The Heinz Ketchup Condundrum

If you won’t try to understand cultural sensetivieis, then can you try to undrstand business?

"People are being so nit-picky."

"It's just an ad, not a social statement."

"We have bigger issues to worry about, lighten up."

These are just few of the reactions I've seen regarding all the backlash that Heinz ketchup is getting from some recent ads they put out in the UK.

Ok, let's follow this line of thought. So why do these "small" details in the ad still matter?

Because People matter.

Call them consumers, audiences, buyers, fans, loyalist or whatever your preference is. The intent of your advertising is to resonate and build relationships with people.

Not resonating (even worse, offending) people is simply not good for business. It shows that your brand probably did little to understand the people it was serving. I'm not saying Heinz doesn't. I think generally they do from what i’ve seen in the past. I'm just saying, yes, sweating the details is important. Especially for business.