I love seeing brands breaking the trade off between functional and emotional benefits and showing how you can deliver both. Costa Coffee’s new Made With Heart campaign does this, beautifully blending product “sausage” and emotional “sizzle” and was recently named System1’s Ad of the Week (1). The two launch films created with VML, Delivery and University, show how a Costa coffee can be more than just a drink — it can also be a chance to pause, connect and make everyday life a little bit better.
Delivery tells the story of a delivery driver grabbing a Costa Express coffee on his round, only to surprise his partner later by delivering the cup to her. In University, a Costa coffee gifted through the app helps a mother stay in touch with her daughter facing her first day at university.
Here are four reasons the campaign delivers.
1. Rooted in the product
What makes Made With Heart stand out is that Costa is not just a logo tagged on at the end — the brand plays a central, heroic role in the story. In both films, Costa coffee is the trigger that transforms the emotional arc. In Delivery, buying a Costa coffee is the way the delivery driver shows his love for his partner and fellow shift worker (below). He’s finishing his shift and she is starting hers, so driving her to work and sharing a Costa is a nice moment of connection. In University, the emotional turning point comes when a free latte is shared via the Costa app, helping a nervous student feel closer to her mum and opening the door to new connections.
That product focus is reflected in the numbers. Delivery scored an exceptional 97% Brand Fluency, with recognition rising fastest just nine seconds in. By anchoring its creative in product truth like this, Costa avoids generic “category” advertising and instead builds mental availability for the brand.
2. Builds on a brand truth
I love how the campaign builds on two key brand assets. By showing the driver in Delivery using a Costa Express machine, the campaign shines a light on this distinctive brand asset in an emotionally involving way. The c. 14,000 Costa Express machines nationwide grind real beans and use fresh milk to deliver barista-style coffee at speed when people are on the go.
And in University, showing the gifting feature of the Costa Club app builds on this digital brand asset, with the club having a reported 6 million+ members (2).
3. Emotional sizzle
Of course, product truth alone isn’t enough to build long-term growth. What lifts Made With Heart is the way it wraps the sausage of functional performance in a layer of emotional sizzle. The story of the driver going out of his way to pick up a coffee for his partner is simple but powerful. It makes the campaign relatable, tapping into the everyday rituals of care and connection that coffee often represents. System1’s results back this up, with a 4.5★ rating that indicates strong potential for long-term brand growth driven by emotional response. This is an important reminder that effective brand building is not about choosing between sausage or sizzle, but combining the two in a way that feels authentic to the brand
4. Sell more stuff
Finally, and most importantly, this is not just a “feel-good” ad. The commercial potential of the campaign is also strong by its 1.29 Spike Rating in System1’s testing. This measure predicts the likelihood of short-term sales impact. This suggests that Made With Heart has the potential to help drive the business in the here and now, as well as build brand equity over the longer term. Too often, emotional storytelling is seen as distinct from sales impact, but Costa’s campaign shows that the two can go hand in hand. By making the product central, reinforcing a brand truth, and delivering a story with emotional punch, the campaign is set up to both strengthen the brand and support commercial performance.
In conclusion, Costa Coffee’s Made With Heart campaign shows how brand-led creativity rooted in product truth can cut through, connect emotionally and—most importantly—sell more stuff (SMS).
