• by Sarah Mahoney  @mahoney_sarah, September 26, 2024

Almost everyone has a dozen eggs in the fridge. But beyond breakfast ideas, younger consumers aren’t sure what to do with them. That’s why the American Egg Board’s new “Meant to be Broken” campaign focuses on new recipes and meal occasions. Ed Hoffman, the AEB’s vice president of marketing and communications, tells Marketing Daily how the campaign hopes to elevate this often-overlooked staple.

Interview has been edited for length and clarity.

Marketing Daily: The American Egg Board provides marketing support to all its members. What made you decide it was time for a new campaign?

Ed Hoffman: Nearly 90% of consumers have eggs in their refrigerator at any given time. Our job isn't penetration -- it’s velocity.  How can we help people consume more eggs throughout the day and underscore the value?

We started this process last year as we were looking for a way to shift cooking behavior and accelerate demand for eggs. Based on our research and insights, we moved from marketing aimed at the general population to a targeted audience.

We zeroed in on this group of younger, medium egg consumers: NexGen Eggsplorers. The barrier to consuming more eggs was that they weren’t sure what to do with them beyond eggs for breakfast. They think eggs are not as convenient as some other options. But they said, “If you gave me ideas, hacks, tips, and tricks about using eggs, I would be far more inclined to try them.”

This group is between 20 and 35. And they are not eating as many eggs as older generations. And they are highly focused on convenience. They want to spend less time cooking.

Marketing Daily: How do you make eggs more convenient?

Hoffman: We had a lot of different ideas coalesce at once. Since this campaign aims to help people rediscover eggs and break some expectations, we thought about ways to break routines. Eggs aren’t just for breakfast; maybe encourage people to experiment with them at lunch. Put them in leftovers. Use the microwave. Add some salsa.

Marketing Daily: How has the role of the egg changed in America’s diet? People are more health-conscious and more likely to be focusing on higher-quality protein. But eggs also became the bellwether for inflation, pressured by Avian flu shortages. “Have you seen the price of eggs?” was a national obsession.

When people are feeling a pinch, we must remind them that eggs are valuable. So rising prices gave people a chance to think about them that way -- they cost more than they used to, but they are still something I value and want in my diet.

Marketing Daily: The egg board promotes all kinds of eggs, no matter how they’re produced. But consumers are increasingly interested in more sustainable eggs, such as cage-free, right?

Hoffman: Yes, and that’s consistent across food types. Consumers want to know where all their food comes from and better understand where food is grown and how animals are raised. Animal welfare is incredibly important to consumers. It's even more important to farmers. They want to make sure that we have a stable, wholesome supply, keeping hens safe and their costs down.

Marketing Daily: Are you using media differently?

Hoffman: We want to be in the right place at the right time, whether connected TV or social media. Some people are diehard Instagram users. Some are on TikTok. It’s our job to be where they are. We’re especially using this “Meant to be Broken” thinking in the media plan; we don’t want the campaign to just be about the tagline. Depending on the media, we’re showing up with different colors, for example -- anything that makes us look less expected.

We're across the board in paid media and have a very robust earned media program. We're working with over 130 influencers -- the majority of them earned -- and have given them resources and materials to use. We’ve launched a contest, asking them for ideas, and we’ll highlight them throughout the year.

And we kicked the effort off with an activation with Sunny Choi, the Olympic breakdancer, who is breaking plenty of rules herself.

Ketchum is our partner in all this, and we’re spending about $2.5 million.

*An earlier version misstated the amount of protein in a dozen eggs.