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Seedy Slogan

2/27/2016

10 Comments

 
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by David Hagenbuch, Founder of Mindful Marketing
I love a good slogan—that concise, clever expression of what makes an organization or its products unique. If you like slogans/themes too, you’ll enjoy a little quiz:  Name the companies that used these classic slogans.  The answers come later in the blog.
 

1.  Like a good neighbor
2.  Melts in your mouth, not in your hands
3.  Can you hear me now?
4.  Where’s the beef?
5.  When you care enough to send the very best
  
One of the best slogans I ever heard was for a Catholic school that said: “Put faith in the future.”  The slogan is effective partly because it is short, alliterative, and memorable.  It also contains an appropriate play on the word “faith,” which conveys two equally impactful messages:
 
- Students’ faith-based education stays with them throughout their lives.
- The school's service gives us hope for the future.
 
More recently, I heard another slogan that also employed a play on words; however, this one made me wince.  The phrase is for an all-American food product: Ball Park Franks.  The slogan: “Grab life by the Ball Park.”
 
Some may wonder, “What’s wrong with that theme?” After all, it’s concise and clever, and it alludes to several similar expressions that encourage people to take control, e.g., “Grab life by the: horns, reins, and handlebars.”  Of course, there’s another expression that’s even more similar and common, which is also off-color: “Grab life by the balls.”
 
Was this last association the one on which Ball Park was banking?  Even on the surface it would seem so given that balls and ballpark obviously share the same root.  Likewise, the following numbers of Google search results suggest the association that people are most likely to make: handlebars - 82,600, reins - 96,900, horns - 994,000, and balls - 3,760,000.
 
Why would America’s largest hot dog maker, a division of Tyson Foods, choose a slogan that makes a not-so-subtle reference to male genitalia?  Well, the choice has its roots in another decision the company made a decade-and-a-half ago.  As an April 9, 2001 Advertising Age article described, it was around that time Ball Park decided to drop its long-standing, “They plump when you cook them” theme in favor of “Eat like man.”  The purpose was to position Ball Park Franks as a more manly meat and to attract more male consumers.

Then in 2015, the company conducted market research that revealed “eight out of ten men admit to putting off tough talks; 50 percent of them say they delay the dialogue for a month or more; 36 percent have even faked being busy or sick to avoid a conversation.”  From these findings Ball Park surmised that it should tell its male target market to “man up,” and tackle tough topics, thus the “Grab Life by the Ball Park” motto was born.
 
Encouraging anyone to engage in constructive conversations is certainly commendable.  It’s questionable, however, how many people might look to a hot dog maker for such relationship counsel.  Ball Park’s motives in making the new theme also should be scrutinized in that there’s no evidence that the company is any way enabling this sort of social support.  For instance, a review of Ball Park’s website reveals no such programs, and searches of the site for the words “conversations,” “discussions,” “talk,” and “difficult” deliver zero results.
 
Given that the pretext of helping men become more mature conversationalists seems sketchy at best, we’re left to assess the slogan on its own merits, i.e., to ask if it’s an effective theme.  As mentioned above, “Grab Life by the Ball Park,” is clever and concise.  The slogan misses the mark, however, in reflecting a compelling reason why a consumer would want to buy Ball Park Franks.  Sure, Tyson Foods would like all of us to grab a pack of Ball Park franks, but what exactly are the distinct advantages of choosing Ball Park over a competitor?
 
The fact that it’s difficult to answer this question suggests that “Grab Life by the Ball Park” fails to encapsulate the brand’s unique selling proposition.  In contrast, consider Ball Park’s classic theme “They plump when you cook them.”  That theme told consumers that if they bought Ball Park, they’d enjoy a hot dog that was bigger and juicier.  People wanted that outcome, the slogan reminded them of it, and Ball Park sales soared.
 
Are there other firms whose themes have effectively summarized their unique selling propositions?  Yes, the answers to the earlier slogan quiz are some of those companies: 1) State Farm, 2) M&Ms, 3) Verizon, 4) Wendy’s, 5) Hallmark.  For instance, other insurance companies might offer a low rate for auto insurance, but when you’ve had an accident and you need an agency that will really help you, then, “Like a good neighbor, State Farm is There.”

It seems that Ball Park
was at a loss for crafting a truly creative and compelling theme/unique selling proposition combination, so it’s taken the low road, trying to use sex to sell.  Granted, Ball Park’s “Grab Life by the Ball Park” isn’t bad compared to some of the highly sexualized things we see and hear in the media.  Still, the company’s not-so-veiled reference to male genitalia gives people one more gratuitous trigger to entertain indecent thoughts, even as many people in our society suffer from sexual addictions.

