2021 Winner

CASE SUMMARY

CHALLENGE
Heinz Ketchup is a globally iconic brand that’s long been a staple in Canadian households. That said, it’s seen its fair share of challenges from new category entrants. As a result the brand started to see brand affinity scores decline as competitors stole share. For the first time Canadians were questioning whether Heinz was for them.

The objective was to re-ignite an emotional connection with Heinz in a culturally relevant way to bolster consumer loyalty. Rethink sought to stay top of mind by instigating chatter across social and reinforcing its iconic status as Canada’s #1 Ketchup.

To do that, it needed something that would remind Canadians that Heinz Ketchup is the original. The challenge that stood in the way was how to play up the brand’s status without leaning into nostalgia. Heinz Ketchup needed something that would spark a conversation and insert the brand into the cultural zeitgeist.

INSIGHT
Unfortunately, the challenge became harder in 2020 as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Borders closed, non-essential work was halted, and the economy spiraled. As a result most brands paused advertising or communicated somber messages of support. In order to break through the team knew they needed something different.

A quick search online revealed that search traffic for puzzles was up 112% with people looking for ways to pass the time. With all non-essential workers at home this classic pastime re-emerged, showing up prominently in social feeds. This was good news for Heinz Ketchup - famously slow to pour, its flavour is worth the wait, just as puzzles are worth the wait to solve. It decided to use this opportunity to its advantage.

EXECUTION
To bring this to life, the agency designed a puzzle with 570 pieces, all identical ketchup red and stylized with H pieces, resulting in “the world’s slowest puzzle.” This puzzle was designed to provide consumers with a much needed light-hearted passtime.

Heinz started out by giving away 57 puzzles to ketchup lovers in 17 different countries. All people had to do to win was comment on our post, telling the brand who they wished they could finish it with. It picked 57 winners (per country) to reward, and encouraged them to share their progress on social.

Responding to demand, the team made the puzzles available for sale online in Canada and the US. The 7,000 puzzles sold out within a week, raising $25,000 for Food Banks Canada and Feeding America.

RESULTS
The puzzle was an instant hit, appealing to consumers across all 17 countries and generating buzz worldwide. It received over 1,000 pieces of earned coverage, and 1.25 billion earned impressions, resulting in $22,439,959 in earned publicity. Notable programs such as The Today Show, ABC World News, and The Tonight Show were among the many to pick it up. All of the publicity paid off as the brand saw household penetration increase by 2.9pts and brand love increase by 5pts. And best of all, sales are up +17.9% YTD.

Credits

CCO: Aaron Starkman
ECD: Mike Dubrick
CSO: Sean McDonald
Head of Art: Joel Holtby
Creative Director: Mike Dubrick
Art Director: Zachary Bautista
Writer: Geoff Baillie
Designer: Erin Maguire
Strategist: Sean McDonald, Julian Morgan
Producers: Anna Tricinci, Todd Harrison
In-House Photographer: Alex Butt
Print Producer: Narine Artinian
Editor: Tyler Erdelac
Account Services: Kai de Bryun Kops, Allie Kennedy, Amy Greenspoon
Audio House: Vapor Music
Audio Engineer: Art Mullin
Photographer: Chris Robinson
Printer: ProPrint Services Inc.
PR Agency: The Colony Project
Media Agency: Starcom
Community Management: SALT