Dive Brief:

• Condiment marketer Heinz will air a 30-second TV ad during the fourth commercial break of Super Bowl LIV's second quarter, per details shared with Marketing Dive. The brand last advertised during the big game three years ago, according to Adweek. 
• Heinz this year is leveraging the Super Bowl as a stage to debut a new sweet and spicy condiment blend, HoneyRacha, which hits shelves in the spring. The commercial is the first work for Heinz from its new advertising agency partner, Wieden+Kennedy New York, a press release said. Filmmaker Roman Coppola directed the 30-second spot. 
• To support the campaign, the Kraft Heinz brand is running an in-store and online promotion called the "The Heinz Bottle Matchup." Customers can purchase specially numbered bottles of the ketchup between Jan.  13 and Feb. 3, which is game day. Winning numbers will be part of the final score of the Super Bowl. Consumers can then scan up to three labels for a chance to win prizes, including a grand prize of a grill party with friends that features everything from a barbeque set to a DJ.

Dive Insight:

While the Super Bowl campaign and packaging contest is about the overall Heinz brand, the company is looking to generate strong upfront interest for HoneyRacha — whose name implies a mix of the sweetness of honey and kick of sriracha — as part of the effort. The Kraft Heinz marketer, best known for its ketchup, has been experimenting with pushing new condiments in recent years as a way to spice up classic offerings and appeal to more adventurous eaters like millennials.

In 2018, the company took to Twitter to ask users to vote on whether or not to launch a new flavor that mixed mayo and ketchup into one "Mayochup" sauce. The social media stunt generated 1 billion impressions in 48 hours, according to Twitter data, along with a 28% lift in awareness for a then-new mayonnaise product from Heinz.  

A more creative approach to condiment marketing and product launches comes as Kraft Heinz attempts to recover from a brutal $15.4 billion write-down on Heinz and Oscar Mayer last year. Kraft Heinz has experienced an extensive executive shuffle since, with Miguel Patricio, the former global CMO of AB InBev, taking the reins as chief executive last July to spark a turnaround. Patricio has made a point of putting older brands like Heinz back in the spotlight, suggesting that a return to brand-building is part of those plans.  

Heinz isn't the only advertiser leveraging the Super Bowl to drive interest in new products with retail activations. Pringles is using the big game to partner with Adult Swim's "Rick and Morty" and introduce a limited-edition, Pickle Rick flavor-inspired can of chips. The Kellogg-owned brand is running an integrated campaign throughout the year to extend interest in the snack whose name references a viral episode of the animated series.