Is Nutter Butter's TikTok Strategy a Genius Move or a Disaster?

Summary

Podcast Summary: The Art of the Brand

Episode: Is Nutter Butter's TikTok Strategy a Genius Move or a Disaster?
Release Date: October 17, 2024
Host/Author: Third Eye Insights
Guests: Alex and Blake

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Introduction

In this engaging episode of The Art of the Brand, hosts Alex and Blake delve deep into the controversial TikTok strategy employed by the legacy cookie brand, Nutter Butter. Known for its iconic peanut butter cookies, Nutter Butter, owned by Mondelez and established in the 1970s, has recently sparked significant debate due to its unconventional social media approach. Alex initiates the conversation by highlighting the surge in millions of views and widespread buzz generated by Nutter Butter's TikTok campaigns, prompting the central question: Is this a strategy to learn from, or is it a dumpster fire that brands should avoid? (00:10)

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Nutter Butter's TikTok Strategy: An Overview

Alex introduces Nutter Butter's TikTok strategy as "chaotic," leading to substantial engagement metrics. The strategy includes perplexing elements such as nonsensical characters and bizarre themes, reminiscent of previous viral campaigns like Quiznos' "Wraps Rats." Blake echoes this sentiment, noting the difficulty in assessing the strategy without insight into Nutter Butter's strategic planning documents (01:36).

Key Points:

• Lack of Clear Strategy: Alex asserts, "There is no strategy" (01:45), emphasizing the seemingly spontaneous nature of the TikTok posts.
• Comparison to Quiznos: Both hosts compare Nutter Butter’s approach to Quiznos’ failed "Wraps Rats" campaign, suggesting a similarity in the use of creepy, confusing content to capture attention (02:20).

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Effectiveness and Impact on Brand

Alex and Blake debate whether the chaotic content correlates to tangible sales growth or merely fleeting attention. While acknowledging a reported 190% increase in Amazon sales over the year, Alex attributes this surge not solely to TikTok but also to a significant price reduction, making Nutter Butter the most affordable brand in its category (04:48).

Notable Quotes:

• Alex: "Is good PR even bad PR?" (01:36)
• Blake: "Is it translating into sales? Is it building the brand over the long term?" (05:22)

Analysis:

• Short-Term Gains vs. Long-Term Sustainability: The hosts express skepticism about the longevity of the strategy, fearing that the extreme approach may alienate consumers and damage the brand's reputation over time.
• Sales vs. Brand Equity: While sales figures appear promising, the hosts question whether the strategy truly enhances brand equity or merely leverages temporary chaos for visibility.

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Creative Techniques and Audience Engagement

The discussion highlights Nutter Butter’s use of guerrilla marketing tactics designed to captivate viewers’ attention through perplexing visuals and content that prompts multiple viewings. Blake points out that the strategy leverages cognitive dissonance, making viewers question the content's authenticity, thereby increasing engagement metrics (04:11).

Key Points:

• Cognitive Engagement: The use of "something that doesn't make sense" keeps viewers engaged as they attempt to decipher the content (08:09).
• Algorithm Exploitation: By creating content that causes confusion, Nutter Butter ensures repeated views, manipulating TikTok’s algorithm to amplify their reach (09:02).

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Comparative Analysis with Other Brands

Blake contrasts Nutter Butter’s approach with more successful CPG (Consumer Packaged Goods) brands on TikTok, such as Sour Patch Kids. Sour Patch Kids excels by creating entertaining and educational content that fosters brand moments without relying on chaos or confusion.

Notable Quotes:

• Blake: "Sour Patch Kids is a great example of their content isn't focused on selling. It's creating moments around their product that are interesting, educational, or entertaining." (08:09)
• Alex: "I just think leaning into more like what Taco Bell does, accepting that there's like a stoner or a chronic element or even like old people love the cookie." (08:09)

Analysis:

• Brand Messaging: Successful brands maintain clear and relatable messaging that aligns with their brand values, whereas Nutter Butter’s ambiguous content may dilute brand identity.
• Engagement Strategy: Sustainable engagement is achieved through consistent and meaningful interactions, as demonstrated by Sour Patch Kids, in contrast to Nutter Butter’s disruptive tactics.

