NORTH KINGSTON, RI: Go Veggie, which sells lactose and dairy-free products, has launched a campaign to help people who suffer from lactose intolerance to find support.
The Lactose Intolerants Anonymous effort, which kicked off on Thursday, invites people who can’t consume dairy to join the brand’s pretend support group on the microsite cheeseproblems.com.
Go Veggie assistant marketing manager Megan Bell said the idea for the campaign emerged after the brand discovered ongoing conversations on Twitter about lactose-related issues.
"We noticed that there have been a lot of people talking every day about the humor that comes along with experiencing cheese problems from lactose intolerance, and they’re on the taboo side, such as side effects like gas and bloating," she explained. "But when you put it in the atmosphere of Twitter, it becomes humorous."
With help from agency partner Haberman, Go Veggie will post content and interact with fans on social media, using the hashtag #cheeseproblems, throughout the next eight weeks.
The brand will also launch digital ads created by Haberman on Twitter and Facebook, said Renee Rice, account director at the agency.
With a team of six to eight staffers working on the initiative, Haberman will reach out to a mix of traditional and digital media outlets in the food, health, and nutrition spaces, said account supervisor Jess Snell.
On the microsite, fans can watch clips from the ‘support group’ and tweet to its members. Consumers can also enter a four-step program through the site – the first step being to admit to having a cheese problem – and then earn a certificate and coupon for a Go Veggie cheese alternative product.
"We want to engage with people who are already out there with a cheese problem who may not have heard about our products," said Bell. "We want them to be able to enjoy cheesy food again without the side effects, and we want to be a tasty solution."
Snell added that another campaign objective is to show Go Veggie’s fun brand personality, especially the fact that it can identify with consumers and "welcome them back to the cheesy experiences they really miss."
The campaign, which has a total media spend of $150,000, will end on December 19.
