To draw attention to the healthy benefits of fruit, Dole Packaged Foods puts a whimsical and kid-friendly spin to a world-famous meme. Taking inspiration from the popular “Hold My Beer” meme, the brand is launching its “Hold My Fruit Bowl” campaign. Created in partnership with agency Erich and Kallman, the ads lean into lighthearted humor as it likens the health benefits of fruit to gaining superpowers.

“We have the opportunity to bring humor into those pivotal moments when your kids start challenging you. Any parent can relate to that, Having those specific cultural moments of connection with people through humor and family is the most fun that we can do at Dole.”

Orzse Hodi, Dole Packaged Foods’ vice president of marketing, Americas

This certainly goes on to show how some brands have understand the missing element to connect with their direct consumers. Here are some more lessons from this commercials for marketers who aim to create a connection with digital natives also known as Generation Z.

Marketing lesson 1: Tap into the hype

From this ad we can see how a simple idea can go popular if we draw parallels from what is already known to the world. All versions of the ad showcase the daily lives of kids while corelating some moments with a meme “hold my fruit-bowl”.

Marketing lesson 2: Add humor

Any message communicated using some form of humor gives everything a shot of gentility and authenticity often missing from complex marketing campaigns.

Marketing lesson 3: Add subtle references from popular culture

Very few commercials hit the nail on the head while drawing refereneces from pop culture. Dole’s commercial using hold my fruit bowl does exceptionally well at keeping it subtle.

Marketing lesson 4: Focus on direct consumers

The use of fruit as a snack is reintroduced through Dole and people from all age groups are the consumers, however, the children are the direct intended consumers. This advertisement does a good job in bringing that idea to the front.

Marketing lesson 5: Tie everything together in simple narratives

A simple yet effective narratives drive the plot of this commercial. Kids can have super human abilities if they eat fruit. Each version of this commercial showcases a super human ability in kids and how they take the lead from their elders.

 

Now when kids get together in lunch time, more innovations around this new meme are to follow. Share how your kids recreated this ad.