I Put That Sh*t on Everything!: Shock Lives On.

Frank's RedHot is loved by millions of spicy condiment-o-philes in North America. If you want something to give your tongue an extra kick in the buds during meal time, Frank's will do that, no question! It is the number one selling hot sauce in food service channels, and trails only Tabasco as the #1 hot sauce in North America. However, it aims to be #1 in a growing North American exotic food market. 

Why is Frank's increasing in popularity? Does it taste as good as it boasts, or has Frank's done a commendable job making itself popular?

I will rest my hat on the later rather than the former. Frank's advertising out beats its taste. Frank's advertising specialists know how to make an idea sticky! They follow my #2 Tweet-Tip (check my hash-tag #stickyidea), using shock to make an idea sticky. This tip is nothing new for marketing professionals who devise exceptional advertising strategies. The shock factor has been used for decades to turn the heads of consumers. And why do people continue to use it? It works. Plain and simple. Like sex - the "shock factor" makes an idea last.

So, Ethel, the archetype of everyone's grandmother, is the face of Frank's. She quibs "I put that sh*t on everything!" to the Queen, a Catholic Priest, and a Festival Hostess in recent TV ads. The shock factor is obvious here, a little old lady with a spicy mouth. Profanities along with old ladies is a mental oxymoron.

So why does shock factor work in this case? What makes Ethel sticky? Why has the cussing nanny worked here and not in other cases with other products?

1. It is unexpected. She is a sweet little old lady. We expect her not to be eating hot sauce let alone swearing excitedly about it!

2. It is true to the product. Frank's can taste good on a lot of things, what she says most people actually do, "put that sh*t on everything!".

3. She is true to her market. The "NFL tail-gaters". People who like tail-gate parties also like little old ladies who swear. Young male partiers love off-the-wall humour and will buy products that relate to that identity.

4. It is a clear message. This point relates to my last blog on clarity. Ethel gets to the point. She doesn't have long drawn out conversations. When asked her secret to great cooking she professes the truth: "that sh*t is the magic behind everything!" It is the lasting message. Every time. Consumers get it.

5. It uses cognitive principles. We remember things that represent a class of other associated things. Iconic, if you will. Ethel is an icon. She is representative of the loving, sweet American grandmother that everyone adores. Because Ethel is iconic, she lodges in our cerebral core with ease. She is an unconscious symbol of comfort and safety embedded deep within our collective psyche from generations after generations of grandmas tenderness. Frank's branding and iconic representation of Ethel triggers an emotional safety-net when consumers buy the hot sauce.

After all, if you trust your grandma, you can trust Frank's to have the best taste can't you?

Crosby's is now using the same cognitive tactic to sell their Fancy Molasses - their grandma quips "I use it when pop wants some sugar" and "come get some of my sweet stuff". Sex. Shock.  It will be interesting to see if she sticks like Frank's grandma (no pun on the Molasses)?