Do You Like It or Hate It?

This is the question that Miracle Whip is posing to consumers through one of their most recent ad campaigns. At first it may seem like a risky strategy to even acknowledge that there is significant potential for one to hate their product, but when you really think about it, it's rather brilliant. I have heard the mixed reviews for Miracle Whip over the years, and even though I have heard testimonials from people that have enjoyed it, I was never compelled to buy it or try it. To be honest, I always thought it was just another brand of mayonnaise. I have since come to find out that it has a more distinct flavor and many will claim that it not only tastes nothing like mayonnaise, but also tastes bad to them and do not like eating it. 'To each their own', I always thought. But now that this marketing campaign has shed light on the fact that it is almost as well known for being hated as it is for its unique taste, it makes me want to try it now more than ever to see for myself what everyone is talking about.

It would be nice if my local supermarket had a sample stand set up so that I could try the product without buying a full jar or bottle of it, but I guess Miracle Whip is hoping that the intrigue is enough motivation for people to just bite the bullet and buy it because the mystery is too much for them to handle. It seems like a decent plan, but here is where the real genius is on display; knowing that there are going to be tons of people that don't care enough to buy the product out of curiosity alone, their marketing efforts are also encouraging people to participate in an online survey to express how they feel about the product, even if it's negative. And when you are opening your company up for criticism as much as Miracle Whip is, you'll want a secret weapon to sway the participants in a positive direction.

"If we're going to put ourselves out there like this, we need to figure out some way of luring people to the positive side," a Miracle Whip executive said, "but how?"

"Simple," said the Miracle Whip marketing strategist, "all we have to do is run a television commercial in which a person is talking about how much he hates Miracle Whip!"

Most of the people in the room immediately became confused and looked at the marketing strategist with their eyes squinted and heads slightly cocked to the side.

"How is that going to convince people to vote positively!?" one of the people said in a confused, slightly angry tone.

"Once again simple," said the marketing strategist, "the person we get for the commercial has to be someone that a majority of Americans loathe and despise! This way, when they hear this person denouncing our product, they'll want to do the opposite just so that their opinion is opposing the opinion of this trashy, detestable, no-talent celebrity!"

The room agreed that this was an innovative strategy and just might work. Now it was only a matter of finding the perfect candidate to be in this commercial. Lucky for Miracle Whip, they came to a unanimous decision within 30 seconds. This is the result:

Personally, I would rather receive a promotional giveaway than having to be subjected to another second of a 'Jersey Shore' character speaking about any topic, but you have to give credit to Miracle Whip for coming up with an innovative and unique marketing strategy to promote their product.