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Potential Risks and Recommendations

Alex strongly criticizes Nutter Butter’s strategy, arguing that while it garners attention, it may irreparably harm the brand’s reputation. He emphasizes the need for a balanced approach that leverages creative marketing without alienating the core consumer base.

Notable Quotes:

• Alex: "I think this is a horrible strategy." (07:55)
• Blake: "What they're doing is using techniques to keep your eyeballs on their socials to get the metrics that look like success." (09:16)

Recommendations:

• Strategic Alignment: Develop a clear, long-term brand strategy that complements creative marketing efforts.
• Balanced Creativity: Incorporate innovative elements without compromising brand integrity or alienating consumers.
• Sustainability: Ensure that marketing tactics are sustainable and can be maintained without causing brand fatigue or confusion.

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Conclusion

The episode concludes with a consensus that Nutter Butter's TikTok strategy, while effective in generating immediate attention, poses significant risks to the brand's long-term equity. Alex and Blake advocate for a more thoughtful and strategic approach to social media marketing, one that aligns with the brand’s core values and fosters genuine consumer connections.

Final Thoughts:

• Temporary vs. Lasting Impact: The hosts highlight the importance of distinguishing between short-term gains and long-term brand health.
• Learning from Others: By examining successful strategies employed by peers like Sour Patch Kids, Nutter Butter can pivot towards more sustainable marketing practices.

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Transcript Reference:

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• [00:00] Alex: Let's talk about Nutter Butter.
• [00:02] Blake: All right. Let's talk about Quiznos Wraps Rats. What a brand, what a brand, what a brand, what a mighty good brand. Nutter Butter is...
• (Transcript continues as provided...)

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This comprehensive analysis offers valuable insights into the intricate dynamics of modern brand strategies on social media platforms, emphasizing the delicate balance between creativity and strategic alignment essential for sustained brand success.

Transcript

[Alex]

Let's talk about Nutter Butter.

[Blake]

All right. Let's talk about Quiznos Wraps Rats. What a brand, what a brand, what.

[Alex]

A brand, what a mighty good brand. Say it again now. What a brand, what a brand, what a brand, what a mighty good brand. Nutter Butter is, for those who don't know, is a legacy cookie brand. It started, it's like 50 years old, started in the 70s. It's owned by Mondelez, and it's very much a grocery store brand. It, however, has become a topic of conversation because they have this chaotic TikTok strategy that is resulting in millions of views and quite the buzz on social media. So I wanted to break it down. I wanted to show you the nutter butter TikTok so that we can decide, is this a strategy to learn from, or is this a dumpster fire that you should avoid as a brand? What is your initial thoughts? Where I'm struggling with the Nutter Butter issue is there's a lot of comments of people saying, like, they're getting millions of views. I'm following them. There's getting thousands of comments. It's therefore working. You know, we're talking about Nutter Butter and it's working. And I guess the question is, is this a case of all priorities? Is good PR even bad pr? Or is this a case where when you're being laughed at and people are like, what are you doing? You're literally shitting on your brand? Does that also result in an increase in sales? And what matters the most? Is it sales?

[Blake]

The interesting thing to Nutter Butter, it's hard to answer the question if I don't see the strategic guidance document behind it.

[Alex]

There is no strategy.

[Blake]

Well, there may be. I'd just like to see it. Is it like, hey, look, we're a peanut butter cookie that tastes amazing, but people don't talk about it. So let's do something to make. To make people at least talk about it. And. And so therefore, we're going to engage in a campaign on TikTok that's different than any other cookie by just kind of making fun of ourselves. So at least people are talking about a cookie, because the only other cookie people talk about is either Oreo or Chips Ahoy or something. So maybe they're trying to get themselves into the conversation. Like, when I look at their socials, like, it's actually a tasty cookie, but it's not making me want it in the cookie.

[Alex]

But that's like. My point is, they're not laughing at themselves like that. It's this Contrived strategy where there's an Aiden, there's a Nadia, there's shrimp on cookie. Like this is a very unique style. I think it's the people who did quiznose rats.

