• by Erik Oster , July 26, 2023

In a new campaign for summer grilling season, Heinz makes a compelling case for the necessity of its condiments by presenting a series of ads with its products nowhere in sight.

Leaning into the visceral unease of culinary despair in such a situation, Heinz teamed up with Wi+K New York for the “It’s Not Summer Without Heinz”  campaign. The series of images of mustard-free hot dogs and ketchup-less hamburgers (at least the burger has some lettuce, onion and tomato, though) is meant to underscore just how essential condiments are for the backyard barbecue experience. Where’s that pickle-flavored cocktail when you need it?

“We leaned into our global platform around fans' irrational love of Heinz and decided to do the unthinkable: Show what summer would look like without Heinz, designed to prove just what a scary thought that is,” W+K New York copywriter Katie Johnston said in a release.

It’s a compelling way to deliver its message about the brand’s value at the height of grilling season -- which just couldn’t have had the same impact with standard brand hero images of glossy ketchup and mustard. You can practically taste the deeply unpleasant dryness in the images, particularly the hot dog (for which being a vehicle for condiments is arguably most of the point). It’s just…wrong. Which elicits a strong desire in the viewer to correct the problem and get some emergency mustard on that damn dog as soon as possible -- which, of course, is the whole point.

The summer campaign is an illustration of the “It Has to Be Heinz” global brand platform Heinz introduced last month, and is running across OOH and social media channels. Heinz partnered with Starcom’s P57 on U.S. media, for the campaign, and Carat on Canada media.