October 29, 2015

Bacon Bake

Description: A bacon pan
Main Pitch: "Cooks crisp, delicious, healthier bacon in minutes without the greasy mess"
Main Offer: $19.99 for one with Bacon Keeper
Bonus: Double the offer (just pay a separate fee)
Marketer: Telebrands
Watch the spot

The World Health Organization (WHO) recently released a report that links a certain type of cancer with processed meats such as bacon. "Devastating that scientists say bacon causes cancer," Paul Basset Davies tweeted soon after, "and we face the fact we'll have to give up science."

There is truth in jest, and this joke reveals something about people's feelings about bacon. Namely, they know it's unhealthy, but they love it anyway.

I read something similar about hamburgers a while ago. At a time when people are more health-conscious than ever, hamburgers are growing in size and calories (witness the 1,330-calorie Baconator Triple). The article declared this a "counter-trend," but I remember thinking it was more like common sense. When people go out to eat (a rare treat when everyone is trying to be healthy) they don't want to eat diet food. They want to eat things like the biggest, baddest burger they can find.

S7 Analysis: The sheer awesomeness of bacon gives this sub-category an emotional advantage that tends to defy logical criteria. The Perfect Bacon Bowl, a 2014 True Top Spender, was definitely different, but was it needed? A bacon-lover would say, "I don't understand the question?" Having "healthier bacon" as a primary pitch tends to undermines this advantage. Logic reasserts itself, and let's face it: There is no logical reason to buy a product like this. A pan is much quicker.