YouTubers in the Grocery Aisle: Lunchly goes toe to toe with Lunchables
Can popular YouTubers take a bite out of Kraft’s market share by persuading purchasers their lunches are healthier?
YouTube megastars MrBeast, Logan Paul, and KSI recently launched Lunchly – a new packaged lunch product for kids that aims to compete directly with Kraft’s Lunchables.
Combining popular lunch items with products that the YouTubers already sell, the trio emphasized in a new ad that their product is the healthier option for kids. Shortly after launch, this ad was met with online backlash from consumers and other YouTube personalities. The natural (and understandable) brand response to perceived backlash in the digital age is often to pull the campaign and start over.
This highlights the importance of differentiating between engagement and persuasion and raises an equally important point: if you can understand the impact on your brand before you launch a campaign by testing it, you should.
We used our Rapid Message Testing tool to uncover data-backed answers to three main questions:
- Did Lunchly’s claims of being the healthier alternative to Lunchables persuade audiences — and if so, with whom was it most (or least) persuasive?
- What effects, if any, did this have on consumer opinions about packaged lunches for kids?
- Did the ad create brand lift for Lunchly? If so, was it positive or negative?
Test brand lift before spending precious ad dollars
To answer these questions we launched a test to an audience of 1,800 adult Americans and had results back in 24 hours. Grow Progress’ Rapid Message Tests use randomized controlled trials (RCTs) which are the premier standard in message testing, and operate like a medical trial. First, we randomly assigned each respondent into one of three groups, and then each group viewed one ad (the Lunchly ad, Lunchables’ most recent ad, or a placebo message) and answered the same three questions regarding packaged lunch kits.
Do you have a favorable or unfavorable view of packaged meal kits for kids?
49% of the placebo group had a favorable opinion of lunch meal kits. The Lunchables ad increased favorability for the category by 12 percentage points, while the Lunchly ad had no effect on category-wide favorability.
The Lunchables ad was particularly effective for audiences who were 18-34 year olds, and women.
To what extent do you agree or disagree with the following statement: Packaged meal kits for kids can be a healthy lunch or snack option.
63% of respondents in the placebo group saw packaged lunch meals as healthy. The Lunchables ad did not affect this opinion, while respondents who saw Lunchly’s creative were less likely to agree that packaged meal kits can be a healthy option – including respondents with and without children in the household (by -9 and -8 percentage points, respectively).
How likely are you to purchase a packaged meal kit for kids in the next 6 months?
Both Lunchly and Lunchables ads increased respondents’ likelihood of buying a packaged meal kit, although more so with the Lunchables ad (+6% and +14%, respectively.)
The Takeaway
This example perfectly highlights the importance of measuring your brand’s lift before heading to market, lest you unintentionally assist your competition. When brands seek to carve out market share for themselves they have to be certain that their ads are hitting all the marks, as it is cheaper and more effective to get it right the first time.
While the Lunchly ad did influence some consumers to purchase a packaged lunch kit, it also persuaded others that packaged lunch kits are unhealthy for kids—ironic, given the ad’s intent.
CPG giants have spent years perfecting their narrative and brand identity, particularly for products aimed at children, as they are appealing to parents as well. Understanding what resonates with both audiences is crucial if the goal is to take away market share.
Whether the kid-to-parent direct marketing tactic will be more effective than traditional B2C advertising over time remains to be seen, but we do have some early insights to share. To be sure you receive the latest from our Audience Understanding Survey about this topic, sign up for our newsletter and never miss a beat.
