Carmichael Lynch Launches ‘Runnin’ With Sasquatch’ Campaign for Jack Link’s Amidst Client Review
The brand previously teased the campaign with a local Super Bowl ad
Earlier this month, Carmichael Lynch confirmed it was not participating in Jack Link’s creative review, conducted by agency search consulting firm Pile, with the agency instead being “evaluated on current and ongoing work,” according to a Jack Link’s spokesperson.
Jack Link’s teased Carmichael Lynch’s new campaign with a 60-second “Runnin’ With Sasquatch” anthem ad running locally during the Super Bowl focusing on the character’s fiercer side. Carmichael Lynch creative director Allison Hayes told Adweek the anthem ad began as “a bonus piece of content that we cut from the highlights of the rest of the campaign, but there was a ton of love for it, and we saw the opportunity from a timing standpoint.”
Now Jack Link’s is rolling out the rest of the campaign with a series of four new spots, each of which the previously released anthem ad borrowed bits and pieces from. The focus is on the concept that you either run with Sasquatch and embrace your wild side, or run from Sasquatch, in which case it appears he might eat you. Each of the ads applies the concept to a slightly different scenario, including the difference between camping and “Glamping,” different types of hikers, mountain bikers and bird enthusiasts.
“It was time to take Sasquatch back to his roots—outdoors and in the wild,” Hayes told Adweek in a statement. “We also, for the first time, asked people to identify with our favorite spokesbeast, and asked: Are you the type to run with Sasquatch, or away from Sasquatch?”
The new ads leave little doubt as to the more murderous side of Sasquatch introduced with the local Super Bowl ad. “Falconry” explains that those who don’t run with Sasquatch and eat Jack Link’s “become the snack” while “Mountain Biking” amends the line to “become the protein.” Sasquatch does not mess around.
Hayes explained that the agency filmed the new ads in a public park, which led to some perplexed passers-by.
“On more than one occasion, someone out for their morning hike or someone walking their dog would turn the corner and happen upon Sasquatch,” she said in a statement.
“Runnin’ with Sasquatch” will roll out on broadcast channels including ESPN, FX, FXX and the Discovery Channel, with support from paid digital, social media and PR efforts.
Ornithologists may note that the raptors in the “Falconry” spot are not, in fact, falcons.
“The bird spot was originally scripted as a falcon for their retrieving capabilities, but we used an Augur Hawk to get a more epic feel,” Hayes explained.
When they began filming with the alternative raptors, however, they ran into another problem: the birds were afraid of Sasquatch.
“We had to take the time and get them accustomed to working with the giant man-beast,” Hayes added, before finally getting the desired shot.
