iSnack 2.0 becomes Cheesybite

by Marketing ON 7 October 2009

Kraft has announced the new name of its cream cheese Vegemite blend will be Vegemite Cheesybite.

The move comes after significant public derision and outcry as well as many third party involvements.

Australians were offered seven name options: Cheesybite, Creamymate, Smooth, Snackmate, Vegemate, Vegemild or none of these. Cheesybite won by a 13% margin with 36% of the vote, above ‘Smooth’ at 23%. According to Kraft, 30,357 people took part in the vote which was conducted online and offline by Quantum Market Research.

The new labels will begin to replace the current iSnack 2.0 jars in the coming months.

iSnack 2.0 joke in poor taste

by Marketing ON 6 October 2009

According to an online poll conducted by BCM, the majority of people surveyed (more than three in four) believe that the recent Vegemite iSnack 2.0 naming and subsequent plan to change it by parent company Kraft, was nothing more than a ploy to maximise exposure for the new product.

The BCM poll, which surveyed over 1,250 respondents, revealed that more than 75% of participants believe that it was a carefully crafted media publicity stunt.

This is despite a statement from Kraft specifically denying this was ever their intention.

“We conducted the survey because many industry insiders were debating whether the name was a cheap grab to gain publicity. We thought it would be interesting to know what the public thought. We now know overwhelmingly that people considered it a stunt,” explained BCM agency partner, Kevin Moreland.

Blogs and forums all over the internet have been buzzing with consumers indicating the name must be a joke, suggesting it was un-Australian and that it failed to connect with Gen Y – the audience it was intended to attract.

“It would seem that people simply couldn’t accept that iSnack 2.0 was ever a serious contender as a name. People assumed therefore that Kraft must have carefully planned the marketing to maximise publicity. More than anything, the study sends a clear message to marketers about the lack of trust consumers have for many brands and how cynically they view the marketing community,” asserted Moreland.

iSnack 2.0 a ploy?

by Marketing ON 1 October 2009

A marcomms agency is conducting an online survey to determine consensus on whether iSnack 2.0 was a PR ploy.

Agency BCM is conducting a survey on whether Australians believe that choosing iSnack 2.0 was simply ‘Step 2’ in a planned publicity stunt.

“It undoubtedly has been a tough week for Kraft in Australia. A decision to launch a new product under the iconic Vegemite brand would not have been taken lightly. Much has been speculated by industry insiders about whether the name was deliberately chosen as a short term stunt to generate marketing noise and community outrage, or whether it was nothing more than a massive error of judgement on the part of the US owned Kraft. We thought it would be interesting to know what the Australian public thought.” said Kevin Moreland, BCM partner.

If youd like to cast your vote, click here.

Update:

Kraft has acknowledged the public outcry and is calling for an Australia and New Zealand wide vote. The six names consumers are able to choose from are: Cheesybite, Creamymate, Smooth, Snackmate, Vegemate and Vegemild.

Vote for the new name here.

Punters suggest Vegefail

by Marketing ON 28 September 2009

The unveiling of the new Vegemite’s name almost eclipsed the AFL Grand Final over the weekend and polarised Australians.

Kraft launched a campaign calling for Australians to name their new product, which received more than 40,000 entries. The winner, ‘iSnack 2.0’, was chosen, it has been claimed, to align the new product with a younger market and tap into the credentials of Apple’s iPod. The move aligns historically with the brand, as the original spread was named through a public contest held in the 1920s.

Dean Robbins, a West Australian web designer, won the contest, saying:

Its been difficult to contain my excitement; I actually leapt out of my chair when I heard the news. To think that I could go down in Australias history is overwhelming.

The online backlash was overwhelming, with #Vegefail rising to one of the most discussed topics worldwide on Twitter. One popular retweet mocked the name’s incohesiveness with Australian national culture:

“I said do you speak-a my language?/She just smiled and gave me an iSnack 2.0 sandwich”.

Academics have also joined the dissent.

“The name doesn’t actually capture the new product or say anything particularly meaningful about it,” said, RMIT professor of marketing, Con Stavros. “Putting an ‘i’ in front of a word is somewhat unoriginal, while adding ‘2.0’ is possibly confusing.”

“Credit should go to Kraft for generating such a high level of interest in their new product. But considering they apparently had tens of thousands of suggestions for a name for this new type of Vegemite, I’m surprised this is the one idea that came out on top,” continued Stavros.