Old photograph of a man in shades and a suit riding an old fashioned scooter. There's a signature with the text, "Salerno, 1957" in the corner.

Mr. Espresso

Authentic Italian Espresso

Oakland, CA

SERVICES

Content Development
Social Media Advertising
Art Direction

With a cult-like following and a reputation as the standard-bearer for authentic Italian espresso, this second-generation family-owned specialty coffee brand tapped our team to help reach a new audience of coffee enthusiasts, both novice and expert alike. In a crowded marketplace, the legacy and superior quality of Mr. Espresso coffee needed a way to capture attention and cut through the noise.

"Taste an Espresso Decades in the Making" multiple fonts on a plain background
Mr. Espresso Roasted Coffee Beans Packaging on a blank background
Three instagram posts showing Mr. Espresso branding and packaging
"Authentic Italian Style Espresso" type with coffee bag products

With a focus on decades of experience and superior product, our team crafts strategic messaging and attention-grabbing content that highlights the different ways Mr. Espresso has skillfully adapted an Old World tradition to meet modern tastes. Weaving together distinct product features with the unique and charming history of the Mr. Espresso brand, we develop content that resonates with a variety of audiences by creating immediate emotional connections with the viewer. Strategic ad placement and management continues to grow brand awareness driving website traffic and revenue month over month.

"Espresso Yourself" text above three espresso machines, Mr. Espresso logo below
"Decades in the Making" text overlays a vintage photo of the founder with his arm around his son on a boardwalk with people, buildings, and mountains in the background
A pile of several coffee bean packages artfully arranged on an espresso-colored background
"A specialty coffee experience with ultimate convenience" text with coffee imagery in a 1x1 instagram post size
"Taste an espresso decades in the making" text overlays a photo of coffee beans with Mr. Espresso logo
"Your daily cold brew just got easier" text next to single-serve packets of Mr. Espresso coffee
Three banner ad graphics on iPhones

In order to strengthen brand affinity and drive online sales, our team has developed a paid advertising strategy that incorporates a full funnel, multi-layer advertising approach catered to new and existing customers. Driving awareness and conversions for both espresso and machines, we tailor audiences and content to speak to the individual journey of each consumer segment. To ensure Mr. Espresso is using creative and messaging that resonates most with these audiences, A/B tests are completed on an ongoing basis to determine nuances that lead to a greater ROI, informing our ongoing ad optimizations.

The campaign has garnered nearly 3 million impressions and thousands of conversions throughout its duration, and Mr. Espresso continues to experience an increase in the number of conversions and overall revenue.


Holiday Campaign 2023 —

There's no better time than the holiday season to give a taste of true Italian espresso to the coffee lovers in one's life. To drive increased awareness and sales, we worked with the Mr. Espresso team to concept, name and develop a range of special seasonal gifts sets. Five unique offerings were developed, ranging from a limited-edition holiday coffee blend, the Caffè Festivio, to a taste of the sweet life with a La Dolce Vita set which included the Caffè Festivio coffee blend and Panettone from renowned Sicilian bakeshop Fiasconaro, a Buone Feste set which included a Bialetti Moka pot, a signature espresso blend and set of espresso cups, and range of subscription options and classic Italian Holiday Trio set. 

To bring the holiday kits to life across the Mr. Espresso website and social media channels our team art directed a holiday photoshoot for the gift sets including prop sourcing and creative direction. The resulting eye-catching, scroll-stopping photography brought a sophisticated festiveness to the kits through the use of lush fabrics and rich hues that echoed the notes and flavors found across the Mr. Espresso signature oak wood roasted blends.

A holiday coffee bean package sits on a satin copper-colored bolt of fabric
Holiday stop motion animation of a hand pouring espresso next to a bag of Mr. Espresso coffee beans set on a table with gift boxes amongst a ruffled copper satin fabric and velvet emerald green curtains in the background.
Gold ribbon gift boxes with an open box containing three coffee bean bags in the foreground as a hand reaches for the middle bag

A holiday-specific paid social media campaign was launched to drive sales of the seasonal gift sets, with each set having a dedicated ad with unique creative and messaging. Garnering 80k impressions and dozens of sales within a few weeks, the campaign provided relevant insight into the interests and habits of Mr. Espresso’s target audience during the holiday season.

A holiday still life featuring coffee bean package, espresso maker, gift boxes, and espresso cups on copper satin fabric and emerald velvet curtains in the background.
A Caffe Festivo coffee bean bag paired with a panettone on a bolt of copper fabric in front of a dark green velvet backdrop
Caffe Festivo bag of coffee beans propped on top of copper satin bolt of fabric

Photography: Hardy Wilson