Danish Bacon has been advertised and promoted in the UK since the 1950s at which time the well-known slogan "Great Bacon has Danish written all over it" was developed.

Advertising today requires more imagination and creativity in order to engage a more discerning advertising-literate consumer and DBMC's view is that good bacon ads must focus on the taste enjoyment and fun of eating bacon. And here are some examples of recent campaigns:

Adding yet more sizzle to Danishhhhhhhh
June 2006

The 2006 £1 million Danish Bacon advertising and promotional campaign built on the award winning success of the previous year’s activity. At its heart remained the commercial message that generated so much resonance in 2005; encouraging consumers to look for the Danish sizzle when buying bacon.

Adding a new twist, men were directly targeted for the first time in the new campaign. To reach this audience, new titles such as GQ and Men’s Health were added to the print advertising schedule, alongside 17 other carefully selected glossy titles.

A new batch of radio adverts, featuring Danish stalwart Mark Heap with new comic companion Jessica Stevenson, added even more humour to the memorable radio material. Danish Bacon posters at 300 London Underground stations completed the impact of the integrated campaign. High level visibility and fresh creative material added new dimensions to a successful campaign that yet again demonstrated the effectiveness of a proven formula.

Danish cleans up
May 2006

Danish Bacon’s “breakfast transformer” scooped its category award for best Viral Marketing campaign at May’s Food and Beverage Creative Excellence Awards (FAB).

This is yet another accolade that will be added to the admirable collection the ‘Danissshhh’ advertising campaign has received since its launch back in March 2005. Although the recognition is very welcome, it certainly isn’t the only measure of success. But we think it still makes for quite impressive reading nonetheless. In addition to the FAB, other recognition includes:

• Campaign Best Viral Ads 2005, no. 4
• Telegraph Ad of the Week, for the Viral

• Gramia Awards 2005, Category Radio
• Campaign Best Radio Ads 2005, no. 2
• Ariel Award Monthly Winner and Annual Award runner up 2005

Classic Gold listeners get grilling with Danish!
May 2006

Danish Bacon added extra ‘sizzle’ to Classic Gold’s Breakfast show during May, with a ‘Breakfast on Danish’ competition.

The first listener to call in and answer a simple topical question each Friday bagged themselves a George Foreman grill. Danish Bacon also threw in a couple of packs of bacon to complete the package. But the breakfast bonanza didn’t end there, as the listener then got a shot at a bonus question, with the chance to win a ‘breakfast’ themed film soundtrack CD.

The promotion aimed to underline the sense of fun at the heart of the Danish brand whilst encouraging consumers to choose ‘the sizzle’ when shopping. It was also an extension of Danish Bacon’s on-going sponsorship of the show that regularly attracts over 325,000 listeners. The deal is now in its fourth year and looks set to continue for some time to come.

Christmas comes early for Classic Gold listeners care of Danish
November 2005

To mark the run-up to Christmas, Danish Bacon launched a festive Lapland Promotion with Tony Blackburn’s Classic Gold Breakfast Show. With the chance to win an amazing festive family trip for three to Lapland, listeners had to write a short story recounting their favourite Christmas. The competition proved highly successful, as the show received sacks full of entries.

Ten finalists were selected to go into the studio at various points throughout November to read their work live-on-air. The winner jetted off to Lapland on Sunday 11 December to enjoy a sleigh ride and meet (the real) Father Christmas.

Danish ‘Sizzle’ hits cyber space
July 2005

Danish Bacon launched a highly successful “breakfast transformer” viral marketing campaign in July. Celebrating the Citroen C4 transformer advertisement with a humorous animation, the viral created quite a storm. Over 1.2 million people saw the animation in the first 10 days following its launch. Its popularity continued to swell, with viewing figures rising to more than two million only a few weeks later. And the campaign is still going strong, as more people enjoy the humour and then forward the link to their friends.

Danish sponsorship of chilly challenge
May 2005

May saw the Danish Bacon sponsored, all female group of explorers – The Pink Lady® Polecats – complete the Scott Dunn Polar Challenge. The contest to reach the North Pole is said to be the hardest race on earth. On Thursday 5 May 2005, the Polecats became the first all female group to complete the challenge. The team covered 360-miles, beating 10 male dominated teams in the process to finish in sixth place.

Danissssssshhhhhh Bacon
March 2005

Danish Bacon’s 2005 advertising campaign launched in March, with press and radio advertising and promotions telling people: “For more bacon taste, look for the Danish sizzle on your supermarket’s own packs”. For the first time, Danish Bacon also commissioned advertising for the London underground, with posters at 475 central London sites. Consumers waiting for their morning train were tempted by the mouth-watering sight of a rasher of Danish bacon 20 times the size of the breakfast favourite across the tracks. Radio advertising, staring Mark Heap of the Channel Four comedy ‘Green Wing,’ also focused on the big taste of Danisssshhhhhh Bacon and was set in a supermarket.

