Heinz has debuted a global creative strategy for the first time in over 150 years, leaning heavily into its iconic legacy and dedicated fanbase as it celebrates their “irrational love” for the brand.
Inspired by real-life stories of fans’ undeniable passion for the brand, ‘It Has to be Heinz’ pays homage to the brand by celebrating the strength of consumer feeling for Heinz Ketchup, Beanz and everything in-between. It is the first time Heinz has unified its brand messaging across all regions.
The campaign – which has been Kraft Heinz’s largest media investment to date – was developed in partnership with global creative agency Wieden+Kennedy. Featuring five vignette-style spots of true and could-be-true stories, it speaks directly to different generations from all over the world, showing the lengths some go to in their “irrational love” for the brand.
The fan stories featured in the creative – such as Heinz tattoos, stealing condiment sachets from room service trays and smuggling tins of Beanz through airport security – are all based on true events and have been inspired by social media, news articles and via word of mouth.
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The new campaign will be featured across all major channels, targeting mass reach and high impact placements through TV, online video, cinema, social, and out-of-home.
“As we looked to unify the brand under one global brand platform, we dove into the world of our consumers and found that they all shared one thing: the irrational lengths they go to for Heinz products,” said chief growth officer US, Diana Frost.
“As a brand obsessed with our consumers, we created ‘It Has to be Heinz’ as our love song back to them, our fans are our muses.”
“This irrational love is also driving a larger transformation at Kraft Heinz,” added chief growth officer for international, Cristina Kenz, “where we’re moving at the speed of culture to surprise and delight our consumers with insight-led innovations and authentic brand experiences.”
The campaign will make its debut in the US, Canada, the UK and Germany before rolling out to additional markets over the next six months.
