TBWA\Chiat\Day L.A. launched a March Madness campaign for casual restaurant chain Buffalo Wild Wings continuing with the surreal approach of its “Hit The Button” campaign, but with a bit of a dark twist.
“Number 7” is a classic “Be careful what you wish for” situation. When a server approaches the table of two college hoops fans and asks if she can get them anything else, one quips, “Yeah, you can get number 7 out of the game.” She jots down the note and, lo and behold, he appears out of thin air (much to everyone’s confusion).
“Foodoo” applies a similar approach to a food-based pun on the voodoo doll. Both spots end with a reminder that the chain is “The official hangout of March Madness.”
An NCAA-fueled effort makes sense for the brand, given their connection to sports in general. Something about the attempts at dark humor fall flat, however, making the results more off-putting than funny.
The “Foodoo” doll of the latter ad will also make an appearance in a social media campaign by space150, which will run on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
Buffalo Wild Wings vice president of marketing Bob Ruhland told Campaign it will also be a “secret menu item” during the tournament.
“March Madness is the most important thing within our calendar at this point and time,” Ruhland added. “That’s not taking anything away from NHL or NBA that’s going on right now, but it’s just this influx of fans because of brackets they’ve created at home. They turn their attention to college hoops and watch how that unfolds.”