[Blake]

It looks a lot like quiznose rats.

[Alex]

It's literally giving quiznose rats.

[Blake]

And if you, if anybody knows post in here and see if, if the same people in quiznos rats.

[Alex]

I think it's gotta be like the.

[Blake]

Style is face on. Creepy.

[Alex]

Yeah, it's too close. But it, I think it just poses an interesting question because is it worth, is it worth moving forward with this strategy to truly get views based on chaos? And an absolute lot like it's, it's complete opposite of, of a branding strategy of like connecting with the brand's values and do like is that worth it in the long run for short term sales and does it even result in sales? Like obviously there's probably some increase in sales because some people just like when brands do extreme acts.

[Blake]

Yeah.

[Alex]

And they probably are ordering them because they've a lot of Gen Z's have.

[Blake]

Never heard of them to invest in marketing. So there might. But we didn't really see a huge growth in sales. But like when I see a shrimp on a peanut butter cookie, it actually makes a gag reflex like a peanut butter cookie. So I don't know why, why they're doing that when they have one of the best tasting peanut butter cookies in America.

[Alex]

I don't get it.

[Blake]

Why would you put a shrimp.

[Alex]

I just don't get it at all. And there's like I was reading a bunch of articles on it and like there's a, apparently a trend where like Gen Z's are liking this like self deprecating chaos on socials because it's kind of drug inducing and you can just stare at it and like there's so much going on but like so it's, it, it's kind of pleasurable for the mind.

[Blake]

That's a question. That's an interesting thing that people don't talk about is what time of day are you getting your views.

[Alex]

Well that's like what a bunch of the comments were saying like bake heads. This is literally the moment the gummy hit. It was like when a bunch of.

[Blake]

The comments people are watching it like.

[Alex]

10 times and that's where you could get sales. But I, I just feel like you could lean on that strategy in a more strategic way. Like you could talk about like almost Nutter Butter hacks like putting fluffer in between and chocolate chips and sprinkles and then saying like this is the perfect high hack. Like there's a way to do it without it being completely chaotic and not making sense.

[Blake]

It's a very guerrilla strategy. Like they actually, they actually put words on that make no sense so that your eyes stay there and you're trying to read it to see am I reading this wrong? Like this one thing. What could you if you don't share? So they could say no couch and they have a peanut butter cookie couch there. And I just read it like four times saying what the. But you know it. So what they're doing is using techniques to keep your eyeballs on their socials to get the metrics that look like success. Your question is, is it translating into sales? Is it building the brand over a long term? Or like the Quiznos rats, is it getting attention but killing the brand?

[Alex]

Well, I would argue that it's, it's getting attention but it's killing the brand. Because to me there's more people. Like if you're going to take a guerrilla strategy, there's a way to do it where you could, you could bring in way more people than it being so niche and so, so extreme that it turns off more people than it attracts. So I was reading an Ad Week article tracking the sales on Amazon because that's like more public knowledge. And they said there's been 190% increase over the year. They've started doing this strategy over like 12 months. And they're like, it's been 190% increase but they're like, but you can't also contribute that to socials alone because they also decreased the price below category average. So they've also done a major price drop. So that Nutter Butter is also like the cheapest cookie that you can buy or a brand name cookie that you can buy on Amazon. So for 190% increase for what I think ruins the brand and is harder to get back from when it's bit been around since 1969. For a short term strategy. Like people aren't going to perpetually talk about this strategy for the next three or four years. Like there needs to be a plan to get back to something that is sustainable.

[Blake]

I think we're touching on something interesting. I think like a kind of a dynamic creative brand came in and said we're going to disrupt the whole industry with a series of ads and campaigns that get people attention. But I don't think they have a long term brand strategy on top of it. Because Nutter Butter also are Actually great peanut butter cookies. Like, I would have a message that says the best, the best peanut butter cookie. Like, I, I, I just don't think that they're pushing what is likable about their product to consumers. I would have the, the dose Equi guy goes, I don't often eat peanut butter cookies, but when I do, I eat Nutter Butter or just do something that shows them to be the best cookie when you want a peanut butter cookie. But.

