Campbell’s Launches ‘Amazing’ New Campaign
Campbell’s wants shoppers to know how amazing soup can be and is putting up considerable dollars to back up that claim.
The soup manufacturer has launched its first-ever umbrella advertising campaign to support all of its U.S. soup brands. Touting “It's Amazing What Soup Can Do,” the new campaign will support Campbell’s condensed soup; its Chunky, Healthy Request and Select Harvest brands; and the microwaveable versions of these lines.
Designed to reposition Campbell’s soups in the simple meals category and drive sales and category growth, the marketing effort will combine the budget of Campbell’s U.S. soup brands and deliver an integrated campaign with spending levels well above $100 million. Campbell developed the campaign over an 18-month period. This marks the first time Campbell has used a unifying advertising theme to promote all of its major soup brands.
“We reviewed 60 years worth of advertising to better understand what had worked and why,” said Andrew Brennan, Campbell’s VP/GM for U.S. soup. “Historically, our advertising worked best when it showcased Campbell’s soup as an indispensable food for any occasion. Soup is great for lunch, dinner or as a snack. It can be paired with a variety of foods or poured over meat, pasta or rice as a sauce, or used as an ingredient in a great tasting recipe. Our new campaign gets back to highlighting the versatility and variety of our soups and reminding people of all the amazing things soup can do.”
Campbell’s research and consumer insights indicated that in the “post-Warhol period” of the 1970s and ’80s, the company’s advertising had become too focused on the iconic can and few top-selling varieties, rather than celebrating the ingredients, variety and taste of its soups.
The “It’s Amazing What Soup Can Do” advertising is designed to contemporize the Campbell’s brand and drive revenue growth for Campbell’s U.S. soup business by showing consumers how soup can help people eat better and enjoy every stage of life. The ads present an array of images and positive emotions, such as outdoor activities, energy and happiness.
The campaign presents the many varieties of Campbell’s soups within a common creative framework. All of the television spots include the same music, cinematography, voice-overs and tagline. Actor Tim Allen provides the voice over and each commercial concludes with a graphic and audio tagline: “It’s Amazing What Soup Can Do.”
The first spot to air, “Happier Place,” highlights all Campbell’s branded soups. The 30-second spot is the first of 15 television ads planned. The scale of the campaign, which includes television, print, radio, online and social media, along with in-store activation and sales promotion, is significantly larger than any previous Campbell campaign.
Camden, N.J.-based Campbell has long been an advertising innovator. Campbell’s soups were first advertised with the help of the classic Campbell Kids characters on trolley boards in New York City in 1904. In the 1930s, Campbell began advertising on radio and the “M’m! M’m! Good!” jingle was first heard.