{"id":16467,"date":"2020-11-18T09:00:37","date_gmt":"2020-11-18T14:00:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.vrg.org\/blog\/?p=16467"},"modified":"2020-11-03T11:05:17","modified_gmt":"2020-11-03T16:05:17","slug":"opinions-on-vegan-commercials","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.vrg.org\/blog\/2020\/11\/18\/opinions-on-vegan-commercials\/","title":{"rendered":"Opinions on Vegan Commercials"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"169\" src=\"https:\/\/www.vrg.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/11\/Screenshot_2020-11-03-Gardein-Meatless-Meats-New-Year\u2019s-Resolution-300x169.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-16468\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.vrg.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/11\/Screenshot_2020-11-03-Gardein-Meatless-Meats-New-Year\u2019s-Resolution-300x169.png 300w, https:\/\/www.vrg.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/11\/Screenshot_2020-11-03-Gardein-Meatless-Meats-New-Year\u2019s-Resolution-768x432.png 768w, https:\/\/www.vrg.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/11\/Screenshot_2020-11-03-Gardein-Meatless-Meats-New-Year\u2019s-Resolution-1024x576.png 1024w, https:\/\/www.vrg.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/11\/Screenshot_2020-11-03-Gardein-Meatless-Meats-New-Year\u2019s-Resolution.png 1097w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>By\nKatelynn Budzich, VRG Intern<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Plant-based\neating has long been seen as a diet craze; however, recently the number of\npeople who are vegans and vegetarians has been continually growing; and along\nwith this surge, the size of the vegan food market has been increasing as well.\nThere are more and more plant-based food products popping up on grocery store\nshelves each year. Companies selling plant-based offerings go about marketing\nthem to the public in various ways. In this article, I will be sharing what a\nsample of&nbsp; vegans, vegetarians, and\nnon-vegetarians think about the ways Beyond Meat, Blue Diamond, Gardein,\nMorningStar Farms, and Ben &amp; Jerry\u2019s advertise their products and how these\ncompanies\u2019 commercials represent veganism. All opinions are taken from a sample\nof Vegetarian Resource Group interns. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>1. Beyond Meat: <\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.beyondmeat.com\/go-beyond\/what-if-we-all-go-beyond\/\">https:\/\/www.beyondmeat.com\/go-beyond\/what-if-we-all-go-beyond\/<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>What vegans thought:<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>\u201cThis commercial, targeted towards a non-vegan audience, does a nice job of encouraging the average American to consider eating meatless meats. I like that the commercial embodies the American culture \u2013 grilling, diners, cookout, farming \u2013 while managing to incorporate a meatless meat into that. Meat is usually a significant aspect of American culture, so it is encouraging that the commercial displays American life without genuine meat.\u201d <\/li><li>\u201cI really liked this commercial. They were painting a vision of a world that was so positive and enticing, that you just wanted to be part of it. They show all different types of people of all ages, across different environments and situations. They appealed to men barbecuing, which is a masculine activity, as well as men working out which is important to appeal to them since guys think they need to eat meat to be strong. I also liked their tagline \u201cgo beyond\u201d since it is catchy and makes me want to contribute to a better world by buying their products.\u201d<\/li><li>\u201cMusic was very inspirational and motivating \u2013 same with the voice they used. The people they showed were diverse and of all different occupations, showing that Beyond Meat is for everyone. It seemed very inclusive and tried to make it seem like everyone can eat their product!\u201d<\/li><li>A vegetarian for ten years who became a vegan within the last year, \u201c\u2026really liked this commercial! The music was motivational and uplifting and the images were all feel-good ones that gave the viewers positive feelings about the product being advertised. I also thought that the actors helped make it more personal since they represented people in our everyday lives, like \u2018Grandpa\u2019 or \u2018the team.\u2019\u2026 The narration was also key in helping to convince the viewer that Beyond Meat are great options!<\/li><li>A contributor from the UK gave a nice counterargument to the other opinions, thinking the advertisement \u201cfelt very slick and professional, and they had clearly thought about how to appeal to non-vegetarians using vegetarian\/vegan arguments but framing it without making them defensive (I thought the &#8216;what if&#8217; framing was good for this, although a little annoyingly upbeat, same with the images and music). I thought it was a bit weird that the shot they used of being &#8216;friends with&#8217; the cow was the cow just [standing] on the beach, not looking particularly happy, rather than showing the cow being visibly very happy and friends with the humans (<a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/nam04.safelinks.protection.outlook.com\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3D8wC3Y7MuRts&amp;data=02%7C01%7Ckmbudzich%40loyola.edu%7C41fef82041b8475bfb0f08d867a7e7af%7C30ae0a8f3cdf44fdaf34278bf639b85d%7C0%7C0%7C637373318126800878&amp;sdata=jJMcjN2D3EmXFNr9gNNnCkiOfsvNxg9iI7f%2Fmjc5asE%3D&amp;reserved=0\" target=\"_blank\">this<\/a>\u00a0kind of thing).