• by Steve Ellwanger , July 7, 2022

Oscar Mayer has reinvented 1980’s-style, scratch-and-sniff magazine ads with a placement in entertainment magazines that emits the aroma of sizzling bacon.

For the sake of genuineness, the page immediately following the scratch-and-sniff experience carries the faint image of a grease stain—similar to the mark cooked bacon leaves on a paper towel.

It’s the latest execution in the Kraft Heinz brand’s “Keep It Oscar” platform, which has showcased such zany creations as the Wiener Cake, Wiener Rake and Bologna Face Mask.

“One of the things we’re trying to do as Kraft Heinz and Oscar Mayer as a brand is bring the brand more into culture and into conversations,” says Oscar Mayer head of North America brand communications Anne Field.

The ads are running for several months in US Weekly, US Entertainment, inTouch, OK!, Life & Style and Star.

In this interview, edited for brevity and clarity, Field explains the strategy behind the scratch-and-sniff execution—conceived in collaboration with creative agency Johannes Leonardo and media agency P57—and how it jibes with “Keep It Oscar.”

Marketing Daily: How would you describe the target audience for the print campaign?

Field: Our core target is a pragmatic optimistic. She kind of balances things between life and food as she’s making decisions and really feels most herself when she’s not taking life too seriously. It’s the idea that life doesn’t have to be perfect to be great, when you can find those moments of joy in the everyday.

Marketing Daily: Why did you choose entertainment magazines?

Field: Our target audience does over-index on reading entertainment, celebrity and gossip-heavy publications—about a 140 index with this type of profile.

Marketing Daily: How will you judge effectiveness?

Field: From a brand relevance standpoint, we would love to know that people are talking about this and noticing it. So looking at conversations and searches will be something that’s on our radar.

Marketing Daily: What’s the gist of the “Keep It Oscar” platform?

Field: It’s all about sparking smiles in unexpected ways. We find our best work is when you reimagine the everyday and bring that levity and fun to our consumers.

We’re a brand that drives a giant Wienermobile around the country. We’re a brand that has jingles that are sort of present in peoples’ minds. So we’ve always been there for those moments of fun when life gets too serious.