As I was putting away the rest of my groceries, I stopped and pondered that lone pineapple sitting on my counter. That’s when it occurred to me how little we appreciate or understand how much work, resources, and logistics went into getting that stupid hang tag onto a simple piece of fruit.
I don’t know shit about growing pineapples, I assume it’s just plant them, pick them, ship them. But I do know plenty about marketing.
Most people won’t even notice the illustration. Imagine how hard it was to find 3 characters that aren’t already part of an extensive movie franchise, or some Disney+ animated series. Few will even pick up the slight differences in styles, a clear indicator different artists did the each. Someone had to manage the offshoring of that work.
Even if you did see the eye-catching graphics, I bet fewer people took the time to read the carefully crafted inscription on the back. In case you want to read it, it says…
Inspired by MARVEL, Dole honors unsung heroes quietly fighting for a happier, healthier life, family and planet. No matter their dreams, passions or seasons in life, every hero has a story worth celebrating. Dole Healthy Heroes, Assemble!
How hard is it write a paragraph of text you might ask? Unlike pineapples that grow on trees (someone fact check that for me), copywriters don’t. Neither do legal departments and brand managers, all of whom probably scoured and revised those 30ish words over many many emails. If that’s not enough, they had to do it a second time, but in Spanish!
Up to this point, we’re easily looking at 20-30 people involved from Dole and Marvel, and we aren’t even considering the printers etc.
But why go through all this you might ask? It’s that thing we like to refer to as the Call to Action, or as it’s known in the biz, the CTA. All this work, all this money, sure it’s contributing a significant cost to the pineapple, easily 150%
Moving down the rest of the card, you’ll notice those familiar icons. Behind each one is a social media team constantly monitoring signals to make sure the ROI of this co-marketing synergy. I’m just noticing they’re missing their social handles. Heads are going to roll.
Next time you pay three to four dollars for a pineapple, I hope you’ll think of all the hard work that went into getting it to your table.