2020 Winner
2020 Winners
Kraft Heinz Canada
Ketchup Puzzle
Heinz Ketchup is a globally iconic brand that’s long been a staple in Canadian households and beyond. That said, it has seen its fair share of challenges from new entrants and other global brands, of late. As a result the brand started to see brand affinity scores decline year-over-year as competitors incrementally stole share. For the first time ever Canadians were questioning whether or not Heinz was for them.
The agency's objective was to re-ignite an emotional connection with Heinz in a culturally relevant way to bolster consumer loyalty and reignite love. Rethink sought to stay top of mind by instigating significant chatter across social channels and to reinforce our iconic status as Canada’s #1 Ketchup.
To do that it needed something that would remind Canadians that Heinz Ketchup is the original. It’s the ketchup. Heinz Ketchup is the one we all grew up with. The challenge that stood in the way was how to play up the brand's status without leaning too significantly into nostalgia at the risk of being seen as old or less relevant. The agency needed to design something that would spark a conversation and insert Heinz into the cultural zeitgeist.
Insights & Strategy
Unfortunately, the challenge became a little harder in 2020 as a result of the COVID-19 global pandemic. Borders began to close and soon enough all non-essential work was halted. Many Canadians were let go or put on short term leave, and the economy spiralled down. As a result most brands paused their advertising or chose to air sombre messages of support. In order to break through in this unprecedented time the agency knew it needed something different. Rethink wanted to evoke happiness and give people a reason to smile.
A quick search online revealed that as of March 2020, the beginning of mass quarantine, 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 everyone's social feeds. This was good news for Heinz ketchup as anything that takes time and is worth the wait speaks right to the brands foundations. Heinz is famously slow to pour and their flavour is worth the wait, just as puzzles are worth the wait to solve. So, while everyone had a little more time on their hands, the agency decided to use this opportunity to its advantage.
Execution
To bring the strategy to life Rethink designed a puzzle of its own, with 570 pieces, all identical ketchup red pantone 187c, and stylized H pieces pulling from the H from Heinz, resulting in ‘the world’s slowest puzzle.’ Whether consumers lived alone, with family or roommates, this puzzle was designed to provide them with light-hearted entertainment during a time when everything feels heavy.
It started out by giving away 57 puzzles to ketchup lovers in 17 countries around the world. All people had to do to win was comment on a post, telling us who they wished they could finish the puzzle with. From there the agency picked 57 winners (per country) to reward, and encouraged them to share their progress and completed puzzles with us on social.
Responding to demand as a result of the campaign’s success, Rethink decided to make the puzzles available for sale online in Canada and the US. The 7,000 puzzles sold out within a week, raising $15,000 (CAD) in profits which was donated to Food Banks Canada and $10,700 (USD) for Feeding America.
Results and Impact
The puzzle was an instant hit, not only appealing to consumers across all 17 countries, but also generating buzz worldwide. The puzzle received over 1,000 pieces of earned coverage, and 1.25 billion earned impressions globally, resulting in $22,439,959 (USD) in earned publicity. Notable programs such as The Today Show, ABC World News, and The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon were among the many to pick it up. Additionally, all of the earned publicity paid off as it saw household penetration increase and brand love increase. And best of all, sales are up.