There’s always someone who grabs more than their fair share of a favourite food at Christmas. Saatchi & Saatchi’s gem of an insight has given a core strength to this “Whodunnit” campaign, providing a novel – and masterfully executed – take on Christmas, backed up by some fine casting.
It’s a clever way to put food at the centre of the action, and the power of the idea is evidenced by the fact that it’s thrived in different scenarios. Wonderhood stepped in for a strong social element; Waitrose staff wore “who did it?” t-shirts in-store; and OOH sites posed the question “did they do it?” next to pictures of the cast. (Let’s assume media targeting was spot on and the “right people” were in on the joke.)
Saatchi & Saatchi have certainly got the industry talking with this campaign, and they claim to have set social media alight too. The only unsolved mystery now is whether the campaign actually moves the dial in terms of sales.
The agency’s case for effectiveness will be helped by the fact that Waitrose is in relatively good health, with sales up 5% in the first half of the year, unlike sister company John Lewis (also handled by Saatchi) whose first half sales were down 3%.
