• by Larissa Faw , November 27, 2019

Snickers played the long-game to prank fans in France to reinforce the candy brand's tagline about not being oneself when he or she is hungry.

The #SnickersGate hoax, developed with CLM BBDO, first packaged and distributed Bounty bars in Snickers wrapping across French store shelves.

Unsuspecting buyers expressed their unhappiness across social media. Most assumed there was a goof inside the factory. In just a few hours the hashtag #SnickersGate went viral to spark over 20,000 interactions.

The candy brand let the stunt continue for 24 hours before finally letting their fans in on the switcheroo, with the spinoff tagline “We’re not us when we’re hungry”.

Now, Snickers is releasing a case study tracking the social media-fueled campaign to raise further awareness about the prank.

Parent company Mars Wrigley also emphasizes no consumers were put at risk as the allergens are the same for these two products. Bounty, similar to U.S.'s Mounds, is a coconut-filled treat wrapped in chocolate.