is quite a challenge. They reject or ignore anything resembling product promotion,” says François Sauvé, executive creative director, LG2.
“To earn their attention, the campaign had to be rooted in an aesthetic that appealed to them, elicit endorsement from other Gen Zs… and fit seamlessly into their media consumption habits. By introducing them to the Milkeye filter along with endorsements by public figures they identify with, we can become a part of their daily lives and put the brand directly in their hands.”
The campaign will transform a bus shelter in Montreal into a giant photo booth, allowing young Montrealers to use the Milkeye filter. “What was a 100% digital experience became a physical experience where Gen Z in turn became brand ambassadors with their photos being rebroadcast on our panels,” Gabrielle Côté, media director, Touché says.
Along with the Milkeye filter, eight influencers were given carte blanche to create spots about their love of milk. These 60- and 30-second behind-the-scenes videos will run across Quebec on social media, OOH, and as pre-roll on streaming platforms Netflix, Disney+ and Prime Video.
“To make sure that our campaign has an impact, we capitalized on several touchpoints… out-of-home being one of the key mediums to reach them in their daily path,” explains Côté. “Most of all, this was our first campaign uniquely dedicated to reaching Gen Z so we needed to diversify and amplify our marketing channels.”
Sponsorship at music festivals this summer will also feature a unique collaboration with multidisciplinary artist Gab Bois, who will create practical festival totes reminiscent of the classic milk bag. Finally, Noovo will dedicate one night to reviving the iconic MusiquePlus music channel of the late 1990s.
“MusiquePlus was an icon of the 90s-2000s in Quebec and we couldn’t do a campaign around nostalgia without bringing back the TV channel,” Côté says. “We proposed the idea of recreating the channel for an evening. Bell was excited from day one and supported us immensely in developing the idea and transforming this dream into reality.”
Despite all of the campaign facets, Gélinas says because it’s so targeted toward Gen Z, the cost of the campaign was relatively modest.
“Three quarters of 16- to 24-year-olds think that advertising is intrusive. Our biggest challenge was to respect the conventions of a generation that sets its own advertising standards,” Côté says. “We had to insert ourselves into popular environments among our target audience and appeal to them without being annoying. By rolling out with a high-impact influencer component and a presence at multiple events, we put everything in place to connect with their interests and actual habits.”
