In the pastel hell of a baby shower—a party filled with exaggerated ooh-ing and aah-ing over onesies and swaddles—a reluctant guest reaches cute overload and plots an escape. Her brainstorm: pop out to the store for some fruit to add to the nosh table.
It’s a transparent old ruse and, as it turns out, no longer a failsafe, per DoorDash Canada’s new campaign with the tagline, “We get groceries, so you don’t have to.”
The characters in three short videos begrudgingly stay put, despite their best efforts to slip away from awkward and chaotic situations. The campaign, from Hard Work Club, departs from the typical DoorDash approach by painting the brand as the villain of sorts, while leaning into the app’s proficiency in delivering staples like milk and eggs.
The 15-second ads, from director Francois Lallier of Untitled Films, aim to “flex our brand voice into humor, and we are here for it,” even if that means poking a little fun at DoorDash, according to Heather Cameron, head of brand and creative.
Creatives decided to play with the white lie people tell about getting groceries when what they really want is a few moments to themselves.
“It’s based on a real insight,” Meghan Kraemer, co-founder and executive creative director at the agency, told ADWEEK. “Creativity is not linear, and ideas can strike at unexpected times and in unexpected places. This one came to me as a hunch as I chased my kids around a Mexican beach.”
The media plan from Wavemaker targets key DoorDash customer segments, including young families and sports fans, through linear TV and online video. Additionally, there are out of home ads across Canada near university campuses and airports—sample tagline: “Welcome home (your milk is expired).” The work will also be distributed via paid social, digital display, targeted search and through influencers.