After running a standard teaser that didn’t reveal much about the forthcoming ad, Avocados from Mexico debuted its new campaign by Austin’s GSD&M today.
Here’s the full spot:
After the launch, we were fortunate enough to speak with agency Creative Director Tom Hamling and VP/Account Director Sabia Siddiqi about the work (directed by Matt Dilmore of Biscuit).
Hamling tells us that the client wanted “something to grab people’s attention” and remind them that “the world’s best avocados come from Mexico”:
“It’s the only place where they grow year-round, and that was the genesis of the idea: going back to the beginning of time and seeing where they would thrive best.”
The winning idea came at the very end of the pitch process:
“We showed them four or five ideas. They’d already seen three agencies and 15 concepts that day, and they told us on set that they knew the minute they saw it that this was the one they wanted.”
Siddiqi explains that the campaign will, of course, go well beyond the ad itself:
“What we’re most excited about is all the content created around the spot: we will have a live ‘draft’ with an hour of material and a related giveaway. It’s based on the understanding that avocados come from Mexico — and lots of other things come from Mexico too.”
Hamling says that, while the agency cannot yet reveal specifics about that content, it will allow viewers to “engage after they watch the game”; Siddiqi notes that the follow-up will be promoted via Facebook and Twitter, that the videos will live on YouTube, and that the campaign will run through Monday after the ad airs during the first quarter of the game.
On picking Doug Flutie and Jerry Rice to star, Hamling says that “they are iconic college/ professional players who Americans are used to seeing behind the desk commenting on drafts.”
Here’s a teaser regarding the follow-up material:
“During the first draft ever, what else did Mexico grab?”