Dr. Oetker is using a homegrown interjection to cut through the “Buy Canadian” chatter.
The frozen-pizza brand leans into the phonetic “eh” sounds of its brand names – Ristorant-eh, Giusepp-eh, Casa di Mam-eh – in a frenetic hero spot in which the main character slaps “eh” stickers onto Dr. Oetker products. AntiSocial worked on creative for the campaign while OMD Canada handled media.
Dr. Oetker’s senior brand manager Zineb Benslimane tells strategy that the company’s new creative addresses stalling patriotic momentum that has left consumers struggling to figure out what’s actually made in Canada.
“Between confusing packaging and misinformation, it was clear people wanted to support ‘made in Canada’ brands but didn’t always know how,” Benslimane says. “If people were struggling to spot Canadian-made products on shelves, we wanted to offer a clear, fun solution right where it counts: the grocery aisle.”
As a made-in-Canada brand (minus a handful specialty products), Dr. Oetker decided to make its allegiances known through “eh” stickers rather than a complete packaging overhaul.
“The campaign’s sticker became a visual cue across everything: from our hero video to OOH, social and in-store. And more than that, the sticker became a symbol of our commitment. We’re not just asking Canadians to stick with us, we’re promising to stick with them, with Canadian workers, Canadian ingredients and Canadian-made.”
Benslimane says Dr. Oetker tapped into the politically charged topic in hopes that the memorable cultural moment would lead to deeper connections with Canadian audiences. The company took a multi-touchpoint approach with the campaign in an effort to resonate with as many Canadians as possible.
“Since this is a product you’re buying at your local grocery store, it felt important to show up in an instantly recognizable way and reinforce the message offline,” Benslimane says.
The social-media strategy leans toward a younger audience through humour, a casual tone and partnerships with Canadian online influencers. Past campaigns that worked
“We’ve had success building brand love for Dr. Oetker on social already with our #FrozenPizzaPublicist campaign last fall, so we knew this was a great opportunity to dig deeper with those communities,” Benslimane says.
Dr. Oetker employs a staff of 300 people in Canada and manufactures products in London, Ont., using wheat from Alberta and Ontario, tomato sauce from Ontario farms and cheese from Ontario and Quebec.
Benslimane says the company is using shelf communication and display strategies to bring excitement and improve shopability in the category.
Dr. Oetker is also considering cross-promotions and basket-building strategies through partnerships in complementary categories such as wine, sparkling water, salads and desserts