Ball Park obviously has done many things right to have risen to the top of the U.S. hot dog market.  It’s doubtful, however, that the company’s new slogan will do much to help it retain that position.  Meanwhile, in a market that sees about $2.5 billion of its sales come through supermarkets, the frankfurter maker is building a brand image that is not so family-friendly.  For these reasons, what Ball Park has grabbed and grilled up is a case of "Mindless Marketing."


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10 Comments
Andrew Russell link
3/1/2016 01:43:04 pm

I would have to agree with the notion that the slogan up for debate presents itself in a vulgar way and does not seem to benefit the company in any way.

Reply
Meagan Scala
3/1/2016 03:00:07 pm

I find it extremely frustrating when companies feel the need to resort to sexual references in order to sell their products. It is especially disconcerting for products such as hot dogs that are prevalent among children. How many kids don't like hot dogs? So when a kid sees the logo or their parents' concern, the child is going to ask about it, which puts the parents in an awkward situation of having to explain the sexual reference. So let's keep vulgar references out of food advertising and away from young, impressionable lives.

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Claire Markey
3/2/2016 04:48:26 pm

I agree with Meagan. I don't think that implementing vulgar implications or sexual references does anything to create stakeholder value. As a Christian consumer, advertising choices like this one make me seek out alternatives to these products that are marketed in such promiscuous ways. We need to keep food advertising at a G rating, for society's sake.

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Mark Musselman
3/2/2016 08:42:23 pm

I have to agree with rating this slogan as mindless. The crass nature of the slogan clearly does not uphold societal values. The creators probably assumed that the inappropriate joke would help push sales. In my opinion, using sex or vulgarity to sell an item such as food seems a bit misguided. Hearing the phrase "Grab life by the ballpark" does not entice me into buying a hotdog. Rather it makes look down on a company for resorting to bad jokes to try and make me buy their product. Basically, while I'm sure this slogan will generate a few laughs, I doubt it will generate any sales.

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Kirby Robbins
3/2/2016 11:54:15 pm

This slogan, although witty and memorable, seems to be ineffective in proliferating the sales of hotdogs. I agree that encouraging constructive interactions and conversations is a very positive message. However, why is a hot dog manufacturer using this a platform for advertising their product? I think that this slogan either a) offends consumers and drives them away from the company and, consequently, the product or b) appeals to men as an empowering frame of mind but creates no desire to purchase the product. So, I agree that this ad is mindless.

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Joseph Saufley
3/3/2016 08:10:50 am

I laughed when initially reading the first few sentences of this post, mostly out of pure shock at the lengths a division like Ball Park would go to leverage people's attention. There's something to be said about a slogan that not only snags peoples' eyes but sticks in their heads, and I believe doing so requires a perfect brew of catchy and clever. Food-based companies like McDonalds and Lays have pulled it off, so why not Ball Park? I will agree that the slogan is insanely clever, and a tad catchy to boot. Is that enough, however, to create stakeholder value when the message clearly oversteps the boundaries of societal mindfulness? For a company that sells hot dogs, possible. It is clear that companies selling insurance or automobiles (mature, high-end products, we'll say), need to be more intentional about creating mature slogans. When it comes to hot dogs, though, might a little humorous immaturity in the slogan actually create stakeholder value? I'm inclined to say yes, considering the product. For a low-budget product like hot dogs, where all brands look the same and price varies little, the best way to reel in new consumers (especially in a grocery shopping-market that is becoming increasingly more male-saturated) may indeed be with the catchiest and most notorious of slogans. Ball Park certainly has done its part in standing out, but will the risqué effort actually push consumers the right way in the moment of a purchase decision? I say yes.

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Beverly
4/5/2016 04:16:29 pm

This reminds me of Burger King's approach in targeting males by printing sexualized images on their products. Burger King wants to reel in more male consumers by catering to their "taste." Because of this type of marketing, Burger King has failed to retain women and families in their stores. Their products, like Ball Park Franks, are no long family-friendly and this lost market is a big hit on their sales. Women account for more than 80% of consumer purchases, so neglecting to value them as customers is a real loss. Ball Park Franks' slogan, in the context of our society, had to have meant it in a sexual way and that is inappropriate for males and females. I agree that it is mindless marketing.

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Madison
10/23/2016 10:48:54 pm

It seems to me that the company should be more concerned with marketing to families. By choosing this slogan they are limiting themselves to one demographic. If the majority of their sales are coming from supermarkets, it would be wise to market to those consumers. This new slogan is limiting the target audience. A long term issue is that consumers are going to get tired of the over sexualized ads. If they want to see more growth they should not limit themselves.

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