\u00a0I also personally would have liked the comments about emitting less greenhouse gas and using less land and energy to include some kind of statistics (<em>how much<\/em>\u00a0less gases\/land\/energy?).\u201d<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><em>What vegetarians thought:<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>\u201cI liked this Ad a lot\u2026 they didn&#8217;t shove it down your throat on\nthe ideas, which I thought was helpful to people who aren&#8217;t vegan\/vegetarian\u201d<\/li><li>\u201cAd is effective in addressing the potential concerns surrounding Beyond\nMeat burgers through imagery\u2026 The two main concerns of Beyond Meat are the\nhealth and cultural impact of meat. Showing people running and working out\nshows that Beyond Meat burgers are beneficial to health. For cultural impact,\nshowing these Beyond Meat options \u2013 burger, hot dog, etc. at the dinner table,\nat the grill, show the replaceability of meat with Beyond Meat products\u201d <\/li><li>A contributor who is a lacto-ovo vegetarian (eats eggs and dairy\nproducts, but no meat), said, \u201cThis is the commercial I liked the most because\nI find it more inspiring. The music is energizing and positive, and they refer\nto a lot of different consumers, represented by a different story, age, and\nskin color. It is especially inspiring the last image with the two little girls\nlooking at the dawn. This ad really gets into me!\u201d <\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><em>What non-vegetarians\nthought:<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>&nbsp;\u201cThe images shown\nthroughout points towards the fact that no matter what stage of life someone is\nat, eating plant-based is for the young, the old, athletes, families, and\nanyone in between. To me, this shows how accessible and easy to prepare the\nproduct is\u2026 From a marketing perspective\u2026 vegetables and grains are shown to be\nhand-picked and people seem to be happy while eating a Beyond Burger, which further\nemphasizes how much Beyond Meat can become a staple product in one&#8217;s life.\nFinally, the question, \u201cwhat if,\u201d is simple and repetitive, making it stand out\nand stick in the viewer\u2019s head. This choice is strategic as it helps to define\nwhat the company stands for and also what they don\u2019t stand for.\u201d<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Overall,\nthis commercial was well liked by vegans, vegetarians, and non-vegetarians.\nMany thought the video was inclusive and painted a vision of a better world\nthat doesn\u2019t consume meat. Although, what is most interesting to note is how\nmore than one vegan thought this commercial was geared more towards\nnon-vegans\/vegetarians, as it appeared Beyond Meat was trying to convert\nnon-vegetarians into eating plant-based, instead of marketing directly to\npeople who are already vegans. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>2. Blue Diamond: <\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.ispot.tv\/ad\/IW53\/almond-breeze-california-almonds\">https:\/\/www.ispot.tv\/ad\/IW53\/almond-breeze-california-almonds<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>What vegans thought:<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>\u201cThe little girl introducing the almond milk sets a wholesome tone for the commercial. I think it\u2019s nice that the commercial emphasizes the company being family-run \u2013 if a family uses this product, then it must be reliable. The family and the cute children advertising the products helps to appeal to pathos, convincing me that this product is pure and trustworthy. I also appreciate that the commercial shows the almond milk being poured into a glass, as the silky texture looks appetizing.\u201d <\/li><li>\u201cThe commercial was staged as a family affair, showing that almond milk is enjoyable for everyone. I liked how it was in an orchard surrounded by beautiful blossoming trees.\u201d<\/li><li>\u201cI have actually been seeing this ad a lot on YouTube and that might be influencing my response, but I personally do not get super excited or motivated by this ad. I feel like it is not very easy to feel connected to the characters used in the ad, although there is an element of pathos from the little children being featured. The aesthetic is very calm, as is the music, which also sounded a bit generic to me.\u201d <\/li><li>\u201cMusic is very happy and uplifting \u2013 almost making you think that drinking almond milk is a very fun, joyful thing to do. Family-oriented, so it makes parents want to buy it for themselves and their kids. Also gave options \u2013 milk and creamer available.\u201d <\/li><li>\u201cI didn&#8217;t really like this one; the family looked a bit creepy\u2026 and the whole thing felt very fake, I think because all the shots were from ground level with perfect lighting in the almond orchard and you couldn&#8217;t see beyond the forest, so it had a bit of a Disney-family-living-alone-in-a-magical-forest vibe. Also, not sure why they mentioned California so much \u2013 I guess if the ad only aired in CA that would make sense but off-putting to others.