Submitted by WPP Media

Hellmann's Mayonnaise Instrument Mayo Music

Influencer Marketing

WPP Media enlisted musical creators and a Northumbria University researcher to prove mayonnaise is an instrument for Hellmann's, and reports the campaign hit 1.12B views in a single day.

1.12BViews in a Single Day
41Earned Media Coverage
9.3KOrganic Mentions
120KEngagements

Case in 60 seconds

Hellmann's needed to build consideration among GenZ and younger millennials entering their mayonnaise-buying years, while a brand strategy of not forcing its way in limited it to places where it was relevant to them.

A SpongeBob SquarePants episode had asked whether mayonnaise is an instrument, and the fandom had argued about it for decades, so Hellmann's had an open question to answer rather than a moment to borrow. WPP Media frames the fandom as a key cultural pitstop for the audience.

The organizing thesis was to answer the fandom's question literally, proving the musical properties of mayo beyond doubt so that Hellmann's settled a long-running debate rather than inserting itself into one.

WPP Media enlisted musical creators to make mayo music and approached Northumbria University, where Dr Rachel Durkin published a research paper confirming that mayonnaise is an instrument. The agency then released a celebratory mayonnaise track, which DJ A Skillz remixed and performed during a club set, and closed with The Mayonnaise Lectures teaching people to play mayo.

WPP Media reports 1.12 billion views in a single day and $10.4 million of earned media coverage from 41 media placements against a $100,000 paid media investment. The agency also reports 9.3k organic mentions, more than 120,000 engagements and a 1,000% year on year increase in TikTok mentions.

Strategy Breakdown

GenZ and younger millennials in the United Kingdom who were reaching their mayonnaise-buying years, met through the SpongeBob SquarePants fandom.
The SpongeBob SquarePants fandom had debated whether mayonnaise is an instrument for decades, so the question existed as an unresolved argument that a brand could settle rather than a trend it had to chase.
GenZ and younger millennials were only now reaching their mayonnaise-buying years, so Hellmann's needed to earn their consideration as they entered the category rather than after their buying habits were set.
Hellmann's took the role of the party that settled the fandom's question, in line with a strategy of showing up only where it was relevant rather than forcing its way into the audience's culture.

Creative & Execution System

Assets & channels

  • TikTok

Partners

  • WPP Media

Creator role

  • DJ A Skillz

Results & Evidence

MetricValue
Views in a Single Day1.12B views
Earned Media Coverage41
Media Placements41 media placements
Paid Media Investment41
Organic Mentions9.3K organic mentions
Engagementsmore than 120K engagements

Why WPP Media's strategy worked

  1. 1

    A question an audience has argued over for years gives a brand a reason to appear, because answering it settles a conversation that already exists rather than opening one the audience never asked for.

  2. 2

    A published research paper turns a fandom joke into a reportable claim, which gives news outlets something to cover rather than leaving the story inside the fan community that started it.

  3. 3

    Staging the work in steps, from creator music to a research paper, a remix and a lecture series, gives each step fresh material for coverage rather than relying on a single launch moment.

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