Their toll-free number is 1-800-HOT-HOGS. They want to be their clientele’s “partner in grime.” They give out pig-face hats so popular that customers have been known to place an order just so they can snag one as a bonus.
Yes, New Pig’s approach to marketing is decidedly less snout-in-the-air than what you’ll find at most B-to-B firms.
B-to-B marketing copy and creative tends to hit features and benefits, rather than the funny bone. And experts typically advise marketers to be cautious when using humor. But it’s always been part of New Pig’s DNA, says Doug Hershey, executive vice president.
The Tipton, PA-based firm sells industrial products for facility maintenance, spill containment and hazardous material handling. New Pig is (of course) active online, with a robust email program and a presence in social media, including a Facebook page and a “Pig Blog.” But since the target audience comprises primarily plant, facility and safety managers who don’t spend their days chained to their desks, they’re not at their computers at all times. Which means that traditional direct marketing channels still resonate for the company.
“It’s just as easy for them to pick up the phone to place an order,” notes Hershey, adding that the print catalog—a.k.a. “Pigalog”—continues to be critical to the brand and drives the majority of its orders.
But no matter what the channel the brand uses to connect with B-to-B buyers, it differentiates itself with a tongue-in-cheek approach.
“When we were first starting out, we talked to ad agencies and they thought we should stay away from a name like ‘Pig,’ because it could be derogatory,” says Hershey. Customers, however, got the joke from the start. “I remember in the early days calling people and telling them where we were from and they’d chuckle.”
Hershey acknowledges that going for a laugh isn’t an easy thing to do in B-to-B. “For us, it always made sense. And once we came up with the idea that the place we developed our products would be ‘The Pig Pen’ and we were going to be called New Pig Corp., it was natural,” he says. “We don’t take ourselves too seriously, but we always knew we had to have high quality. If we were funny and had bad products or lousy service, it wouldn’t work.”
One factor in New Pig’s favor when it came to taking a lighthearted approach was that fun was part of the brand from the start, Hershey says. “If you didn’t start there, it might be hard to make the switch.”
The company hasn’t run into too many speed bumps when it comes to using humor—other than a few cease-and-desist orders from organizations that didn’t like New Pig paying homage to them. When the 1994 Olympics were held in Norway, New Pig created T-shirts celebrating the “OlymPIGS” in “LilleHAMmer.” The International Olympic Committee didn’t think it was funny. “We had to trash some T-shirts,” Hershey notes.
Likewise, the estate of the King wasn’t amused with a Pig catalog cover featuring an Elvis Presley lookalike, and The New York Times didn’t see the humor in a New Pork Times parody.
Of course, it can go both ways. A competitor paid homage to New Pig itself, in a way, Hershey says, by trying to adapt the brand identity of the Wolf, a.k.a. the “big bad,” that would blow away the Pig.
Today, New Pig handles most of its creative in-house, working only occasionally with outside agencies.
“I remember years ago, the president of the company and I were
interviewing agencies, and the first thing they wanted to do was get rid of the fun,” Hershey says with a laugh. “But it was a differentiator for us and helped us make an emotional connection with our customers."
People occasionally call the New Pig offices and cheekily ask for Boss Hogg or Miss Piggy. Any and all freebies—from bobbleheads to mugs to Beanie Baby-style stuffed toys—are always popular at trade shows. And customers often send in pictures of themselves and their safety teams wearing New Pig boxer shorts, hats and T-shirts, just to show off their Pig-pride.
To continue the theme, on March 1, New Pig will celebrate National Pig Day, sending out a special email blast to make sure customers are aware of the holiday.
Want to Get a Laugh in B-to-B? Two Things to Remember:
1. Make sure the joke ties in to your brand message. It takes real talent to use humor well to communicate, says Mac McIntosh, president of Mac McIntosh Inc. “Having a penguin in the ad is cute, but it doesn’t make any sense unless it relates a benefit—say, ‘Our refrigerator trucks are so cool even penguins like them.’ ”
2. Be careful not to offend your audience. Humor in B-to-B is something that needs to be employed judiciously, says Michael Brown, president of Business-to-Business by Phone. “Something that could work in the consumer realm might fall flat in B-to-B. For example, humor about Chapter 11 might not go very well if the advertiser were pursuing a company currently in that state. Creative can be humorous, but it has to have a point and tell the product’s story.”
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