\u201d This contributor also noted that from a British perspective, this commercial \u201cwould come across as abrasively cheerful\/fake\/arrogant\/saccharine, and without enough jokes compared to the ads one would usually see on British TV.\u201d<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><em>What vegetarians\nthought: <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>\u201cCute and family-oriented. An uplifting ad.\u201d<\/li><li>\u201cAd is effective in its appeal to family and family audiences.\nOverall putting a focal point on families can make the product more appealing\nbecause it implicitly shows that a lot of care and personalization goes into\neach carton. The child adding that it is her job to test them shows that likely\nno harmful products are used because they give it to their own children.\u201d <\/li><li>\u201cThe little girl and the music are very sweet,&nbsp;but somehow\nthis ad does not really invite me to buy its product. I think that a\ndisadvantage is that they do not show people&#8217;s diversity. Besides, it makes me\nthink about the environmental implications of almond milk (worse than other\nplant milks).\u201d <\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><em>What non-vegetarians\nthought:<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>\u201cI like the first question this ad asks: \u201cwhere does your almond milk\ncome from?\u201d As a consumer, I want to know where the product I am buying is\nproduced. However, overall, the ad really does not say much else about the\nproduct. It states the almonds are sourced from a family owned farm in\nCalifornia, but it does not show any of the processes and techniques used to\nmake the milk, leaving out what seems to me a crucial detail I would like to\nknow. From a marketing standpoint, it is interesting that this ad does not\nmention anything about cows or cow milk; pointing out that almond milk is not\nnecessarily a dairy substitute, but an everyday product. Also, the kids are\nprimarily narrating the commercial so connecting the almond milk with a\nwholesome family immediately associates the almond milk with a good, pure, and\nnutritious connotation.\u201d <\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Many\nof the participants noted the use of a family and the ties that image has to\nreliability and trustworthiness. However, three people had the opinion that the\nad was exclusive and lacked diversity. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>3. Gardein: <\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=8-s6oDD2Elw&amp;pp=QAA%3D\">https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=8-s6oDD2Elw&amp;pp=QAA%3D<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>What vegans thought:<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>\u201cThis commercial is targeted towards non-vegans. Therefore, the\ncommercial is not as convincing for me to try the product because the concept\nis not as relatable. Though, I do like that the commercial takes advantage of\nNew Year\u2019s resolutions to advertise because not only is it advertising a line\nof meatless meats, but it is also encouraging an entirely meatless diet. Both\nthe idea of New Year\u2019s resolutions and the scrolling through Instagram photos\nof meat are very relatable for the average American. A criticism I have for\nthis commercial is that they should have shown more clips of their meatless\nmeats. The Instagram introduction with meat photos was unnecessarily long, and\nthere should have been a clip of the actual product being cooked or eaten.\nShowing less real meat and more of their meatless meats would have been more\nencouraging for vegans and vegetarians to try the product as well.\u201d <\/li><li>\u201cThis commercial was okay, they gave close up of really gross\nlooking pieces of meat, which I think was supposed to deter us from it. Gardein\nmade their food look really appetizing in comparison. I didn\u2019t like the music\nthough, it sounded like a lullaby. Also, at the end of the commercial they said\nsomething like \u2018trust me you\u2019ll thank yourself for eating this food,\u2019 but\ndidn\u2019t say why, which I think is an important thing to include to give people\nmore of a reason to try it.\u201d<\/li><li>\u201cI personally am biased with this one too because I love Gardein\nproducts, yet I was not super fond of this commercial. The images of meat\nprobably appeal better to a meat eater, as they mostly just made me want to\nstop looking at the video. Yet, I think the idea was probably relatable for a\nlot of other people. I did find the music nice, though.\u201d<\/li><li>\u201cBackground music seemed almost Christmas-y and joyful, kind of\nsucked you into the commercial. Made you realize how much meat you probably ate\nover that year, and think about change for the next year. Nice use of social\nmedia visuals to draw people in as everyone loves Instagram. Good videos of\nfood that looks yummy making people want to buy it.