The National Pork Board has put together a multimedia advertising campaign to encourage US consumers to get more pork on their forks now that barbecue season has arrived. To drive home the message, actor David Koechner, famous for his roles in hit movie Anchorman and TV series The Office, will voice a BBQ used to cook pork on.
The Grill For It! campaign will see Koechner document his summer cooking pork. He will also be running a blog, GrillForIt.com, where consumers can access recipe ideas and learn new cooking techniques.
“We are building on our target’s love of pork with a fun campaign that celebrates all the ways to make pork on the grill,” said Randy Brown, chair of the Pork Checkoff Domestic Marketing Committee, which provides funding to the National Pork Board. “To stand out, we’re offering inspired meal ideas from the grills to consumers.”
Creative marketing
The campaign will run until Monday 5 September - Labor Day in the US. The campaign features two grills in an integrated promotion targeting both the general and Hispanic markets. It covers radio and online advertising, alongside print and digital plans.
Pork consumption in the US currently stands at about 22.2 kilograms (kg) per capita, according to 2015-2016 data from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). Is has also forecasted pork consumption to drop to 20.8kg per capita by 2024.
But the scheme is not set against the backdrop of the OECD’s forecasted drop in US pork consumption.
Randy Brown said he hoped the fresh approach to pork marketing would help “break through all of the seasonal clutter to resonate with consumers”.
The National Pork Board carries out a range of Pork Checkoff-funded research, promotion and consumer insight projects created to champion the industry. Enshrined by legislation, Pork Checkoff receives a $0.40 levy from pork producers for every $100 in value of pigs sold.