It’s not often a brand will brag about one of its ad campaigns being ignored, but for Hellmann’s, that was the whole point.
The mayonnaise brand, which has been promoting itself as an aid to address a hidden plague of consumer food waste, demonstrated the challenge at the heart of its purpose. It placed a series of outdoor ads around New York City—along with an Instagram post—showing an open refrigerator featuring food items that are commonly wasted and a message: “There’s more in your fridge than you think.”
Along with loose asparagus spears, half a red pepper and chickpeas in Tupperware, sharp-eyed consumers could also spy a small note card in the fridge with a call to action: The first to spot the card and alert the brand with a direct message on Twitter or Instagram could win a $1,600 prize—a figure equal to the amount of money that the average American household wastes on thrown-away food every year.
The ads—including a gigantic billboard in Times Square—were up from April 18-25, generating an estimated 4.4 million views. The number of DMs to the Hellmann’s social channels were easier to count.
It was zero.
“This creative campaign highlights how we’re all guilty of leaving money on the table by not taking a closer look at what’s in our fridge,” said Ben Crook, senior director, dressings and condiments for Hellmann’s parent, Unilever.