People say true Chicagoans don’t eat ketchup.
But there’s likely a ketchup-loving silent majority in the Windy City who feel left out at restaurants that don’t serve it, according to the Kraft Heinz Co.
The company wants to capitalize on those dissenters — four out of five people, according to Heinz — by placing small ketchup-dispensing billboards outside Chicago restaurants that don’t serve the brand.
Two locations are slated to be targeted starting Tuesday: The Wieners Circle in Lincoln Park and a “fast-food” joint at Navy Pier, the company said in a statement.
Though the company wouldn’t disclose the name of the second restaurant, it’s likely targeting the McDonald’s on the pier. The fast-food chain dropped Heinz in 2013 when the ketchup company hired the CEO of rival Burger King.
Heinz is urging people to report other restaurants that don’t serve the brand to SmackForHeinz.com, which goes live Tuesday, so the company can place pop-up dispensers outside them.
This isn’t the first unconventional marketing campaign by the Chicago-based company.
Heinz introduced “Chicago Dog Sauce” in 2017 as a clever attempt to sell ketchup under another name. It let loyal Chicagoans eat their dogs ketchup-free — if in name only.
The ad campaign runs through April 9.
