There are a lot of really bad marketing and advertising efforts these days. But sometimes, you get a stroke of genius. This, to me, is one of those brilliant ideas, well executed.
In the words of Shakespeare, "to thine owns self be true." Heinz has done just that.
They understand their point of differentiation and where they fit in the marketplace. Plus, they know how to communicate it.
Thus we bring you...The Heinz Ketchup Puzzle.
Quoting Marketing Dive, "The offering from Kraft Heinz Canada is intended to serve as the world's slowest puzzle, consisting of 570 pieces identically colored in the ketchup brand's signature red hue."
"Heinz is known for its iconic, slow-pouring ketchup. In a period when everyone has a little more time on their hands and puzzle popularity has skyrocketed, we wanted to help pass the time by connecting the two," Brian Neumann, senior brand manager, Kraft Heinz Canada, said in a press statement."
Well, being invested in a puzzle certainly involves multiple senses and parts of the brain. The sense of challenge and reward is built into the effort. A puzzle provides a clear sense of task and clear understanding of the challenges involved...especially with 570 pieces that all look pretty much the same!
When completed as a team, it could be a great way to help identify different skills and strengths, and building a team to help build empathy, watching when one person gets too frustrated, rotating roles, dividing labor, developing systems and being open to revising those processes and systems as more information and experience is developed.
So whether we create custom puzzles or can get our hands on the limited supply of this Heinz one, once we can reunite, this could be an interesting exercise in team building.
Just be sure to have plenty of the real thing on hand to celebrate at a feast at the end.