Nutella’s marketing team seizes the moment to take brand to new heights

Most of the time, brands and their marketing/PR teams need to work hard to create branding opportunities. Occasionally, though, a once-in-lifetime opportunity just floats unexpectedly into view. 

So it was for the marketing team at Nutella, the chocolate-hazelnut spread owned by Italian company Ferrero, when a jar of their product just happened to float into camera shot during a broadcast from NASA’s Artemis II spacecraft during its lunar flyby. 

This remarkable marketing moment lasted only six seconds and was entirely unplanned, given that NASA does not allow product placements in these situations. But it was time enough for social media to light up with comments and jokes, and for the Nutella marketers to seize the moment. 

Further than any spread in history 

The brand shared video on its social media platforms of the jar floating around the spacecraft, commenting: “Honoured to have travelled further than any spread in history. Taking spreading smiles to new heights.” 

NASA’s Artemis II crew travelled further from Earth than any other astronauts in history during their lunar flyby on 6 April, as they surpassed the record first set during the 1970 Apollo 13 mission. 

“The six-second video of the chocolate-hazelnut spread captured the attention of netizens, earning the iconic treat a literal ‘over the moon’ moment,” commented European Supermarket Magazine. 

Noted the marketing industry news site Famous Campaigns: “The moment was not planned, but it quickly took on a life of its own online, where viewers framed it as a perfectly timed piece of free exposure. As clips spread across social media, the cameo gave Nutella a cultural moment few snack brands could hope to script.” 

According to NASA spokesperson Bethany Stevens, the agency does not select crew meals or food in association with brand partnerships. “This was not a product placement,” she said. 

You can watch a YouTube video of Nutella’s once-in-a-lifetime opportunity here.