Up against tough competition from the likes of Milk Tray, Chanel and Nescafe, the Nestle chocolate brand won the title with almost 18% of the vote, slightly ahead of John Lewis, which came in a close second with 17% of the vote for its 2012 Christmas advert depicting a snowman in love.
Rolo’s famous ad slogan ran for more than 20 years before being axed in 2003 after owner Nestle said it was too sentimental.
It was replaced with ‘Discover the power of the last Rolo’, which was delivered by Radio 1 DJ Sara Cox.
Marketing editor Rachel Barnes said: "Rolo’s slogan is so ingrained in the public psyche that you could ask someone on the street today and they would find it just as current as it was in the 1990s."
A Nestlé spokesperson commented; "We are really proud to see our Rolo ad picked by readers of Marketing Magazine as the most romantic ad of all time. Rolo has consistently been communicating about love, using the tagline ‘Do you love anyone enough to give them your last Rolo’ since the 1980’s. We are pleased to see it still resonates with consumers as a result of a consistent communications and positioning strategy."
Google took the third spot with its ‘Parisian Love’ ad from 2009, which follows an American falling in love in Paris, scored 12% of the vote.
The top ten most romantic ads of all time also featured Match.com, Chanel No 5, Nescafe Gold Blend, Milk Tray, Blackpool, De Beers and Chanel No 5 (classic).
Barnes added: "The ads that people remember the most - and for longer - often tap into our deeper emotions. Rolo was able to capture that in its old ad campaigns. The fact that you can watch them today and they still have that ‘Ahh’ factor, rather than feeling dated, shows just how good they are."
Top 10 most romantic ads of all time:
- Rolo
- John Lewis
- Match.com
- Chanel No 5 Audrey Tatou
- Nescafe Gold Blend
- Milk Tray
- Blackpool
- De Beers
- Chanel No 5 (Classic)
Watch all of the top 10 most romantic ads here
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