[Alex]

Well, you also brought up an interesting point. You know, Oreo and Chips Ahoy are very difficult brands to say as competitors in category because they've invested so much in licensing. Right. So what makes Oreo so prolific is that they license what their cookie is to almost every food industry. So that's why you can get like Oreo products at restaurants.

[Blake]

Right. I might segue if I can. It's almost kind of like our Irish pub store where Guinness did very well because they, they associate. They were absolutely associated with Irish pubs which are all around the world. What Oreos brilliance was is associating with milk. Right? Like, that was a brilliant thing.

[Alex]

Yeah, it was brilliant.

[Blake]

Right. So you just, people were always just dipping Oreos in milk because that's what they were supposed to do. Like there's, but they've associated a Nutter Butter cookie with shrimp, which is freaking disgusting and it doesn't make me want to eat them.

[Alex]

I can't say enough that I think this is a horrible strategy. And the reason why it makes me really piss off is for how many good strategies we put in front of big companies that get bike shutted or like just a complete no and then something like this gets approved across the table because you can be gorilla, you can be dynamic, you can be viral, but it's not having a boring TikTok like to this. Like there's, there's a spectrum in between and I think leaning into more like what Taco Bell does, like accepting that there's like, you know, there's like a stoner or a chronic element or even like old people love the cookie. Like, it'd be hilarious to do a whole TikTok series of like old people like swearing or at workout classes or coming back to sneak in their Nutter Butters or like coming like there could be a funny way to do a guerrilla strategy that isn't so weird.

[Blake]

But what they've done here is there is a technical person behind this agency that has figured out how to make the brain stay on things. Like almost every post has something that doesn't make Sense that looks like it should make sense.

[Alex]

I wonder if it's like an editor from south park, because it also gives kind of a bit of like a South park feel, especially the way that they cut.

[Blake]

But they're just doing things that deliberately make you say, this doesn't look like it's right. And then you're like, what? What does it mean? And now you're staying on it. They're getting a metric. I don't think it's making people want.

[Alex]

Well, I think that. I think that's what people. I think that you're exactly on. Like, it's in that way. It's obvious that they're getting 10 million views on videos that make no sense. Because you're like, one. Is it like, is this real?

[Blake]

Did they make a mistake?

[Alex]

Is this. Like, is this. Are they. Are they hacked? Like, are they seriously posting these videos? Especially to. The way the algorithm works is you don't get every video. So the ones with the high view counts are, like, stressing people out so much that, like, it's going on more feeds. And they're like.

[Blake]

Because people are watching it a second time to say, what am I missing something here? Like, what am I missing? And that's resulting in the multiple views. That's a hack. It doesn't necessarily support your brain, and it's temporary.

[Alex]

It's also hard to replicate. And I think that's an important point is when brands do these breakout moments, regardless of what we agree with, you know, from a view count perspective, it's working. It's very hard for a brand to replicate that. But what I do find interesting to analyze based on the Nutter Butter, and I was reading through the comments, and it was like Sour Patch Kids commented, and they're like, are you good, bro? Like, they're like, there's a bunch of other brands that are playing into the moment that are commenting as the brand, like, being like, hey, we see you in the shelves. Like, you're not seeming too good. Like, are you doing okay? Like, it's in that way. It's kind of becoming a funny social moment. But in doing. When I was analyzing the brands like Sour Patch Kids from a. From a role on social media, a lot of these CPG brands at the highest level are actually really using TikTok well. And sour Patch Kids is a great example of their content isn't focused on selling. It's creating moments around their product that are interesting, educational, or entertaining. And Sour Patch Kids, they did this, like, whole TikTok on, like, sour Patch adults. So start sour ends. Sad. And it's like the Sour Patch Kids, like, in a suit. Like, that's very creative. That's really interesting. And it's doing very well. Like, Sour Patch kids has, like, 2 million followers, and their content is great. And you would never want to follow Sour Patch on socials because it's like a checkout brand. You know, you buy it at a gas station, or you buy it when you're leaving the grocery store. So there's a way, like, it's really interesting for us to analyze the role that these food companies are playing online and how they're nailing it and where there's space to have a personality where it doesn't have to be on the extreme end of weird.