• by Danielle Oster , September 27, 2024

It starts with pizza. And it ends with the “Generosity Index,” tracking the most generous locales in the country, according to Newman’s Own.

The Westport, Connecticut-based food company co-founded by actor Paul Newman in 1982, which donates all its profits to charitable organizations, asked consumers to choose what they’d pay during a pizza truck tour across 22 locations in 10 states this summer. Consumers were also informed that the proceeds would go to help children’s charities through the Newman’s Own Foundation.

Now the brand is sharing the results from the social experiment of a campaign -- including “the most generous city,” Los Angeles, where residents paid an average of $5.54 for a pizza. The city of brotherly love came in a distant second, with Philadelphians paying an average of $3.05. With New York a major stop on the tour, the “Generosity Index” also broke down the city by borough, with Staten Island topping the list at $3.38, nearly three times the average paid in Queens ($1.21). The index also delved into baseball’s biggest rivalry, finding New York Yankees fans were willing to pay nearly a dollar more ($2.46) than fans of the Boston Red Sox ($1.49).

“As an over-40-year-old brand, we know we need to be proactive in building a new generation of Newman’s Own fans. So, we took our social mission and our delicious pizza to the streets to reintroduce ourselves and connect with new audiences unfamiliar with the brand,” Doug Cameron, chief strategy & creative officer for DCX Growth Accelerator, an agency and consultancy that worked with Newman’s Own on the campaign, told Marketing Daily.

“In the end we served close to 5,000 pieces of Newman's pizza to consumers across the country. Our highest engagement stop was Union Square in New York, where we served almost 500 slices in a single afternoon.”

Newman's Own is promoting the “Generosity Index” via a campaign video;  influencer partnerships on Instagram and Tik Tok, including viral Staten Island food influencer (Cugine) and New York Yankees utility player Oswaldo Cabrera; OOH installations highlighting specific results in Los Angeles and New York, and a paid integration on “The Drew Barrymore Show.”

Cameron explained that the “primary goal” for the campaign is reaching Gen Z and millennial audiences less likely to be familiar with the Newman’s Own brand, with its influencer partners selected based on reaching such audiences. “So far,” he said, “we're seeing high engagement rates and positive response to the ‘Generosity Index’ content,” he said, noting the campaign is ongoing.

“We have several other brand initiatives in development that build upon [the campaign’s] momentum,” he added,” as well as a celebration of Paul Newman's 100th birthday in January of 2025.”