What do you do if your brand doesn’t exactly fit into the January “new year, new you” ethos, when consumers strive to lose the festive lard and get in shape for the 12 months ahead, albeit for at least a few weeks until they get bored.
This is exactly the challenge that Anchor Butter faces every year; after all, believe all you read and butter is the food of the devil – no matter how hard celebrity chef James Martin tries to convince us all otherwise.
But instead of lying low for a month or so, the Arla Foods brand – which can trace its roots back to 1886 – is launching a new campaign with a series of TV, digital, social, print and radio executions that capture the ways in which adding Anchor to your food can change your day for the better.
Devised by Engine Creative, the campaign is the latest activity in the long-running Butter the Food. Butter the Mood strategy and is all about sharing the uplifting feeling that comes from spreading Anchor, and how eating food that is oozing with “delicious butter” triggers a playful mindset – and even sets off an unexpected chain of events.
Set around a local food van, the ad features see various people, from individuals to families, and from every generation, tucking into Anchor-buttered food of all types.
Whether they are eating bread rolls, sweetcorn, scones, or steaks, their enjoyment is brought to life as the cast of characters enjoy their buttery treats.
The TV and digital campaign is accompanied by radio ads, as well as outdoor executions that use visual puns – using a combination of buttered food and black and white imagery – all designed to make people smile.
Anchor senior brand manager Rebecca Alicia Allen gushes: “With this campaign, we don’t tell you how you’ll feel if you tuck into Anchor, we make you feel it. The memorable characters and unpredictable moments bring to life the good mood you get from eating Anchor butter in an entertaining and distinctive way.”
Engine Creative creative director Steve Hawthorne salivates: “Our aim was to create a campaign that butters the mood of people seeing and hearing it as much as a big dollop of Anchor does for people tasting it. I believe we’ve achieved that. And the whole process was a joy to be a part of, from the first bite to the final morsel.”
So, what is the consensus around the Decision Marketing office?
Well, like many offices around the country, the Decision Marketing Nerve Centre can be a grim place in January, with the air turning blue at the very mention of Atkins, Keto, Paelo-Vegan and the Five and Two, let alone Veganuary and Dry January.
So here, it is more a case of “new year, same old us” and, to be honest, we’re with James Martin on this one and we love nothing more than slapping on the butter on anything that moves.
Now for many that will be toast, crumpets, and muffins but according to our James’ new recipe book there are scores of other uses – over 130 in fact – from butter-poached lobster, French onion soup, chicken with ’nduja butter and Dover sole meunière, to sweet treats including cinnamon bread with caramel butter dip, shortbread and Baklava.
If that lot doesn’t get you over the January blues, nothing will…
Decision Marketing Adometer: A “don’t mention Last Tango in Paris” 8 out of 10
