Oatly is a brand that’s taken copywriting & ran with it. Made their tone of voice their own. And made the brand stand out in a competitive market.

From their packaging & socials to their website & stunning out-of-house campaigns, they really do know what they’re doing & who they’re talking to.

Let’s dive into Oatly’s copywriting strategies, the impact on brand awareness & the cult following they've amassed.

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💡 Unconventional brand voice

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Their copywriting is characterised by playful irreverence & a willingness to challenge established conventions already in the dairy industry. The copy is daring & catches your attention. It makes you want to read the side of a milk carton.

For example, they used copy like “It’s like milk, but made for humans.” & "Wow, no cow.”.

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See, now you want to read the side of a milk carton, don’t you?

This copywriting approach generated a passionate & loyal following. Their irreverent brand voice resonated with a younger, eco-conscious audience who appreciated the honesty & humour in their marketing.

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📝 Telling a story through copy

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Oatly's copywriting focuses on telling the story of the brand & its commitment to sustainability.

They highlight their dedication to minimising environmental impact, such as water usage & carbon emissions, in a compelling and relatable way.

The brand’s disruptive, storytelling approach made on impact through out-of-house advertising too. They ran ads that openly critiqued the dairy industry & drew attention to the benefits of oat milk in a straightforward, no-nonsense way.

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This unorthodox approach significantly boosted Oatly's brand awareness. The brand became a household name quickly, especially among those looking to reduce their dairy consumption or switch to plant-based alternatives.

🪄 Being social

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On social media, their ability to maintain a two-way conversation with their customers is a key aspect of their content strategy.

The humorous, non-conventional approach to copywriting follows through to their online content too. They keep it direct with no-nonsense, like in the example below.

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This has resulted in the brand’s social media engagement levels being off the charts. They have a knack for producing shareable content that encourages user interaction, good or bad.

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🤔 Where does witty go wrong?

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Sometimes a witty & irreverent tone doesn’t work, conveys the wrong message & needs a little more thought behind it.

When Oatly received backlash for being backed by Blackstone, they reacted by creating the website fckoatly.com which highlights all the controversies around the brand & their response to them.

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They missed the mark with this, they launched it to respond to the mistakes they've made in their business practices. And they stuck to their usual tone of voice but here, it comes off a tad bitter & rude. Not in keeping with their usual style.

An “oops, we spilt the milk” style cheeky apology works well for trivial things like sending an email out wrong or a spelling mistake on social but when we’re talking real-world impact, it really dilutes the response.

In conclusion, Oatly offers a masterclass in disruptive copywriting. By daring to challenge established norms & engage their audience with humour & transparency, they’ve created a brand that transcended its product.

This illustrates the transformative power of copywriting in building a brand that’s not just memorable but also evokes a strong emotional response. Oatly is a testament to the effectiveness of storytelling, transparency & an authentic brand voice in carving a niche in a competitive market.

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Key takeaways

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👉 Understand your audience. Oatly knows their key audience is a younger, eco-conscious demographic who appreciate honesty & humour so that’s what they offer.

👉 Stick to your tone of voice. This is what makes your brand unique & identifiable in a cramped market. But make sure you’re conscious of the topic you’re communicating.

👉 Be different. Don’t do the same as everyone else, Oatly showcases how being slightly (very) unconventional & witty worked in their favour in a traditionally boring marketplace.  

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