Every Fourth of July, the airwaves and social media overflow with Independence Day stuff – tips on grilling the best hot dogs, tutorials for launching fireworks, salutes to America’s founding fathers – you name it. So how can any brand hope to be heard over all that noise? It’s tough, but if you find a unique offering, or take the time to cultivate your own tradition, you can turn the Fourth into your brand’s very own Independence Day. Nathan’s Famous has done just that.
Since 1916, Nathan’s Famous has hosted its annual hot dog eating contest right outside its flagship restaurant in Coney Island. By now it has become a cultural icon. Thousands of New Yorkers flock to the restaurant to watch “the celebration that is as uniquely American as it is Nathan’s.” This year they were delighted to watch Joey “Jaws” Chestnut regain his title by breaking his own world record, eating 70 hot dogs in 10 minutes.
It all started when two immigrants, arguing beside an anonymous little hot dog stand, challenged each other to a hot dog eating contest to prove who was the most patriotic. The record is silent as to who won, or why they felt eating hot dogs was patriotic, but it hardly matters – the tradition was born. Over the years it slowly grew into the massive event it is today, and Nathan’s Famous benefits by getting the most profound brand presence they could ever hope for.
It helps that over the past hundred years, Nathan’s has become just about as patriotic as a brand can be. Among its earliest customers were Al Capone and Cary Grant, whose de facto endorsements brought waves of hungry press and hungry people. In 1939, President Franklin Roosevelt served Nathan’s Famous hot dogs to the Queen of England, and later had them sent to Yalta where he met with Winston Churchill and Joseph Stalin. This worked to promote Nathan’s Famous as the American hot dog’s standard bearer, and gave legitimacy to their annual contest.
However, it’s a mistake to think that only super American brands like Nathan’s Famous can capitalize on the Fourth’s festivities. Newcastle Brown Ale, from a distinctly English brewery out of North Yorkshire, launched an “Independence Eve” campaign this year called “If Britain Won the War.”
It had nothing to do with their beer and everything to do with imagining what America would be like if it had lost the war of Independence. Quietly placed among the cookie-cutter Fourth of July ads celebrating America and all its offerings, Newcastle’s commercials stuck out immediately, and made people talk. Their campaign did the exact opposite of every other brand out there, and as a result made big waves online, catching eyes, raising awareness for their products, and allowing them to stake out a memorable brand identity.
So, whether your brand is American or international, old or new, making your voice heard on the Fourth of July is all about finding a unique spin that draws attention and raises a few eyebrows. Maybe next year you can start the slow-burning approach like Nathan’s, or go for the eye-catching edge like Newcastle Brown, but always remember to keep it unique, memorable, and true to your brand.
Did any other brands catch your eye this weekend? Leave a comment below!
Let’s get #BRAIN_DING!