Those of us who live in Los Angeles have, at one time or another, stumbled out of a bar or nightclub and prevented hangovers by devouring a bacon wrapped hot dog sold by street vendors. The Tijuana Dog, as it’s known by Angelinos, long has been a culinary guilty pleasure; now the bacon-covered delight is on a mission to go global. And it’s all thanks to pork purveyor Farmer John’s use of social media to help the hungry in Los Angeles.
Vote Yes on Bacon-wrapped Hot Dog for the Official Hot Dog of L.A. is a clever initiative/marketing campaign spanning all the corners of social media while taking over billboards and radio airwaves. The pitch is simple: Chicago and New York, as well as other big U.S. cities, each have their own signature hot dogs, yet Los Angeles is sadly wienerless. So Farmer John is hoping to push its own goods while achieving official frank status for the City of Angels.
Foodies are invited to visit the website to vote for the bacon-wrapped hot dog. Farmer John has devoted a Facebook page to the cause that houses photos of hot dog rallies and advertisements happening all over Los Angeles. Twitter, LinkedIn, and even an 800 number have been put into place to land L.A. its very own signature hot dog. The push takes on a patriotic feel using faux political seriousness dotted with tongue-in-cheek humor, which is appropriate as the deadline to vote happens to coincide with November 2, Election Day.
But there is a serious side to the seemingly ridiculous campaign. Farmer John is donating one pound of food for every vote received before the deadline to Los Angeles food banks.
We here at Brandsplat applaud Farmer John – and not only because we happen to live by the motto “if you like it, then you shoulda put some bacon on it” – but because it shows creativity, heart and strong social media marketing moxie.
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