CRUNCH THROUGH MARCH
x
Creative Campaign
Chosen as the winner of the 2022 VCU Brandcenter Sprint
TL;DR
THE BRIEF:
An official partner of March Madness 2023, RITZ Toasted Chips wanted to generate buzz without splurging on a TV campaign.
THE OPPORTUNITY:
March is a stressful month with little to no outlet for relief. To cope, people mindlessly calm their nerves with crunchy snacks.
THE SOLUTION:
Help people cope with the stressors of March and its Madness with the power of the RITZ Toasted Chips Crunch Line.
the cultural truth
HISTORY
WAITING TO HAPPEN
MARCH IS
From the brackets to the Cinderella stories to watching your favorite team, there are some very high highs during March.
the problem
HOWEVER
like, really stressful
we forget what March really feels like...
IT'S STRESSFUL
with high-stakes games and countless busted brackets,
the month of March can take an emotional toll
the opportunity
we found that to cope with the stress, people
MINDLESSLY EAT CRUNCHY SNACKS
to keep them occupied and to release some tension
(both in the shoulders and the jaw)
This is a fact! According to BioNutritional Research Group, Inc
the insight
CRUNCH THERAPY IS NEEDED
RITZ Toasted Chips can provide fans with something to crunch on
.png)
the idea
CRUNCH THROUGH MARCH
Help fans cope with the stressors of March and its Madness with the power of the RITZ Toasted Chips Crunch Line
INTRODUCING THE TOASTED CHIPS
A hotline for the stressed fans of March Madness to call in and talk to former NCAA tournament legends - the experts on crunching through March.
Just call 1-800-CRUNCHY
LISTEN TO THE
CRUNCH LINE
For fans who can't get on the phone with former legends, we have pre-recorded messages from them to help Madness viewers cope.
A message from former legend Christian Laettner
THE STUNT
Crunch Line phone booths placed in locations where March Madness fans will be gathering like college stadiums, bars, and campuses.
LIMITED RELEASE CRUNCH THERAPY BOX
Every 100th caller to the Crunch Line will receive a limited edition Crunch Therapy Box with items like a Salt & Butter woodwick candle, a RITZ Toasted Chip-shaped stress ball, limited edition Rosemary-flavored RITZ Toasted Chips, and Sour Cream & Onion massage oil (for those really stressful days).
STRESS BAGS
For those who can't get their hands on the Crunch Therapy boxes, we included a freshness-saver sticker on all the bags of RITZ Toasted Chips with steps on how to destress. Just like Sheldon.
MARKETING
OOH
Physical and digital ads will promote the Crunch Line and RITZ Toasted Chips placed in locations that are near popular March Madness fan hubs.
We also wanted to take full advantage of those "crunchtime" moments during the game by having a Jumbotron ad run to remind viewers in the stadium to eat RITZ Toasted Chips, especially when stress is high.
SOCIAL
Digital ads will be posted on Instagram and, taking advantage of basketball fans' love for Twitter, we will be tweeting live Crunch Line tips.
HEADLINES
The goal of this campaign was to generate buzz around RITZ Toasted Chips during the 2023 March Madness season. We created several headlines that replicated what we think the attention would look like during March Madness.
BRAND TOUCHPOINT:
THE SNEEZE SNACK
Of course throughout the four-day sprint we ate a lot of RITZ, both for stress and for hunger. Specifically, one of us ate the RITZ Crisp & Thins in the Tabasco flavor but found that he couldn't stop sneezing while eating them. We went to the internet to see if this was true across the board and found out it was! So, as a final touchpoint we introduced the Sneeze Snack. We took the Tabasco flavor and put it on RITZ Toasted Chips so fans had a reason to skip work to watch March Madness.
