Kraft-Heinz forces us to listen to loud chewing in new campaign

A campaign based on the sound of loud chewing?

Oh, you mean my worst nightmare? Cool cool cool.

Kraft-Heinz have just introduced new and improved packaging for their frozen quesadillas. And they’re using the Misophonia some people have to loud chewers to draw attention to just how crunchy these ‘dillas are.

As much as I hate the idea of this campaign, it’s actually kind of a genius move, and I’ll tell you why.

But first, some background.

Kraft-Heinz is giving its frozen food strategy a well-needed makeover with the introduction of 360Crisp.

This is a packaging technology that keeps products crispy on the outside and warm on the inside by using different venting and heat points. The idea is to recreate the experience of a home-cooked meal.

The campaign addresses consumer annoyances around how sh*t frozen Mexican offerings can be. The tortillas get soggy and the cheese that doesn’t melt properly on the inside. If you’ve had a bad frozen burrito, you know what I’m talking about.

To counter this, Kraft-Heinz is promoting the crispiness of Delimex’s new frozen quesadillas by emphasising just how loud the crunching will be whenever someone eats one.

And they're doing this through the revulsion we (I) experience when hearing people chew.

'We recognize that the biggest strength of this product — our crunch and crispiness — may also be what triggers fans, so we wanted to develop a campaign that playfully warned them about the crunch while also highlighting it as the key element of our new product,' said Lauren Nowak, Brand Manager at Delimex, in a press statement.

For this campaign, Kraft-Heinz is investing heavily in sound-driven marketing for the first time.

This multichannel campaign will feature ads depicting people's OTT reactions to hearing the sounds of others eating.

The ads will roll out on iHeart Media, an auditory Snapchat augmented reality filter, a mobile game and sound-on TikTok content.

So, they're cutting through the noise, literally.

This approach by Kraft-Heinz's cleverly turns the ASMR trend on its head.

Most audio marketing campaigns aim to create soothing and pleasant soundscapes (think soft whispers, nails tapping and ambient unboxing). Kraft-Heinz is doing the opposite by using an intentionally jarring sound (loud af chewing) and disrupting the audience's auditory comfort zone.

The brand is essentially leaning into his discomfort for engagement.

Misophonia can trigger strong emotional reactions – like me ruining family dinner (kidding, kind of.)

Now it may seem counterintuitive to leverage an annoying sound. But the discomfort created actually drives engagement. People are more likely to notice, react to, and remember the campaign.

It also addresses a genuine consumer pain point: the fact that frozen foods often taste and feel like disappointment.

Using the sound of crunchiness reinforces the message that 360Crisp technology has, in fact, solved that problem.

Food advertising is sensory.

We’re used to visual representations—like close-ups of gooey cheese or steam rising off a dish. But, audio is often overlooked, despite the fact that it can totally enhance the sensory experience.

The sound of a crunch signals freshness and quality, making the product more appetizing even when the audience can’t taste or smell it.

So, what’s a brand to do?

Lean into sensory cues. 

If your product has a distinct sound that conveys quality, amplify it. This approach works particularly well for food and beverages. It can also apply to technology products where sound can communicate functionality (like the 'click' of a high-quality camera shutter).

Use audio to solve problems. 

If your brand addresses a common annoyance or complaint, think about how sound can help tell that story.

Strategically disrupt. 

If the goal is to stand out, embracing jarring or uncomfortable sounds can be an effective, albeit risky, strategy. But make sure there’s a good reason for it and that it ties back to the product’s benefit.

Think beyond visual.

Audio has a growing role in advertising. Visual and text-based content have long dominated. Now, audio is becoming an essential part of a well-rounded sensory experience.

With podcasts, social media sound-on ads, and even AI-generated voiceovers, there’s an opportunity for brands to engage audiences in new, unexpected ways.

Like the anti-pleasure marketing Kraft-Heinz uses here.

You’ve got to think bold: What other sounds do people hate? Is there a place for campaigns that intentionally stir the pot with disruptive audio?

The opportunities to annoy people are endless. Trust me, I am an expert on this.

-Sophie, Writer