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Baskin Robbins on Instacart 2025: Record ROAS and Category Growth

Driving 7.5x ROAS for Baskin-Robbins on Instacart

7.6X

ROAS (lifetime)

37%

New-to-Brand (recent)

LET'S WORK TOGETHER

Client & Market Overview

Boardwalk Frozen Treats is the master licensee for Baskin-Robbins ice cream products in grocery stores, bringing the beloved scoop shop experience to the frozen aisle. Operating in the highly competitive CPG frozen dessert category, they distribute a wide variety of Pints (e.g., Jamoca Almond Fudge) and Bars (e.g., Mint Chocolate Chip) to major retailers available via Instacart.

Marketing Challenge

With a crowded digital shelf and high cost-per-click environments in frozen foods, the brand needed to drive efficient sales volume while navigating the “learning phase” of ad algorithms. A key challenge was managing diverse product types—Pints versus Bars—which have different price points and consumer buying behaviors, often leading to inefficient spend when grouped together.

The Missing Ingredient (Insight)

Granularity unlocks efficiency. By uncoupling “Pints” and “Bars” into separate, optimized campaign structures rather than a single catch-all bucket, we could tailor bids to the specific margin and performance data of each format, maximizing ROAS for high-performers like Mint Chocolate Chip and Pralines ‘N Cream.

Services Deployed

  • Instacart Sponsored Products
  • Always-On Retail Media Activation
  • Ad Group Segmentation
  • Daily Bid Optimization

Campaign Impact

The campaign delivered exceptional efficiency immediately upon launch and sustained it through the optimization phase. In the initial July push alone, the strategy generated achieved a blended ROAS of 6.5x. Performance continued to improve, with weekly reports showing a peak ROAS of 7.5x in late September.

Crucially, this efficiency did not come at the expense of growth. The campaigns successfully drove customer acquisition, with New-to-Brand (NTB) sales consistently ranging between 33% and 44%, proving the ads were effectively reaching new households rather than just subsidizing existing buyers.

Execution Highlight

  • Format-Based Segmentation: Split campaigns into distinct “Bars” and “Pints” to allow for precise budget control and performance tracking.
  • Flavor-Level Optimization: Identified and scaled top ROAS drivers like Mint Chocolate Chip and Pralines ‘N Cream, while pausing underperforming SKUs when efficiency dipped, only relaunching them after strategic adjustments.
  • Dynamic Budgeting: actively managed daily spend based on “peaks and valleys,” such as a November relaunch with a focused spend split 70/30 between Pints and Bars to capitalize on winning trends.

Key Takeaways

  • Structure Dictates Performance: Separating product lines with different economics (Pints vs. Bars) is essential for maximizing return on ad spend.
  • Acquisition via Efficiency: High ROAS campaigns can still drive significant new-to-brand sales (up to 44%), debunking the myth that high efficiency only comes from retargeting loyalists.
  • Active Management Wins: Weekly monitoring of algorithm adjustments allowed the team to maintain a ROAS well above the standard 3-4x CPG benchmark.

Results

Baskin-Robbins’ Instacart strategy delivered sustained high-efficiency growth:

  • 7.5x Peak ROAS achieved during key campaign weeks.
  • 6.7x Sustained ROAS throughout the year.
  • 44% New-to-Brand Sales rate, significantly expanding the customer base.
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