A masterclass in why two brands that complement each other should be playful in their collaboration, the launch of Heinz x Absolut Tomato Vodka Pasta Sauce went viral last month and is continuing to engage consumers and foodies alike with its unlikely tomato and alcohol combination.

Gifta, the specialist influencer gifting and seeding agency, has revealed the viral impact and reach that micro and nano influencers can bring with its latest case study for Heinz and Absolut.

FORMING A BRAND PARTNERSHIP AND BUILDING IT INTO AN ENGAGING CAMPAIGN

Combining an alcohol brand with a food brand best known for baked beans, spaghetti hoops and tomato sauce might seem an unlikely duo, but this is something consumers have been calling for ever since model Gigi Hadid shared her take on Penne Alla Vodka on TikTok in 2020.

The culinary genius of adding Heinz tomato sauce to the dish became an insider hack that was widely touted as a “match made in heaven”.

Spurred on by the huge interest online, Heinz and Absolut put their heads together to launch what the world was asking for with their Heinz x Absolut Tomato Vodka Pasta Sauce.

ABSOLUT AND HEINZ CAMPAIGN LAUNCH

Available in Waitrose from mid-April, the hype around the new Heinz x Absolut Tomato Vodka Pasta Sauce began even before the product hit the shelves.

The product launched with a marketing campaign that covered OOH, PR, social media and influencers; it was a seemingly overnight success.

One marketing channel that became instrumental in the success of the launch was influencer marketing; specifically utilising micro and nano influencers to create excitement and build the hype around the new product across Instagram and TikTok.

Sometimes considered a ‘lower tier’ of influencers, the campaign showed the value of utilising smaller content creators for innovative user-generated content (UGC) and building brand loyalty and engagement. Letting go of the need to control every part of the content creation process meant Heinz and Absolut were able to tap into the value of relatable and authentic content.

HOW GIFTA BROUGHT THE INFLUENCER EXPERTISE

Supported by the Gifta team, the launch campaign engaged a core network of relevant nano and micro-influencers who stepped up to deliver on a huge scale. Gifta supported the
campaign from end to end including fulfilment and delivery of personalised gifting boxes, providing additional ‘unboxing’ moments as well as the main campaign content.

The launch campaign saw 138 influencers gifted/seeded with a combined following of 1.4 million, creating 550 pieces of content and hitting 7.2 million video views. This equated to a 92% post rate.

This included:

  • 550 pieces of content
  • 177 Instagram & Tiktok Grid posts
  • 298 Instagram stories
  • 95 Instagram reels
  • 7.4 million views

Producing authentic content saw incredible engagement with the UGC which the brands could share proved to be a huge success.

On TikTok specifically, the content went viral, with three of the nano influencers delivering video content that racked up millions of views.

Tom Higgins, Co-founder of Gifta, said: “We were trusted by Heinz with their latest launch, and the results speak for themselves to show that micro and nano influencers are a force that can’t be ignored. Not only did 92% of the influencers involved post, but they went above and beyond what we expected and continue to show brand loyalty and affinity for the product including it in further recipes and meals on their channels.

“Working with Heinz has always been a success for us at Gifta, as the brand understands the true value of the influencers we choose and engage with. They make themselves
vulnerable and open in the process of influencer marketing and as a result, they see brilliant content that they can use and build upon those relationships to bring on influencers as true brand ambassadors with authenticity and genuine love for the brand they’re working with.”

TRUSTING THE VULNERABILITY AS A BRAND AND SEEING RESULTS

For Heinz, this campaign was out of the ordinary. The launch began from a tiny idea on social media that evolved into a product in its own right and an eager audience ready to try it.

With the new sauce ready to hit the shelves, it could have been tempting to follow a ‘tried and tested’ formula and buy in influencer power and following, but the Heinz team trusted in Gifta’s expertise to look at other ways to reach their target demographic.

Riddhi Shah, Senior Growth Manager at Kraft Heinz, said: “We had previously seen the value that Gifta can bring as experts at working with influencers at micro and nano level, and we knew they were the right fit for our latest work with Absolut, which we wanted our fans to pick up as a trend.

“Their expertise in influencer gifting and seeding with their in-depth reporting has given us full clarity on how best to utilise influencers at this level, and how to get the most out of our relationships with them without feeling the need to control what they post with prescriptive requirements.

“Working with influencers at this level has given us huge reach as a brand, and we’ve seen the influencers continue to create content using the Heinz x Absolut sauce across a wide range of recipes and meals which also allows us to pick up on further trends too.”

WHY MICRO AND NANO INFLUENCERS ARE PROVING MORE INFLUENTIAL THAN OTHERS

Influencer marketing is moving away from the number of followers a marketing budget can buy to engaging with those who will genuinely love a product and create content that works.

Tom from Gifta added: “Now more than ever is the time for brands to stop controlling adverts and content as consumers can see past what’s authentic and what’s not. Now is the time to relinquish control and the idea of being the publisher, and put that power and creativity back to the content creators themselves.

“By stopping the tired approval process and sign off on content and captions, a brand can be vulnerable whilst giving the creators freedom and it’s an opportunity for brands to watch and learn.

“Working with influencers at the micro and nano level also means that brands can see true value and it doesn’t need to come with extortionate fees and months of amends on getting just one ad live. Instead, this is the time for brands to become playful and creative and explore working with new creators and see how their product is being received by their target market with real-time feedback and suggestions.”

For Heinz, working with micro and nano influencers has also created a ‘feedback loop’ where the content creators are sharing new and innovative ways they’re using the product but also how it can be improved.

Riddhi from Kraft Heinz explained: “Working with micro and nano influencers has been impactful for our launch, as well as helping us to penetrate further with our target audience and get real-time feedback from those enjoying and using our product.”