BRANDS

Hot dogs, the underdog of plant-based meat

This weekend officially marks the start of Hot Dog Season—or its other name, summer. 

In 2019, Americans bought a whopping 271 million pounds of hot dogs between mid-May and mid-August, according to 210 Analytics. That’s a lot of dogs. This grilling season, many people will opt for a meat-free dog, as plant-based alternatives have become more and more ubiquitous. 

• The plant-based food industry—encompassing everything from almond milk to black bean burgers—grew 27% in 2020, totaling $7 billion in retail sales, according to research commissioned by the Good Food Institute and Plant-Based Foods Association.

But the hot dog is the underdog of the veggie category, as neither Beyond Meat nor Impossible Foods makes a frank. That could change soon, though. Several brands, including Nathan’s Famous and Nestlé’s Sweet Earth, have rolled out their first attempts at plant-based dogs ahead of summer.

Hot vax dog summer 

Hot dog sales still pale in comparison to ground beef—try ordering a hot dog at McDonald’s. 

“Beyond and Impossible have a goal of really reducing meat consumption, so they're going to go first for the things that people eat the most of,” Karen Formanski, an analyst who researches the plant-based food category for marketing research firm Mintel, told Marketing Brew. 

• A survey conducted by Mintel found that 69% of consumers had eaten or expressed interest in eating a plant-based hot dog, while 84% said the same about burgers. 

Burgers are less seasonal than hot dogs, so they get more attention, Formanski explained. A classic cheeseburger can be spotted on restaurant menus year-round; a hot dog, not so much.

This all partly explains why “what's been missing in the space is something that mimics a juicy, Vienna Beef, kosher hot dog you’d get at a ballpark,” said Formanski. But that’s not to say brands aren’t trying.

Dogs will have their day

In February, Field Roast, a plant-based brand that makes vegan sausages and burgers, and will soon add pepperoni, unveiled its “Stadium” dog to crack the juicy code that mimics beef franks. 

It’s not alone: 

• In April, wiener lord Nathan’s Famous added a meatless hot dog to its menu.
• Earlier this month, Nestlé’s Sweet Earth rolled out a vegan “Jumbo” hot dog.

Greenleaf—which owns Field Roast as well as Lightlife, a plant-based food brand that makes the Smart Dog—says it dominates the veggie dog game. According to market research company Spins, Greenleaf’s hot dogs represent 99% of the category. 

Adam Grogan, Greenleaf’s chief operating officer, told Marketing Brew that Field Roast and Lightlife are marketed differently. As he puts it, a Field Roast dog is eaten with a beer at the ballpark, while a Smart Dog is served at a family meal. 

Read more about how hot dogs are beefing with burgers in the world of plant-based meats here.—RB

CAMPAIGNS

OnlyFans isn’t only sex

After hearing about Carl’s Jr. and Hardee’s new OnlyFans campaign, we couldn’t help but wonder...what’s the right way to advertise on a platform known as a porn site? 

ICYMI: The burger chains are promoting their new chicken sandwiches via an OnlyFans channel called “Hot and Hand-Breaded.” The content plays on OnlyFan’s NSFW reputation with “suggestive videos,” like one that shows “disembodied hands caressing hamburger buns,” per Adweek.

It wouldn’t be the first time: Remember condiment company Fly By Jing’s “hot noods” promotion? (More on that later.)

But not everyone’s convinced sex-related branded content is right for OnlyFans.

“I think it's a bad idea for two reasons,” Kinsey Grant, who recently researched the porn industry (and OnlyFans specifically) for her podcast and newsletter Thinking Is Cool, told Marketing Brew.

Number one: Grant told us OnlyFans wants to position itself as “the kind of company that is for anybody, not just for explicit content. They don't want to be the place you go for porn.” She added that the platform makes pornographic content intentionally difficult to locate for this exact reason.

Number two: “It takes the experience of people who are actually trying to make a living by selling explicit content and it diminishes it,” she continued, adding that brands making light of OnlyFans’ roots risk seeming “distasteful.” 

But some brands know it’s okay to use the platform sans innuendo. 

• Fashion brand Rebecca Minkoff—which created an OnlyFans account for exclusive BTS Fashion Week footage—might get more love than sex-related branded content, according to Grant. 

