Thanksgiving is just days away, so pick out your favorite pair of stretchy pants and grab a fork! While you prepare the roast, we’ll whip up the latest in turkey advertising.
Last year, we looked at the evolution of Butterball television ads across six decades and the corporation’s sustained success. For Thanksgiving 2018, we want to expand our dive into native advertising trends, especially with digital, and into corporations other than Butterball.
While Butterball is one of the most powerful figures in the lives of turkey-eaters, it isn’t the only one. In total, four corporations – Butterball, Hormel Foods, Cargill, and Farbest Foods – produce over half of the turkey in the U.S., according to The Washington Post.
A popular brand of Hormel Foods, for example, is Applegate Farms, LLC, which prides itself on being healthy – its natural and organic meats don’t have any antibiotics or GMO ingredients and animals are humanely raised. The brand is of particular interest to us because of its knowledge and use of native advertising online this year.
While the growth of native advertising is slowing and there are certain challenges with regards to it, brands like Applegate Farms, LLC still find the ad format beneficial.
Here are four advantages of native advertising.
1. Two in three GenZ, Millennials, and GenX consumers trust branded content more than traditional advertising, according to Time Inc.
2. A Reuters survey notes that 75% of consumers say that, if content peaks their interest (and native ads usually do), then they will engage with it.
3. The click-through-rate (CTR) is 8.8 times higher with native display ads than traditional display ads, says an AppNexus whitepaper.
4. One-third of Millennials say that they’ve purchased something as a result of a sponsored post like a native editorial ad, according to a Collective Bias survey.
For these reasons (and potentially others), Applegate Farms, LLC continues to implement native advertising into its marketing strategy.
Applegate Farms, LLC (a Hormel Foods Brand)’s Native Ads
If you know the six ways to spot native advertising, then you can identify Applegate Farms, LLC’s native editorial ads online.
Native Advertisement #1
Thai Turkey Wrap
- 4 Slices Applegate Naturals® Oven Roasted Turkey Breast
- 2 Tablespoons Thai Almond Butter Spread
- 1/8 Cup Shredded Carrots
- 1/8 Cup Chopped Cucumber
- 1/4 Cup Lettuce
- 1 Whole Wheat Wrap
Applegate Farms, LLC and She Knows Media, a women’s lifestyle digital media company with a mission of women inspiring other women, form a great pair because, for starters, they both target a predominantly female audience. The two companies sponsored a specific ad on the Hello Glow blog for one day on September 26th, 2018. The post was entitled “4 Tasty Bento Box Lunch Recipes with Deli Turkey and Cheese.” It hoped to stir up some mid-week lunchbox inspiration for mothers with a list of upgraded turkey sandwich recipes like the Thai turkey wrap one shown above.
Native Advertisement #2
Between September 5th, 2018 and October 22nd, 2018, Applegate Farms, LLC ran a similar native editorial ad, again targeting parents who make lunches for their children. The post, “5 Turkey Sandwiches Kids Will Love,” on the SheKnows.com blog showcased fun, new sandwich ideas to liven up kids’ boring lunches. One of them even referenced Thanksgiving. See here:
Thanksgiving Every Day
Why wait for November to experience one of Thanksgiving’s best foods? Yes, we’re talking about cranberry sauce.
Instructions: Spread a thin to medium layer of cream cheese on two slices of bread. Add a layer of your favorite cranberry sauce — homemade or store-bought. Top with turkey. If desired, add sliced cheese, lettuce and tomato. Close the sandwich.
Native Advertisement #3
The native ad above was featured on SheKnows.com for five days between August 30th, 2018 and September 4th, 2018. Applegate Farms, LLC wanted all parents to know that its turkey was the healthy, low-sugar choice to make when deciding what after-school snack to serve their children.
Native Advertisement #4
This native editorial ad, sponsored by both Applegate Farms, LLC and She Knows Media, was published on the Global Munchkins site, a luxury travel and inspired living blog. The ad ran for over a month from September 19th, 2018 to October 20th, 2018. The article on the website was entitled “A Better School Sandwich: Why We Buy Organic and Humanely Raised Meats & Cheeses” and was written by a mother, who longed for a product that was both nutritious enough for her kids, that was humane to animals, and that took the guesswork out of packing their lunches during the school year. Once the mom found her perfect match with Applegate Farms, LLC, she went on to outline the brand’s perks
- No Antibiotics
- No Growth Hormones or Beta Agonists
- 100% Vegetarian Fed or Grass-fed
- More Space for Animals
- Environmental Enrichments
as well as her daughter’s favorite sandwich recipe.
- Two Slices of Sourdough Bread
- 4 Slices Applegate Naturals® Deli Meat (She Likes Applegate Naturals® Oven Roasted Turkey Breast or Applegate Naturals® Black Forest Ham Best)
- 1 Slice of Applegate Naturals® American-Style Colby Cheese
- Organic Spinach
- Vegan Mayo
- Dijon Mustard
Conclusion
Butterball may dominate Thanksgiving dinner year after year, but it is not the only worthy competitor when it comes to selling turkey. In recent years, it looks like Applegate Farms, LLC, one of Hormel Foods’ brands, has preyed on turkey’s possible role at snack time and in lunchboxes. And the brand’s native ad choices have only helped to increase its reach and popularity.
