Miracle Whip
How does a sandwich spread that’s been around since the 1930s engage a younger generation?
Miracle Whip took this challenge in 2010 with its “We are Miracle Whip and we will not tone it down” campaign.
The brand secured product placement in the Lady Gaga music video Telephone as well as the video game
Skate 3. It also ran television advertising targeted to the 18- to 35-year-old market that advised, “Don’t go
unnoticed, don’t blend in, don’t be ordinary, boring or bland: In other words, don’t be so mayo.”
Miracle Whip’s public relations bonanza began quickly after the campaign was launched. After Stephen Colbert
of Comedy Central’s The Colbert Report aired the new television ad, he stated that he was offended by the
statement “Don’t be so mayo,” and that he has had it with the “mayo-nay-sayers.” Colbert then ran a
mayonnaise parody ad that featured similar characters and a voiceover that proclaimed, “Don’t be a miracle
wimp.”
The ball was squarely in Miracle Whip’s court. The brand responded by buying ad time on Colbert’s next show;
it ran new ads directed to Stephen Colbert, “mayo-lover,” who “viciously” attacked the product on his show.
Colbert, wanting to get the last word, went on the night after the Miracle Whip ads aired and thanked the
company for their advertising. He noted, “I could certainly use the money to buy more delicious mayonnaise.”
Miracle Whip continued to create more controversy as it moved to its “Love us or Hate us” campaign. This
initiative launched with television ads featuring everyday people and celebrities as they talked about their
feelings toward Miracle Whip. Some of the reviews weren’t very complimentary; comments like “Miracle Whip
tastes like lotion but sweet” and “I could never date anyone who likes Miracle Whip” don’t sell a lot of jars.
1. In what way is Miracle Whip using reference groups and opinion leaders?
2. Do you think these groups will influence other consumers to purchase a low-involvement product like
sandwich spread?
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