Cheetos kicks off 2020 master brand campaign with Super Bowl spot

Dive Brief:

• Cheetos is launching a new master brand campaign and it will kick off with a Super Bowl ad, the company revealed in a press release. Cheetos last ran an in-game Super Bowl ad in 2009.
• The “It’s a Cheetos Thing” marketing will introduce a new product called Cheetos Popcorn. The messaging centers around Cheetos as a way of life and plays up on “Cheetle,” the recent name given to the orange dust stuck on your fingers after eating Cheetos. 
• Cheetos has tapped ’90s rap legend MC Hammer to star in the Super Bowl ad. The company released a teaser for the spot on its social media pages. In the teaser, MC Hammer sits down to a piano while eating Cheetos but stops himself from playing after finding Cheetle all over his fingers. In doing so, he says his classic line, “Can’t touch this.” The Super Bowl ad will run during the bulk of the year, and the campaign will include in-store, out-of-home and digital elements.

Dive Insight:

The PepsiCo Frito-Lay snack brand is using the big stage of the Super Bowl to launch a massive brand campaign. The “It’s a Cheetos Thing,” campaign aims to position the snack as a lifestyle brand by promoting orange fingers as a way of life, and attempts to give its distinctive orange dust an official name.

Mining nostalgia is a popular tactic among legacy consumer packaged goods brands, who hope to drive sales by evoking a sense of happiness and comfort.

Recently, Cheetos has been pushing experiential campaigns as a way to increase its perception as a pop culture icon and appeal to younger consumers. By kicking off at the Super Bowl, the effort can build on these lifestyle marketing message with the aim to bring the brand to an even wider audience.

For instance, the brand teamed up with Yum! Brands’ KFC to push a new sandwich called the Cheetos Sandwich, by tapping Cheetos’ Chester Cheetah mascot as its new spokesperson. Chester was one of a number of different pop culture icons to play the role of KFC founder Colonel Harland Sanders.

Cheetos also worked with fashion retailer Forever 21 to sell a limited-edition apparel collection that included sweatshirts, swimsuits, T-shirts and dresses with colors and logos related to Cheetos Crunchy and Cheetos Flamin’ Hot snacks. Cheetos then worked with clothing retailer and crowdfunding site Betabrand for an Easter-themed Spring Snack Line. 

Flamin’ Hot Cheetos have been a hot item for company sales. Flamin’ Hot has been America’s favorite snack brand for three years in a row, per sales data from app-based delivery service goPuff, as reported by Adweek. With this momentum, the brand is poised for a strong platform to introduce a new product, Cheetos Popcorn.