‘Bumper’ Bacon promotion
June – August 2004

Danish Bacon relaunched its successful 2003 promotional campaign in conjunction with Sainsburys and Classic Gold FM from June to August 2004. Consumers collected a car sticker from Sainsburys magazine and registered their number plate with Classic Gold. Over a twelve week period, from 6am to 6pm one car registration was read out every hour. The relevant person then had half an hour to contact the station to claim their place in a Friday draw to win £500 of Sainsbury’s vouchers. With two draws a week, 24 lucky Danish Bacon consumers won £12,000 between them over the course of the promotion!

Danish TV appearances
April 2004

In April 2004 Danish Bacon grabbed the limelight when it took advantage of the filming of ‘Reverse-a-word’, a pilot TV quiz show originating from the Chris Moyles Breakfast Show on BBC Radio One. The tongue-in-cheek style of the quiz show, hosted by Scott Mills, presented a great opportunity for a visit from the Danish Bacon chefs. Danish Bacon provided the crew and contestants with 60 bacon sandwiches as sustenance to fuel them through a long day’s filming, plus a prize for the winner of vouchers for some delicious Danish Bacon. The pilot was screened on Challenge TV, as well as being featured on the BBC Radio One website.

‘Don’t be distracted...’
March 2004

Danish Bacon launched their £1 million advertising and promotional campaign for 2004 in March. The campaign featured press and radio advertising and promotions, and told consumers: “Don’t be distracted – look for the sizzle”. The press ads reflected Danish Bacon’s sense of fun, featuring bizarre occurrences in store which failed to distract shoppers from purchasing Danish Bacon. One of the series of ads featured an ‘Elvis’ look-alike appearing next to a shopper who remained completely focused on selecting her pack of Danish Bacon. The radio ads, featuring Lucy Davis star of ‘The Office’, followed a similar theme as those in press and again were set in a supermarket.

Breakfast sponsorship
January 2004 – April 2005

Danish Bacon’s highly successful sponsorship of Tony Blackburn’s breakfast show on Classic Gold quickly became synonymous with the sense of fun and irresistibility that the bacon favourite is known for. As a result, the sponsorship was continued into 2004 and beyond.

Little book of Danish promotion
December 2003

Danish Bacon targeted 100 000 Tesco’s Clubcard holders with a personalised mailer send in December 2003. It included a ‘Little book of Danish’ which gave ideas for delicious treats featuring Danish Bacon, and money off vouchers for products including Tesco finest bacon, Heinz tomato sauce and eggs – all the ingredients for a perfect breakfast!

Look for the Danish Sizzle
September to December 2003

2003 saw the launch of the successful sponsorship of Tony Blackburn’s breakfast show on Classic Gold, which became synonymous with the theme of fun and irresistibility that Danish Bacon is recognised for. In conjunction with a press campaign, consumers were encouraged to look for the Danish ‘sizzle’ when buying their bacon.

The press ads featured two packs of Danish bacon, one without the sizzle and the other with the sizzle highlighted with the words ‘Irresistibility guaranteed’. The accompanying headline read ‘Is your bacon irresistible?’ Ads appeared in mainstream magazines from September to December 2003.

Score with Danish!
November 2003

Over 6.5 million consumers heard about Danish Bacon in a series of radio competitions which tied in with the Rugby World Cup in November 2003. Danish Bacon took advantage of the ideal timing of the World Cup matches - first thing in the morning UK time- to run promotions positioning Danish Bacon as the ideal accompaniment to the early morning sports fest! Danish Bacon offered radio listeners across the country the opportunity to win a World Cup Breakfast Kit – featuring a deluxe Tefal frying pan and a voucher for that all important breakfast buttie filling – Danish bacon!

'Bumper' Bacon promotion
July-September 2003

Danish Bacon reached consumers at 164 Sainsbury’s stores - with a promotion on 19 Classic Gold regional radio stations from July to September 2003. Consumers collected a car sticker from the store and registered their number plate with Classic Gold.

Over a ten week period, from 6am to 6pm one car registration was read out every hour. The relevant person then had half an hour to contact the station to claim their £10 Sainsbury’s voucher. Once a week there was an additional draw between all the winners and one Danish Bacon lover walked away with £200 of Sainsbury’s vouchers.

Making the perfect bacon sandwich
April 2003

Whether in the morning, at lunch, or as a snack in the evening, the taste and smell of a bacon buttie is hard to resist. Recognising this, Danish Bacon launched an advertising campaign in April 2003, injecting humour into the sandwich making process and reminding consumers of just how tasty bacon carrying the Danish 'sizzle' is.

With ads in consumer titles, weekend supplements and supermarket magazines, the campaign unlocks the mysteries of buying bacon in a humorous manner. One of the ads provides the recipe for the perfect bacon sandwich? including how to beat off anyone who tries to steal it from you!

