McCain Foods is continuing to take a more adult approach to marketing Superfries.
The company has launched a new campaign, “Let Cravings Be Your Guide,” which aims to elevate the frozen fries experience at home.
A new TV spot, “Date Night” shows a couple topping their fries with jalapeno and peppers, before settling in on the couch. “Girls’ Night” shows a group of friends having an impromptu night in, making fries with sriracha mayo.
“The thinking was to create new occasions for our target to enjoy Superfries,” said Matt Hassell, national chief creative officer at KBS Canada, which created the campaign. “We want people to be inspired and feel confident in trying new flavours and different things on top of [the fries].”
McCain Foods made the decision a couple of years ago to focus more on adults-only households, recognizing that 70% of the households in Canada don’t have any kids in them, said Paul Gallagher, director of marketing at McCain Foods.
While the brand was well developed with families, the company realized it needed to make Superfries more exciting and relevant for adults, he added.
In 2014, Superfries launched the #Modifry campaign, which focused on topping fries with a few simple, fresh ingredients people have on hand. The campaign, which was developed by Grip, “was a great step forward in terms of changing perceptions of the fries and making them seem more exciting,” said Gallagher. “What we wanted to do next was continue to build on that journey, but also evolve it beyond strictly recipe-based.”
Research found that consumers love French fries, but much of the enthusiasm is for restaurant fries. “When they were talking about French fries at home, it became more about how it’s a quick convenience and they’ll serve it with other convenience foods,” said Gallagher.
“There was not a lot of emotion about it at home. That’s when we realized if we can bring more interest and excitement around occasions at home, then we can really evolve [Superfries] from being a thoughtless fill-in with other convenience foods to something they would think about serving at occasions that matter a bit more to them.”
Digital for the new campaign was handled by Grip, which created 15-second online videos for Superfries, including one about a movie marathon and another about a book club.
The campaign also includes social, OOH and in-store elements.
KBS won the brand assignment after a competitive pitch process and Gallagher said McCain plans to work on more projects with the agency.