\u201d<\/li><li>\u201cI didn&#8217;t really get this ad at all. First, I didn&#8217;t eat any meat\nat all in 2017 so I guess it wasn&#8217;t aimed at me anyway,&nbsp;but the tone of\nthe opening was very weird (&#8220;You ate a lot of meat&#8221; sounds strangely\naccusatory\u2026). I also didn&#8217;t understand if the shots of meats at the beginning\nwere shots of actual meat or Gardein&#8217;s alternative: given that they only seemed\nto be advertising&nbsp;meatless meatballs and chicken tenders, probably it was\nreal meat. But if that&#8217;s the case, it&#8217;s very odd as the meat at the start was\npresented in such a way that it looked markedly tastier and healthier than the\nGardein meatballs and chicken tenders. They also didn&#8217;t really explain why one\nwould eat their products instead of meat: are they supposed to be healthier?\nAnd what does &#8216;meatless&#8217; mean \u2013 are they vegan, or do they contain eggs\/dairy\ninstead?\u201d <\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><em>What vegetarians thought:<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>\u201c\u2026No reasons [as] to why you should eat meatless\u2026 [commercial]\nsaid, \u2018you use to eat a lot of meat, try not to now,\u2019 but why?\u201d<\/li><li>\u201cThis ad was an interesting one in terms of the way it approached\npromoting the product. Showing several meat dishes in a row appears to be\neffective because they seem repetitive and not really appetizing when put in a\nrow. Followed by this, a transition to the products offered by Gardein appear\nto be more aesthetically pleasing. As a result, the comparison of large, messy\nmeals vs. aesthetically pleasing meals makes meatless meats an enticing\nproduct. I don&#8217;t know if this is the most effective way to approach an\nadvertisement, but it was somewhat effective.\u201d<\/li><li>\u201cI find this ad funny at the beginning because even if I do not\neat meat,&nbsp;it reminds me of the [plenty] of food I ate during winter\nfestivities with my family. Regarding the images of the product, I find them\ntasty and inviting. Even if the ad is short, I do think it can influence me to\nbuy its products.\u201d<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><em>What non-vegetarians thought:<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>\u201cReferring to meatless foods, specifically the meatballs and\nchicken tenders in the commercial, without any mention of them being\nplant-based or having veggies in them, makes the product seem more approachable\nand easier to switch to if never having gone plant-based before. The ad is\ndefinitely geared more towards non-vegans\/vegetarians. From a marketing\nperspective, this ad had great timing airing it around New Years&#8217; when people\nset resolutions and want to eat healthier and make lifestyle changes. It also\npaints meat as gluttonous and heavy, especially by choosing a whole turkey and\nbeef roast to show, which are two very large and indulgent dishes. Also, the\npictures of the meat seem very gray and unappetizing, almost looking like they\nwere \u201cmistreated.\u201d However, when it turns to Gardein\u2019s food, the meatballs and\nchicken tenders are bright and very enticing in appearance.\u201d <\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>This\ncommercial received mixed reviews. Generally, many of the opinions stated the\nimages of real meat dishes were unappealing and lacked any information about\nwhat the product was. No one found this ad to be highly effective, whether they\nwere vegan, vegetarian, or non-vegetarian<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>4. MorningStar Farms: <\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=OPVZy_ziLhY\">https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=OPVZy_ziLhY<\/a><strong><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>What vegans thought:<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>\u201cThis quick-paced, simple commercial kept me interested. The close-ups of the nugget being broken in half and dipped in ketchup made it look very appetizing. The girl trying the product looked like she not only enjoyed the \u2018meat,\u2019 but was also having a fun time. I like that the commercial immediately showed someone eating it \u2013 very straight to the point. The editing was super fun and bubbly, making me believe this \u2018meat\u2019 would be delightful to try.\u201d<\/li><li>\u201cI didn\u2019t like this commercial very much. Don\u2019t have much to say here but I didn\u2019t like the music and the whole commercial was very green which is their brand color scheme, but there wasn\u2019t much substance to it or a reason why it was America\u2019s favorite.\u201d<\/li><li>\u201cThis commercial also seems to be targeted to meat eaters since the focus is on how their nuggets taste like chicken. I think the actress\u2019s interactions with the product helped make the ad more exciting too. I think the music was also a fun component. If anything from this ad threw me off, it was when they dropped all the nuggets from the sky because to me it looked like they were wasting food, which gives me a negative connotation to the company (which I assume is not their goal).\u201d<\/li><li>\u201cAnother very happy and cute feel-good video. Emphasizes \u201cmade from plants\u201d so people don\u2019t automatically think it\u2019s super processed or junk food. Product looks like real chicken, so people will be familiar with product. Actor looks like she loves eating them.