• by Steve Ellwanger , February 9, 2023

Manufacturers of air fryers probably won’t love the new Air Fried product line from Gorton’s Seafood.

That’s because the frozen fish fillets and butterfly shrimp have already been air fried and can be prepared in a conventional oven, without an air fryer—the kitchen appliance made popular by pandemic-induced, at-home cooking.

Crunchy but not greasy are two main product attributes communicated in this spot from the Connelly Partners agency.

As a mother heats Air Fried fillets in an oven for her husband and daughter, the air around them is a constant breeze—a reference to the way air fryers work.

“Gorton’s is cutting out having to buy that product and instead, they’re air frying the fish before it gets to the consumer,” Connelly Partners director of influencer marketing and social media Alyssa Stevens tells Marketing Daily.

In the leadup to this week’s campaign launch, Gorton’s relied heavily on TikTok to tease and then reveal the Air Fried line.

“People spend up to 95 minutes per day on TikTok consuming content, and one of the audiences that Gorton’s is trying to reach is that millennial/GenZ younger consumer,” says Stevens.

An eight-person TikTok creator team was given the product so they could create teaser reels and tell their followers that the reveal would take place on Feb. 6.

“Perhaps they were wearing the iconic fisherman’s yellow raincoat or they were talking about the breeze or air—giving a nod to the lightness of the product. But they weren’t actually saying the brand name or what was happening,” explains Stevens.

Later this month, Gorton’s will launch an augmented-reality feature involving a filter to “gamify the product and make the brand have a bit more personality,” adds Stevens.

“You can put the filter over your face on your phone and potentially grab the product as it’s flying through the air.”