It’s no secret that CPG company PepsiCo gets well-executed integrated marketing communications campaigns. Its latest installment comes out of its Frito-Lay brand in the form of having its Facebook and broader fan base submit their ideas for the next great Lay’s potato chip flavor. While the campaign has just kicked off, I think this is a great example of a modern marketing campaign. Unlike most fragmented campaigns these days that put the aspirations of a “viral” hit or social media success ahead of their consumers, this appears to be rooted in the passion of Lay’s consumers and putting in place the mechanisms necessary to activate that passion. My hypothesis is that the campaign will result in a nice mix of earned, owned and paid media results and likely sales, by way of traditional media coverage and a ton of social impressions and fan acquisition due to the high volume of user-generated content (UGC) blended with advertising and multimedia activation. We’ll have to wait until it all plays out, but here’s what we know so far:

Contest 
Call for public to submit “The Next Great Potato Chip Flavor.” Public can submit their flavor idea simply through the “Do Us a Flavor” Facebook application or text FLAVOR to CHIPS (24477). Through both submission channels, fans have to provide their flavor name, up to three possible ingredients and a 140-character description or inspiration for their flavor. Note: This has been rolled out in several countries, but is the first time it has been done in the U.S.

Incentive/Prize:
Winner will receive not too shabby honor of having their flavor selected, but also $1 million or 1 percent of flavor’s net sales (whichever is higher). Two runner-up finalists will each win $50,000 in prize money.

Launch
Campaign launches in Times Square with pop-up store where passers-by can taste 20 existing Lays flavors and learn about Lays flavors from all over the world. Celebrity spokespeople Eva Longoria and Chef Michael Symon are on hand to educate consumers about contest and encourage them to enter.

Interactive Layer

• Facebook users can and are encouraged to engage further by selecting their favorite flavors by clicking an “I’d Eat That” button (rather than the Facebook Like button).
• They can share their voting activity back to the Facebook community in head-to-head “flavor showdowns.”
• Consumers in need of additional inspiration can use Chef Michael Symon’s “Flavorizer” app, which scans the individual’s Facebook timeline to recommend ingredients most unique to him or her.

Why this campaign is SMART

• Foundationally, this campaign is simple and consumer centric . While rudimentary on some levels, brands fail to do this these days, especially in social.
• Well-balanced between the physical and digital world. There’s a press release and traditional media push with a substantial educational launch event that includes celebrity backing. From here, the call to join a few of Lays digital assets (by way of Facebook or text) is a natural fit, not to mention the process for entry isn’t complicated or daunting. The use of SMS (text) for the simpler consumer who prefers to not engage in a medium like Facebook is a wise alternative (big fan of SMS use because even my mom knows how to do it – a good place to spend your time). The extension of social sharing post-submission is awesome and furthers the ability for Lay’s to grow their fan base through UGC and heightened organic activity.
• Continuous content fueled by combination of Lays staff and UGC. Users submit their content (UGC), their friends and other Lay’s community members vote (UGC), culinary experts and celebrity judges decide the final three flavors (Lay’s), then the final vote is done through Lay’s Facebook community (UGC). At the end, Lays will likely do a big reveal and a final traditional and digital media push (Lay’s). This combination is a win win because it gives Lay’s the opportunity to constantly create new content based on the content and conversation being created within the Lay’s Facebook community. The great thing about this content cycle is that it will likely result in activity across several media (traditional and digital trade coverage, Facebook fan acquisition, engagement, etc.).
• Finally, this campaign will be supported by paid media by way of online and TV and a retail marketing campaign successfully completing the earned, owned and paid media trifecta. I dig it.

Sources:

• Contest Launch Press Release
• AllFacebook