And while Fly By Jing’s sex pun-riddled OnlyFans campaign goes low, the brand also goes high—it recently donated a dollar to an organization advocating for sex worker rights for each free subscriber it gained on the platform, per Adweek.—PB  

SPONSORED BY STACKADAPT

Get With the Program(matic) 

Programmatic advertising has a lot to offer. As StackAdapt explains in this business case, programmatic solves the problem of where to buy media and lets buyers focus entirely on quality, performance, and return on spend.

You may have heard something about minimum spends. But what if we told you that not all programmatic platforms require them? 

You’d be like, get outta here. But it’s true—and that’s the kind of insight you’ll get in StackAdapt’s business case. You’ll also learn about the many benefits of programmatic ads, including: 

• Ability to capture real-time insights 
• Multiple bidding options 
• Reduced media dollar waste with sophisticated targeting 
• Advanced tracking capabilities 

What does that all add up to? Hang on, doing some back-of-the napkin calculations, carry the one—we’re getting “a way to maximize your client’s budget and make them glad they work with you.”

More get-outta-here-inducing insights from StackAdapt here.

PARTNERSHIPS

California Drivin’

Heineken’s asking Californians to come on and take a free ride.

Those using Waze to navigate their way to bars, beaches, and other outings this weekend might see a message from the beer brand that cautions against getting behind the wheel after downing a few drinks. To further discourage drunk driving, Heineken is offering Waze users a “rideshare voucher that they can redeem at any point during the summer.” (No word on how much the voucher is good for, or how many each user gets.) 

• Heineken is piloting the campaign in California this summer, but might expand it to states including Texas, Florida, and Georgia, per Ad Age.
• According to Heineken, it’s the first alcohol company to partner with Waze in the US.

Déjà vu: This isn’t Heineken’s first rodeo with Waze—not long ago, it debuted a similar push in South Africa. A Waze case study claims 100% of vouchers were downloaded during the campaign’s 33-day window. 

Zoom out: Heineken’s been saying “When You Drive, Never Drink” for a while now. Last year, it tapped Formula 1 World Champions (and father-son pair) Keke and Nico Rosberg for a commercial that warned against drunk driving.—MS

WHAT ELSE IS BREWING

• WarnerMedia CEO Jason Kilar plans to stay at the company through AT&T’s merger with Discovery.
• Google is nearing a settlement of its ad-tech antitrust case in France and could pay a fine over its alleged abuse of power in online advertising. 
• Omnicom says many staffers will return to in-person work this fall.
• Amazon’s MGM deal is facing some expected monopoly pushback from members of Congress.
• The Oscars are being pushed back a month, from February to March 2022.

SPONSORED BY LINKEDIN MARKETING SOLUTIONS

If you know it, show it. That’s what we did with our latest article on the four secrets to really, really good advertising with LinkedIn Marketing Solutions. Call it thought leadership, call it genius, but showcasing what you know to a group of engaged business professionals is more than just an ego trip. It’s marketing at its finest. Read now. 

FRENCH PRESS

There are a lot of bad marketing tips out there. These aren't those.

TikTok: Getting that coveted blue checkmark on this platform isn’t as simple as just applying. Click here to find out how getting verified on TikTok actually works. 

SEO: This infographic just wants to help you create SEO-friendly content with nine easy tips, and we think that’s beautiful. 

Google: If you’ve ever thought about making Google Maps part of your marketing strategy, now’s the time.  

Read up: The marketing master of Mastercard has spoken. Raja Rajamannar—the CMO of Mastercard—wrote a book on how your business should rethink its entire marketing landscape to remain relevant, be successful, and embrace innovative technologies. Get your copy of Quantum Marketing today.*

METRICS AND MEDIA

Stat: In a Havas Media Group report that surveyed 395,000 people globally, only 36% of respondents felt satisfied with companies’ actions to “make the world a better place,” per Ryan Barwick’s article on marketing’s age of cynicism (hey, we know him!).

Quote: “Consumers are waiting to see what rebranding and new advertising campaigns will look like from brands that made promises to stop propagating colorism and perpetuating racism.”—Mita Mallick for Harvard Business Review, on the marketing industry’s colorism problem.

Read: This wild ride of a Harper’s piece that breaks down the absurdity of TikTok influencer culture.  

ICYMI

Catch up on a few Marketing Brew stories you might have missed.

• LinkedIn is courting advertisers with event tools, ad options
• What WeWork’s former head of social media has learned from running a job board
• Here’s why you didn’t see more TV advertising around the ‘Friends’ reunion