When a company wants to catch major attention, or bring in bigger bank, they have to think up an intriguing advertising campaign. In order to establish a connection with your audience, you have to relate with them, even if the product you’re selling is something not so exciting the advertiser’s job is to make it appealing. Jack Link’s Jerky has taken something a little boring and made it funny so that the viewers associate their product with a found memory. Jack Link’s Jerky is just one of many companies who has incorporated this style of advertising to bring in more consumer interests. The Original campaign had a slogan which was “Feed Your Wild Side! ,” which was a series of three commercials which began a rather large uproar.
The thought process behind this new add campaign was to show viewers that in a mundane world, there are still those with primal instincts, a raw uncontrolled hunger, and still manage to make the commercials extremely humorous. Jack Link’s wanted to tell people that by consuming their products the y would be able to tap in those primitive instincts that at times we are forced to shy away from in today’s society. This is appealing to many in relation to freedom, the notion that one cannot be controlled by any one but themselves, that there are some things left in this world that are simple and un-tampered with. This leaves the viewers with a sense of connection and then they also incorporate humorous anecdotes which leave a laugh or two.
At first the campaign is made up of three 30 second commercials, the first was entitled “chopper”, which shows a variety of secretaries, business men and office workers frolicking as if they were a pack of animals in a South African jungle opening. after showing this, a helicopter lowers and sends the “pack” into a frenzy, someone leans out of the chopper and shoots a tranquilizer at on of the stragglers on the ground. After alls said and done the man shot with the tranquilizer wakes up with a tracking tag on his ear and scared, but then realizes he still has his bag of Jack Link’s and all is well.
(scene from commercial “chopper”)
The second spot entitled “Release” in the campaign shows a truck pull into a wide grassy area were the drivers slowly get out and walk to the back of the vehicle. Here is were the viewers see the back open revealing a business type looking man smoking a cigarette, holding a bag of beef jerky, he calmly gets out and then runs over to the other people hiding in the brush and the trapper run quickly back a speed off.
The third commercial, “Decoy” shows the jerky eater’s after the sun goes down. Then the audience id taken to a bunker set up by what are meant to be trackers and decoys of other people with a tape of similar noises to what the others make are set up. Slowly you see these wild people lurk out of the dark, craving the bag of jerky being held by the decoy. However the tape begins to skip and you see the group disperse quickly as if they were a pack of ally cats spotted digging through the garbage. All these ads keep with the same theme that there is an untapped primal instinct within us that only Jack Link’s Beef Jerky can release.
After the first campaign ran its course the advertisers wanted to keep with the same theme but with a new twist. They then introduced a new campaign “Messin’ with Sasquatch” which not only stayed with the wild theme, but also became even funnier than the first wave of commercials by taking old fashioned pranks and performing them on Bigfoot. The first entitled “Salt Shaker” which shows a group of campers stumbling upon a camp site that’s been left unattended. They loosen the cap to the salt shaker just before the monster returns and when the cooks his newly captured rabbit, its ruined by a pile of salt pouring out uncontrollably, the beast then comes up from behind and punches one of the culprits.
The second spot “Binoculars” which features a couple who feel like pulling an old trick on the sasquatch. They take a pair of binoculars and put ink on the rims of the lenses and then they strategically place them and make a call for the monster to reveal himself. He emerges and sees the binoculars sitting there on a tree stump and out of curiosity he puts them to his eyes and places two dark circles on his face. The campers let out a good laugh but the monster not amused launches the binoculars at the head of one of the jokesters.
Then a commercial called “Shaving Cream” (in my opinion the funniest) another group of campers munching on Jack Link’s, come across a slumbering sasquatch. They then decide it would be a good idea to put shaving cream in his hand and tickle his nose. The monster gives himself a good smack in the face and the campers run off as quick as possible laughing all the way, when the monster catches up to one who stops to catch his breath and laugh about, sasquatch runs up and close lines him across the screen.
The last commercial in this series is called “water bowl” were again the sleeping sasquatch is disturbed. The campers see him and warm up a pot of water. They place the monsters hands in it and he has an accident, but again he gets his revenge by sneaking up and scaring the campers senseless.
(Sasquatch, screen saver from official website)
World wide these commercials gained an immense amount of attention like supper bowl commercials. The commercials became a new discussion at schools, homes and water coolers. “This campaign has a sense of adventure that drives home the ‘wild side’ theme” said Peter Mchugh, chief creative officer and managing partner at Carmichael Lynch, showing the thought process behind the ads.
In conclusion you have to be able to market whatever it is you are selling. If you are unable to come up with a new and inventive way to commercialize your product it will not sell in today’s world. Jack Link’s Beef Jerky found an effective method to market something as simple as jerky world wide and were able to branch out to the audience and create a connection stating how they should purchase this product.
(old packaging)
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