\u201d<\/li><li>\u201cI thought this was good: had a consistent cheery\u00a0tone, nice colors, got to the point. If I were to change anything, I&#8217;d add another actor so that she&#8217;s eating these things with friends\/family etc., and maybe change the line the actor gives (obviously everyone saw it coming that they would claim these taste like chicken, given that they are clearly modelled on chicken nuggets).\u201d<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><em>What vegetarians thought:<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>\u201cWon the hearts of plant-based eaters\u201d<\/li><li>\u201cThis ad was very simple. By listing the two most blunt facts:\nmade from plants and tastes like chicken, the ad really simplifies the message.\nA plate of meatless chicken nuggets that appear and taste just like its meat\ncounterpart, and a lady that appears to be enjoying the nuggets are\ncomplementary images that add to the message in a very simple ad. I think this\nis the least effective advertisement of the five, I believe the overall general\nstatements are not that convincing.\u201d<\/li><li>\u201cI do not find this ad so inviting. First of all, I think that it\ndoes not really show images from the product that would make you salivate.\nSecondly, I think it might be too short to be able to influence you. Thirdly, I\ndo not find pleasant the sudden classic music. It does surprise me, but it also\nirritates me.\u201d<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><em>What non-vegetarians thought:<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>\u201cI see why MorningStar Farms would state that their product\n\u2018tastes like chicken,\u2019 in order to make plant-based foods seem less imitating\nby comparing it to something people already consume large quantities of chicken.\nHowever, personally, I don\u2019t really like that comparison. Instead, I would like\nto hear why it is better than eating chicken, what it is made out of and what\ningredients make it supposedly taste like chicken. As for marketing, the\ncommercial is simple and to the point. Also, when the Chick\u2019n Nuggets are being\ndropped from above, the music sounds almost like angels and as if they are\nfalling from the heavens, subconsciously putting in viewers minds how divine\nthis product is.\u201d<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>To\nsum up participants opinions on this advertisement, most did not find the\nproduct to have been positioned as looking delicious or the slogan, \u201ctastes\nlike chicken,\u201d to be an enticing saying or good marketing approach. The\nconsensus appears to be that this ad was not successful in gaining any of the\nthree groups\u2019 attention.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>4. Ben &amp; Jerry\u2019s: <\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=ni9kvH827Xs&amp;pp=QAA%3D\">https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=ni9kvH827Xs&amp;pp=QAA%3D<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>What vegans thought:<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>\u201cImmediately the commercial begins by showing a variety of the ice cream flavors, which all look very tasty. The commercial&#8217;s premise is that Ben &amp; Jerry&#8217;s listened to vegan consumers and finally created an entirely vegan ice cream line, which shows that they care about their consumers. I like that they show the woman who decided on the recipe and show her actually making the ice cream. It&#8217;s nice to see what goes into their ice cream \u2013 it seems of a high quality and convinces me to want to try it.\u201d<\/li><li>\u201cI really liked this commercial since it was relatable, modern, and it told a story! That\u2019s what I really liked about it. It showed they\u2019re listening to their customers; they made the ice creams look so good and enticing. I also liked how they gave a behind the scenes look into how they made it and the customer service behind it\u2026 [and] the upbeat music and narration. They didn\u2019t just tell a story, but showed it to me as well!\u201d<\/li><li>\u201cOkay, this ad really made me want to get some Ben &amp; Jerry\u2019s vegan ice cream. I liked the storytelling throughout the video and I also liked how they used a real person to show the process of bringing these non-dairy ice creams to life. I thought the music helped add momentum to the story and ad as well. Additionally, the inclusion of real comments was a nice touch.\u201d<\/li><li>\u201cCommercial tells you a story, similar to one you would see while on a tour of the Ben and Jerry\u2019s facility! So, the vibe was just simply exciting. The story pulled you in and you wanted to see the result. People in it seemed happy about the product. When they showed the ice-cream, it honestly just looked really delicious and the same as normal ice-cream looks-wise, so people would definitely be interested in purchasing it!\u201d<\/li><li>\u201cThis was a solid ad.\u00a0I understood what the new products were and their point, appreciated that they openly used the word \u2018vegan\u2019 while staying on brand and keeping the upbeat tone, and it was believable that the woman actually was one of their product developers. I think the music was significantly better than most ad music too,\u00a0and very on brand for them with a bit of a late\u00a060s\/early 70s vibe.