Published by Sue Johns-Chapman
Published Date 21.05.2025 
We’re small, scrappy, and strategic – a boutique agency with a global mindset and a deep belief that good ideas beat big budgets. Which is why we’re beyond proud to have taken home the award for Best Use of Social Media for FMCG at the Global Social Media Awards for the second year in a row.
At Dawning Digital, we prove that a small agency can deliver impactful results. With a global team scattered across time zones, we deliver results that cut through the noise and drive real impact. This year’s award-winning work with AriZona Europe brought hyper-local strategy to life in over 20 countries, transforming scrolls into sales and viral moments into retail momentum.
“We thought this was an excellent example of hyper-localised social activation, seamlessly tapping into trends while achieving real commercial success.”
- Global Social Media Awards Judges Panel
The Vision
AriZona is more than a drink. It’s a globally recognised design icon. We knew from the start that the visual DNA of AriZona – blending vintage Americana with Japanese minimalism and streetwear-inspired boldness – was its own kind of language. One that resonated with Gen Z and millennials across Europe. So, our strategy focused on amplifying that visual identity across every touchpoint while making sure it spoke locally.
The Challenge: Make Every Scroll Count
The goal? Close the gap between digital engagement and in-store action.
Instead of a one-size-fits-all approach, we designed country-specific ads reflecting regional pricing, retail behavior, and supermarket branding. Through 16 geotargeted ad strategies, we adapted content to local languages and cultural nuances – from promoting Germany’s iconic €0.99 price point to running Amazon conversion campaigns in the UK and launching supermarket-branded activations in Poland.
We embedded AriZona into trending TikTok formats, meme culture, and aesthetic moments – creating content that made people laugh, double-tap, and then head to their nearest store.
Local Execution, Global Energy
In Germany, we celebrated AriZona’s 99-cent pricing by tapping into local humour and anti-inflation sentiment, translating a key U.S. brand story for a European audience. In the UK, we launched two distinct traffic campaigns – one for the core drink line and another for the AriZona x Fallout Energy collab – to drive Amazon sales. In Spain, we ran seasonal campaigns that positioned AriZona as the essential summer refreshment, timing our ads to coincide with peak foot traffic. In the Netherlands, we partnered with the local distributor to promote a roller disco activation, crafting nostalgic, aesthetic-forward content and launching a giveaway of coveted U.S. merch. In Poland, we focused on supermarket reach, running national campaigns featuring branding from key retailers like Żabka to drive direct foot traffic to stores.
Altogether, we ran more than thirty geotargeted campaigns, each tailored to the behaviors, language, and culture of its audience.
Turning Hurdles Into Momentum
Running a pan-European campaign for a U.S. based brand presented a number of challenges, from localizing creative across languages and currencies to adapting to different shopping behaviors. We tackled this by working hand-in-hand with regional distributors, ensuring that our campaigns remained relevant and nuanced without losing brand cohesion. By segmenting our paid media by country, we were able to make every euro work harder.
Rather than competing with the noise of traditional FMCG marketing, we leaned into culturally fluent, interactive storytelling. Through trendjacking, gamified content, and daily community engagement, we transformed AriZona into more than a product – it became a brand people wanted to participate in.
And when ad budgets tightened, we didn’t pull back – we optimized. In 2024, we spent 20% less on paid media than we did the previous year, while still delivering stronger engagement and wider reach.
The Results
This campaign didn’t just hit KPIs – it exceeded them. Our audience more than doubled over the year, and our engagement rate skyrocketed, with an impressive 293% increase across Instagram and TikTok.
On TikTok, our following increased by 156% with a cost per follower of €0.45, a 17% decrease from the previous year. We saw a growth rate of 324% for accounts engaged, while overall reach on the platform increased by 75%. On Instagram, our engagement increased by more than 1,000% while our cost per engagement was a low €0.003, well below the industry average. In the UK, our campaigns triggered a 300% spike in Amazon traffic. Meanwhile, our Instagram cost per reach dropped by 40%, proving that precision targeting and strong creative go a long way.
What This Win Means To Us
This win isn’t just a trophy – it’s a celebration of our process. It’s proof that a small team can do big things when it cares deeply, thinks boldly, and moves with intention. We’re proud to be reshaping what a creative agency can look like – and what it can achieve. We’re honoured to be recognized again for our work with AriZona Europe, and we’re already looking forward to what comes next.
Here’s to pushing creative boundaries, crafting culture-forward campaigns, and turning digital moments into real-world results!
