Avocados From Mexico dishes up personalized recipes for Cinco de Mayo

Dive Brief:

• Avocados From Mexico (AFM) is launching a multichannel campaign to urge people to celebrate Cinco de Mayo with guacamole. The “Thank Guac It’s Cinco” effort includes TV spots, partnerships with Bud Light, NatureSweet Tomatoes and retailers on in-store displays, and a digital hub that gives people a chance to win prizes, per an announcement.
• The #TGICinco digital hub has a Guac Style Analyzer to help people find the best guacamole recipe based on a personality test. People who share their results on social media using the #TGICinco hashtag for a chance to win prizes from AFM, which is a unit of the Mexican Hass Avocado Importers Association (MHAIA).
• As part of the campaign, AFM plans to a launch a monthlong Cinco de Mayo celebration with On the Border, the Tex-Mex dining chain with more than 150 locations in the U.S. and other countries, per its website.

Dive Insight:

Avocados From Mexico’s 360-degree campaign for Cinco de Mayo comes as the occasion, which commemorates a Mexican army victory in 1862, has become a more popular occasion in the U.S. to celebrate Mexican food, culture and traditions. By collaborating with Bud Light and NatureSweet Tomatoes on in-store displays, AFM aims to urge consumers to fill their shopping baskets with all three brands as they prepare for Cinco de Mayo. The occasion is the second-biggest period for avocado consumption after the Super Bowl, but 43% of consumers who typically celebrate the occasion skipped it last year, according to data cited by AFM.

Internal research from Avocados from Mexico indicates that shoppers with avocados in their baskets in the 10 days leading up to Cinco de Mayo spend two times more than other shoppers. Additionally, 20% more pounds of avocados were sold in 2020 during the week leading up to Cinco de Mayo than during the same period in the previous year. 

Before the pandemic last year prevented many people from hosting gatherings, 11% of all U.S. adults said they planned to celebrate Cinco de Mayo, while 23% of Hispanic Americans said they would observe the occasion, researcher YouGov found in a 2019 survey. AFM’s campaign is a sign that people are returning to their pre-pandemic habits as restrictions on gatherings are lifted in parts of the U.S. and many adults get vaccinated.

AFM’s #TGICinco digital hub for Cinco de Mayo follows last month’s launch of its Avocado Nation website, which uses artificial intelligence (AI) to personalize the experience based on consumer engagement with its content. The site has sections to watch videos from creators and join a loyalty program to win points that can be redeemed for money back or avocado-themed merchandise from its web store. Because retailers typically collect their own first-party data about shoppers through loyalty programs, more consumer goods companies have developed ways to collect their consumer information to help sharpen their marketing efforts and boost repeat purchases.

AFM’s Cinco de Mayo campaign also follows its “Taco Tip Off” promotion to coincide with the return of the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament in March. The promotion marked the resumption of sports-related marketing after AFM canceled its Super Bowl ad for the first time in six years. During the regular NFL season, AFM ran its first celebrity-led shopper marketing program to reach consumers in stores.