The launch of the advertising campaign coincided with Danish Bacon's sponsorship of Tony Blackburn's new breakfast show on Classic Gold. The show, featuring a number of promotions, including the chance to win a weekend for two at a health club, complemented other radio stations running Danish Bacon adverts.

Football fever? Out of the frying pan, into the Quarter-finals?
Summer 2002

With the World Cup 2002 taking place half way around the world in Japan, football fans across the nation were watching the matches at breakfast time whilst tucking into a plate full of bacon and eggs.

Danish Bacon seized upon the unique opportunity presented when England clashed with Denmark in the second round. With headlines like 'I'm hungry for Danish bacon' appearing on the national sports pages, the nation's awareness of everything Danish was at an all time high. On the morning of the match, adverts for Danish bacon appeared in the Sun, the Daily Star and Daily Mirror. With typical Danish Bacon humour the adverts focussed on the upcoming fixture, capitalising on the 'heat' and passion involved with the game reading 'Out of the frying pan, into the Quarter-finals? May the best team win! (Denmark.)'

Although Denmark lost the match, Danish bacon remained at the forefront of consumers' minds, continuing to enjoy its popularity at the breakfast table.

Bacon addicts back on telly
Spring 2002

Spring 2002 saw the launch of new television advertising. The two 30 second documentary-style advertisements follow a son's futile attempts to curb his father's addiction to the irresistible smell of sizzling Danish bacon.

In one, the father deliberately deceives his son by announcing that he is going out for a walk. "…a Danish bacon walk…" he mutters to himself, diving into a grocery store, where he proceeds to fill up his shopping trolley with piles of frying pans and packs of bacon. In the second, we see the son tracking his father down to a hospital, just in time to catch a nurse unveiling his father's nose extension, to enable him to derive even more pleasure from the aroma of Danish bacon. Each advertisement ends with the thought "You can't resist the smell of Danish "

Bacon addicts

Bacon for brains!
October 2001

Irresistible Aromas
June 2001

June 2001 saw a consumer press campaign focusing on the "Irresistible Aroma" theme. The ads were based on premise that the smell of Danish bacon is so irresistible that people are choosing to scent their environment with the aroma of cooking bacon rather than with the usual air freshener fragrances. The press ads were supported by a PR campaign targeting regional radio stations. Research commissioned by Danish bacon investigated the nation's favourite and most hated smells. Unsurprisingly, bacon proved to the most popular food smell, followed by roast dinner and fish and chips.

"The perfect fragrance - Danish Bacon"

Danish Bacon piggy backs Denmark Euro vote
October 2000

The Danish Bacon & Meat Council used the publicity surrounding Denmark's referendum on the Euro in October 2000 to run a high profile advertising campaign in the national press. Tongue-in-cheek ads, featuring a ballot box with the posting slot cut in the shape of a rasher of bacon, appeared in the national press following the referendum's 'No' result. The ad strap line read: "There's one thing the Danes will always vote for".

"There's one thing the Danes will always vote for"

"Horror Ads"
June 1999

The June 1999 campaign capitalised on well-known horror sequences such as The Shining

In one ad viewers see the head of the axe crashing through the door as the sound and smell of bacon rashers sizzling in a pan sends a demonic protagonist spiralling towards the brink of insanity. As an arm reaches through the broken panel for the doorknob the empathy from the audience reaches is denouement: "You can't resist the smell of Danish".

In the other, the head of a young girl, lying in bed, is turned completely through 180 degrees by the irresistible smell of sizzling bacon.

The effect intended is one of bizarre, over the top comedy rather than trying to directly reproduce the horror of the original films. However, in order to avoid nightmares before bedtime Danish has produced two versions of the TV advertisements, a pre-9pm and post-9pm version, for the young and faint hearted and die-hard Bacon fans alike!

Horror Ad

Danish bacon streaks ahead at the London Marathon
April 1999

In April 1999 DBMC ran a promotion during the London Marathon, which won `Media stunt of the Week' in UK publication, Media Week.

Posters and sandwich boards were strategically placed just a mile from the start of the London Marathon urging runners to take a diversion to Ken's café in Charlton Road and tuck into a bacon sandwich. Anyone who bought a cup of tea got a free bacon sandwich and a donation was made to the marathon's charity - the Foundation for Children with Leukaemia.

Marathon advert

Vegetarian bacon-eaters!
March 1998

This multimedia campaign (TV, Press and Poster) was based on the Taylor Nelson Family Food Panel data which indicated that 50 per cent of people surveyed who claimed to be vegetarians are in fact `closet meat eaters' and 36 per cent admitted to eating bacon.

The humorous TV campaign showed vegetarians succumbing to the irresistible aroma of bacon wafting into the street from Flo's café.

In addition to the TV advertising, DBMC unveiled a poster with a difference on a prime site facing the Cromwell Road. The poster was a picture of some delicious rashers being grilled and just to illustrate how irresistible this is to vegetarians, the poster actively charted the effect of the cooking bacon on the passing traffic, with the number of vegetarians on the counter constantly falling!

Vegetarian advert