\u201d <\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><em>What vegetarians thought:<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>\u201cResponding to requests from consumers. Putting in the effort to make\nthe perfect dairy-free pint. Had a flavor specialist&nbsp;to make the ice\ncream. Everything looked appealing\u201d<\/li><li>\u201cThis ad was effective in two ways. First, it shows that Ben &amp;\nJerry&#8217;s are receptive of their consumers, and they accept feedback and care for\ntheir feedback. Second, it has a very happy, upbeat mood throughout, which\nemphasizes how good ice cream is. Further, the ad had an expert, and they\ntalked about how they would substitute dairy, which was convincing. Overall, I\nthink the advertisement also took away from the difference between dairy and\nnon-dairy by emphasizing the chocolate, peanut butter, and other auxiliary\ningredients that help create flavor. I enjoyed this advertisement.\u201d<\/li><li>\u201cThis is my second-favorite commercial (but I think that the\nreason behind it might be heavily influenced by the fact that the last weeks I\nhave been trying to eat less dairy and eggs, and I have had crazy cravings for\nan ice cream without dairy). The ice creams\u2019 images at the beginning are\nalready influencing me to stand up and run to buy them, and the moment in which\nthe woman is mixing the ice cream with the cookies is just so inviting to me.\u201d <\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><em>What non-vegetarians thought:<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>\u201cThis is a fun commercial overall. I like how actual tweets from\ncustomers were highlighted, showing that Ben &amp; Jerry\u2019s is really listening\nand taking feedback. The commercial does a good job at clearly stating what the\nice cream is made out of and what flavors are available. I think introducing\nwho created the new dairy-free ice cream is a really great marketing tactic as\nit puts a kind and caring face behind the product. It also emphasizes the large\namount of time, effort, and commitment the company put into making a product\nthat is comparable to its beloved regular dairy ice cream. Also, the scene when\nthe Oreos are being folded into the ice cream looks extremely creamy and\ndefinitely drool worthy.\u201d <\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>As\na whole, this advertisement seems to be a favorite among vegan, vegetarians,\nand non-vegetarians. The use of real people and real feedback stood out to most\nof the participants. Also, the commercial told a story and very clearly\nmarketed to both vegans and vegetarians, but also made sure not to leave out\nattracting the viewers that do consume dairy, as many noted the ice cream looks\ncreamy and mouthwatering.&nbsp; <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>These\n5 commercials show the disparities between effective versus ineffective\nadvertisements. After reading participants\u2019 opinions, it became apparent that\nsome commercials fail to reach their target audience, while others hit the nail\non the head, as can be seen between MorningStar Farms and Ben &amp; Jerry\u2019s.\nAnd for instance, certain ads do a good job showing a wide range of consumers,\nlike Beyond Meat, while others do not, like Blue Diamond. The most liked\ncommercial was Ben &amp; Jerry\u2019s, as it had no negative comments from\nparticipants. On the other hand, discerning which commercial was liked the\nleast is not as clear, reminding people that overall, advertisements are a\nmatter of one\u2019s own personal perspective. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Thank\nyou to the following individuals for contributing: Audrey Hunt, Clarissa Hauber, Daniella Eisenstadt, Julia\nStanitski, Lucia Rivera, Odette Sanchez, Rithvik Swamynathan, and Simon Brown<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Katelynn\nis a VRG intern and completing a college marketing major. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>By Katelynn Budzich, VRG Intern Plant-based eating has long been seen as a diet craze; however, recently the number of people who are vegans and vegetarians has been continually growing; and along with this surge, the size of the vegan food market has been increasing as well. There are more and more plant-based food products [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-16467","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vrg.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16467","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vrg.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vrg.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vrg.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vrg.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=16467"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.vrg.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16467\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":16469,"href":"https:\/\/www.vrg.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16467\/revisions\/16469"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vrg.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=16467"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vrg.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=16467"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vrg.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=16467"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}