Behind the creative: Coach Mayo

With World Cup fever sweeping the globe, it would be easy to assume everyone is looking forward to a summer of soccer football. But it can be a daunting proposition for operators and distributors, with increased footfall and global diner expectations having a big impact on bottom lines, especially in America, Canada and Mexico, where an estimated 6 million visitors were expected.

This presented an exciting opportunity for Hellmann’s. A chance to show Casual Dining chains, Quick Service Restaurants [QSR] and Independents that Hellmann’s is by their side all the way to the final and that only Hellmann’s superiority and versatility can create global flavours that get diners cheering, no matter the result.

Introducing Coach Mayo

Coach Mayo is the face of our campaign. He is Hellmann’s personified and here to help operators and distributors get ready for the World Cup with his game day locker bursting with recipes, global flavour inspiration, top tricks and more. He’s got the perfect blend of football knowledge and Hellmann’s know-how to make any Back-Of-House World Cup campaign a success. He’s charming, blends optimism with emotional intelligence and is always armed with a witty quip.

“You can’t spell ‘team’ without mayo… …ok, you can. But emotionally, you can’t.” – Coach Mayo

Creating the character of Coach Mayo gave us the freedom to talk about Hellmann’s in a fun, relevant and engaging way that took the brand tone of voice and elevated it. He became an instantly recognisable face that could cut through the World Cup noise and stand out from the competition.  After all, there can only be one Coach Mayo.

Inside Coach Mayo’s Locker

We built a dedicated online portal where operators and distributors could unlock all of Coach Mayo’s and Hellmann’s World Cup content.

The key to the portal’s success was creating a place that was not only full of relevant content for our audience, but also understood the needs and challenges they were facing. It had to be authentic and worth returning to during the tournament.

Included in Coach Mayo’s locker was:

• Coach Mayo’s Recipe Playbook – A chance to elevate menus with Hellmann’s take on classic game day dishes, guaranteed to get diners cheering.
• Global Game Day Dips – Coach Mayo’s perfect dip partnerships for fan favourite dishes, inspired by teams playing in the tournament.
• Limited-Time Offer Advice – Coach’s top tips for getting more crowds in during the tournament.
• Coach Mayo’s Profit Calculator – Helping to make sure there’s a profit in dips, not a dip in profits.
• Merch & Giveaways – Who doesn’t love some free kit? Get your hands on everything from sandwich flags to game day shirts and bucket hats.

In a Hellmann’s World

How do you create a world that feels relatable to a diverse audience? After all, a Casual Dining kitchen looks very different to a QSR. A nationwide chain looks very different to a small, independent restaurant. How can we make sure our content feels relatable to everyone?

To do this, we adopted a minimalist approach, creating a Hellmann’s blue world for Coach Mayo to exist in. We focused on limited props and ‘hints’ to help ground our scenes in a professional environment rather than full real-world ones. Not only did this help increase relatability, but it also increased brand awareness with assets now instantly recognisable within the first few seconds of engagement.

Time For Kick Off

The campaign launched across multiple channels with social films, social statics, newsletters, digital banners and POS trade assets. Each asset focuses on either Attracting, Engaging or Converting our key audience – depending on the stage of the journey they are at – with the urgency ramping up the further into the tournament we go.

Whatever happens during this summer’s World Cup, we can guarantee operators and distributors will be winning big with Hellmann’s and Coach Mayo by their side.

“Hellmann’s is a lot like a team’s confidence – when it’s missing, everything falls apart.” – Coach Mayo

Like what you see?

If your brand or product could do with a storytelling refresh. To reconnect with the right audience with engaging messaging, then drop us a note. A team of our bright strategists and clever creatives can work with you to find the areas to supercharge your positioning and communications.

New Business, Toby Barty, Managing Director | toby.barty@catchafireagency.com

General Enquiry, Ben May, Senior Marketing Manager | theteam@catchafireagency.com