Chicken of the Sea is still getting a lift from Jessica Simpson.
Twenty years ago during an episode of MTV’s Newlyweds: Nick and Jessica, Simpson’s mix-up about whether Chicken of the Sea was fish or fowl created a sensation.
Now, in a new campaign for the tuna brand, Simpson is again generating attention and sales, according to PIxability, which uses artificial intelligence for contextual targeting and brand suitability on YouTube and CTV.
The campaign started on social media with a video showing Simpson’s daughter asking her mom what she’s eating.
“It’s called Chicken of the Sea. But it’s not really chicken. It’s tuna. So don’t get confused by that,” Simpson says.
"Who would ever get confused by that?” the daughter asks.
"No one. Not your mom,” Simpson replies with a sheepish look on her face. The video ends with Simpson declaring: “Yes people, I know it’s tuna.”
Chicken of the Sea worked with its media agency Ignited and PIxability to develop a sophisticated media plan focused on reaching millennial pop-culture fans between the ages of 25 and 44.
The campaign launched with Simpson posting a video on her Instagram account. The video then launched on YouTube, which has been a top driver of results for the brand in the past. YouTube got the majority of the campaign’s spending, with the ad running on CTV and YouTube Shorts.
PIxabilty said the campaign generated double the lift in consideration among the core target of women 35 to 44 compared to other audiences. Video completion rates were 66% above benchmarks and click-through rates were 30% above benchmarks.
The TikTok-like vertical YouTube Shorts format outperformed the horizontal format on YouTube.
“To announce our newest platform … it seemed perfectly fitting to partner with our friend Jessica Simpson to share how Chicken of the Sea fits into her busy life as a mom, artist and entrepreneur,” Griffin Raasch, Chicken of the Sea’s director of marketing, said. “Her iconic, ‘Is it chicken or is it fish?’ moment is part of the fabric of pop culture, and we had a lot of fun working with Jessica to give it a new spin in 2024.”
Pixability noted that viewership of YouTube shorts have increased in viewership over the past two years, and more brands are checking out the short-form vertical ads on YouTube because of the uncertainty surrounding TikTok.
“As YouTube Shorts grow exponentially among consumers, this was one sign that vertical short-form ad creative works on YouTube, giving advertisers the ability to use combinations of horizontal and vertical formats to drive real engagement with their audiences,” said David George, CEO of Pixability.
Chicken of the Sea also created custom audiences based on search and website visit behavior. Those audiences also generated strong results for the campaign.
“This campaign has really taken on a life of its own, not only performing well from a media metrics standpoint, but also just generating incredible buzz by igniting the iconic 20-year-old Newlywed’s moment to launch the newest offerings from Chicken of the Sea,” said Amy DeMallie, media director at Ignited. “We knew that YouTube would be a key component of the success of this launch, reaching consumers beyond the social-sphere, and attribute that to the great teamwork between the team at Chicken of the Sea, our agency partners, and Pixability.”
