Pillsbury Backs First TV Effort Behind Country Hearth
CHICAGO–Pillsbury attempts to differentiate its Country Hearth brand from other dense whole grain breads in the company’s first advertising campaign behind the label.
A television spot from Clarity Cover-dale Fury, which handles the bakeries and food service division of Minneapolis-based Pillsbury, is tagged, “Country Hearth bread is hearty, not heavy.”
“Many of the variety breads you find out there tend to be dry and heavy,” said Country Hearth brand manager Jim Vaughan. “This commercial does an excellent job of helping us occupy [a different] space.”
The 30-second spot shows a father and his daughter eating sandwiches on a lake dock. When a duck swims up, the dad throws a corner of the bread to the bird, which slowly sinks upon catching it. “Some whole grain breads are just too heavy,” says a voiceover. The duck then spits back the piece of bread and rights itself, quacking.
The humorous spot is intended to give Country Hearth bread a personality separate from its whole grain heritage, said agency creative director Jac Coverdale.
“There isn’t a whole lot of differentiation in the category,” Coverdale said. “Most bread [advertising] is amber waves of grain.”
The spot, which is currently running in selected Southern markets, will be rolled out nationally through spot television and cable later this year through 2001, Vaughan said. The campaign is the first to support the Country Hearth brand since Pillsbury ac-quired it in 1994, Vaughan said. Billings were not disclosed.
Country Hearth bread is made by local bakeries, which buy the mix from Pillsbury. The new campaign is intended to drive demand for the bread to boost business not only for Pillsbury but also for those bakeries, Vaughan said.
“We needed a tool to help our licensees build the brand,” Vaughan said. “[Without television], we felt we would be at a distinct disadvantage.”
The spot will continue to run through next year, the agency said. K
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