Welcome back to The Shoppe! This week we’re talking about TikTok’s new beer poster trend, KraftHeinz’s custom cooking partnership with Walmart, Meijer offering a new digital shopping experience, and automotive brands shifting to digital marketing. Don’t forget to subscribe so you can be notified every time we post!

TikTok’s Beer Poster Trend

A recent TikTok trend seen on the popular social media platform, is women editing logos onto their beach pictures and creating their own personalized ads. They are then using the hashtag “#beerposter” when sharing their end product, which has nearly 400 million views and continues to grow. While alcohol marketing is banned from the app, any content that does not directly promote the consumption or sale of alcohol, is free rein. “While we may not advertise on the platform, it’s great to see that we’re still showing up in a way that is people-first and relevant,” says Daniel Blake, Group VP of Budweiser and value brands. Brands are prohibited from directly interacting with users on the app; however, marketing analysts describe this trend as a golden opportunity for mainstream beer giants who are at risk of losing relevance among Gen Z consumers to smaller craft beer brands. This will allow these giants to eliminate their image as a masculine beverage and impress a younger generation along with a new consumer base. “If they just sit back and watch, they’ll be viewed as boomer brands that don’t understand what’s going on within their sphere,” says Creative Strategist at Gen Z agency CarsonDoyle, Nora Birch. This goes to show the importance of viewing trends as more than just a series of meaningless fads, as brands such as Budweiser and Heneikin are getting free market research and are finding out exactly what Gen Zers actually want to see when being advertised to. 

KraftHeinz Partners with Walmart and eko

eko and Walmart recently announced a new experience across Walmart’s CookShop featuring 11 KraftHeinz recipes including products such as Philadelphia Cream Cheese, Country-Time, and Kool-Aid. The interactive video experience allows customers to choose their recipe through multiple choice questions. At the end of the video, customers are able to add all of the ingredients they chose directly to their shopping cart so they can make the recipe themselves. The new shopping experience will include more KraftHeinz products with different themes such as “Sandwich Shop” and seasonal recipes. The eko experience offers customers a direct path to purchase and the beta launch showed an 8.7% click-through indicating a high level of intent from consumers.

Meijer’s New Digital Shopping Experience

Midwest based grocer, Meijer, is rolling out a new digital shopping experience for customers. This new experience is in partnership with pet essential brands such as Purina and Perch. The retailer will be incorporating interactive end caps in 200 of its grocery stores and supercenters, which allows the customers to view the benefits of a variety of pet foods and treats just by touching them. The screen will automatically detect the product being touched, without having to scan a barcode or QR code, and will respond with videos and important information. This is supposed to mimic the online shopping experience of clicking on an item and immediately receiving all the information one may need before buying the product. 

Auto Brands Shifting From Linear TV to Digital Marketing

Brands such as Honda, Hyundai, and Toyota are beginning to focus less on television spots and radio ads and are adapting to new forms of media. One of the main reasons for this transition and shift in investment, is due to the fact that these brands hope to reach a younger audience and promote their newer models that are more popular among the younger shoppers. Honda released its 11th generation Honda Civic on the social platform Twitch, instead of their traditional car launch that consisted of an expensive, in-person cocktail event. Media Department Head at American Honda Motor Co. Inc., Phil Hruska, said that the Civic is “the number one vehicle with Millennials and Gen Z [as well as] first-time and multicultural buyers, given that it is one of Honda’s cheaper vehicles.” Hruska also revealed that 67% of Twitch’s audience is under 35 and Honda views this model as a mechanism to establish longer-term brand loyalty that could lead to higher-priced purchases in the future. As more and more of the younger generations enter into new digital platforms, it is important for auto brands to continue adapting along with them so that they stay relevant. Linear TV will always play a part yet, “consumers of today want to have two-way conversations. They want to be able to participate. They want more bespoke content that allows them to tailor things that better meets their needs. And digital marketing allows you to do that in a way that you just can’t do with linear TV,” says Director of Marketing Communications at Hyundai Motor America, Kate Fabian. Click here to read what other auto brands are doing to incorporate digital marketing into their promotional efforts.