During the peak of the holiday season — when Out-Of-Office replies flood inboxes worldwide — KitKat and Publicis Middle East launch a first-of-its-kind campaign that turns one of the most ignored workplace rituals into a brand new ad space. The idea: use Out-Of-Office auto replies as a vehicle for redeemable breaks with KitKat.
The campaign, aptly named RE: Auto Reply_Break, transforms the dreaded OOO reply into a surprisingly joyful ad — created entirely in ASCII art and monospaced font to bypass firewalls and render flawlessly across platforms, devices, and even dark or light modes. All built using nothing but keyboard characters, it’s a throwback to a simpler internet age. Each reply includes a redeemable promo code within the design for a free KitKat via InstaShop, the region’s leading grocery app.
And they don’t just send one message — they send thousands of them. Each email is uniquely crafted, featuring playful, personalized “OOO scenarios” ranging from fishing trips and beachside retreats to alien invasions, cat attacks, and more. These bizarre replies are practically a break that keeps on giving. Because the brilliance of this method is that the messages spread naturally. Automatically forwarded. Personally passed on –– like any email is — turning every OOO reply into an ad KitKat doesn’t pay for. From one inbox to the next.
“We don’t just find a new placement,” says Bana Salah, Creative Director at Publicis Middle East. “We discover a media channel hidden in plain sight — one that’s personal, scalable, and used and seen by employees worldwide every single day.”
And while it launches in December, the platform remains open for every break in the calendar. With summer holidays fast approaching, KitKat invites employees across the region to log off with an auto reply that’s actually worth reading for the receiver.
Visit https://www.nestle-family.com/en/KitKatooo
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