We are so inundated with logos and brands trying to elbow their way into our line of sight that it has almost become numbing. Product placement and corporate sponsorships dominate, or at least try to, anything and everything brands think our eyes are on. From brand names popping up in sitcoms to branded time-outs during sporting events, the sponsorships are never ending.
It typically takes a huge win or an epic fail to get the public’s attention, and it’s hard to even say that both scenarios don’t ultimately end up creating the same result. After all, it’s just about being a part of the conversation, right? Only those with stock options can truly tell, as the rest of us just move on to the next topic of discussion.
The sensationalist in me would like to weigh in on this week’s decision by Nike to pull one of their latest shoe designs off the market after Colin Kaepernick weighed in with his opinion. But I see no need in tossing gasoline on a tire fire. I am curious to see how this plays out in the long game, though.
Let’s instead talk about a brand who is quietly hopping on a bandwagon for which they were long overdue. Eggo, the loveable frozen breakfast treat that has been saving parents time for nearly four decades, hopped on the pop culture bandwagon and embraced the popularity of what is arguably Netflix’s greatest viral victory: Stranger Things.
In the years past, Eggo’s Twitter account sporadically RT’d referential posts and corporate mentions, and they bandwagoned other digital references leading up to and during Season 2. The same can be said for their Facebook page; they shared products/promotions that mentioned their name, teased the show’s premiere a couple of times, but that was it.
This year, it’s different.
Their Twitter feed has been fairly busy since the first mention of the return, and their nearly two million Facebook followers have received a subtle yet healthy dose of upside down reminders. But this is the first time they’ve truly embraced the marriage by creating a campaign out of it.
The earliest campaign featured classic Eggo billboards with a “Stranger” twist, framed surveillance style with the city/state displayed conspicuously within the frame’s bounds; showing the thematic town name in different states where the show did NOT take place.
They followed that with a vintage ad campaign paying homage to the year Season 3 is set: 1985. The ads are playfully retro and really catch the spirit of the 80s in their heyday.
Eggo even joined Instagram to roll out their attempt at a viral social campaign, kicking off their account with three normal posts before going all-in on the Stranger Things/vintage ad campaign. That first “surveillance” post has nearly as many likes (4,579) as they currently have followers (5,905), so it looks as if people are here for it.
Perhaps the most fun aspect of this campaign is the ability to purchase “limited edition” vintage boxes of Eggo’s featuring the classic 1985 box design (which, honestly, has changed very little over the years).
A well-placed partnership with Amazon Fresh makes the vintage boxes available for anyone within the Fresh market area; or, you can also try your luck at the grocery store, as a limited number of boxes will show up on shelves in select cities across the country.
While it is doubtful that our location will be the target of this Stranger Things scavenger hunt, I’m pretty sure I’ll still be looking for them anyway. And if that is the goal of the campaign, then I guess we can say it worked. See you in the frozen section.
