Why This Canadian Pizza Chain Launched a Dedicated Dipping Sauce Roller
Did you know that Canada loves pizza dipping sauce? There are actual statistics to prove it. A recent survey by Pizza Pizza found that more than 70% of Canadians say dip is an important factor when deciding where to order pizza from, and 83% dip their entire slice.
While we’re not here to discuss whether we agree with this latter decision, it’s quite clear that across the country, a pizza experience isn’t complete without the addition of dipping sauce. So, to commemorate this fact, Pizza Pizza and creative agency Zulu Alpha Kilo teamed up together to design a miniature paint roller and tray, designed specifically for the application of dip on pizza.
Further expanding the brand’s ‘Everyone Deserves Pizza’ platform, this easy to wash, reusable tool allows everyone from crust-drunkers to full-coaters the chance to turn their pizza into delicious dippy art… provided they’re lucky enough to win one of these limited edition prizes.
LBB’s Josh Neufeldt sat down with the teams from Zulu Alpha Kilo (ZAK) and Pizza Pizza (PP) to discuss how this saucy idea and campaign came to life.
LBB> Creating a dip roller and tray is super fun! What was the brief?
PP> Since launching dipping sauces about 25 years ago, the way Canadians eat pizza has changed. And, with ‘Creamy Garlic’ being the favourite by a large margin, we wanted to develop a campaign that finally put dipping sauces in the limelight, and increase brand affinity. We knew there was an opportunity for us to innovate in this space again, but in an ownable way.
LBB> This campaign serves as a further continuation of the ideology that ‘Everyone Deserves Pizza’. What made dip lovers the perfect demographic to target, and how does this build the platform as a whole?
ZAK> With the popularity of dip, it quickly became apparent that dippers were the perfect demographic, and it was time to innovate again. While we completed research and social listening, it was evident that there were all sorts of unique dippers, as research showed that 95% of Canadians say they dip at least sometimes, while 83% of dippers dip the whole slice. The ‘Dip Roller’ celebrated all dip styles… even the ones that coat their entire slice (we don’t judge).
PP> The interesting part about this demographic is that it’s vast and all-encompassing. Since introducing dipping sauces to our menu way back when, it’s evident that most Canadians now dip, and that everyone has their unique style. This perfectly aligns with our brand belief that ‘Everyone Deserves Pizza’, as it’s all about inclusivity. Celebrating pizza lovers who cover their entire slice, just the crust, even double dippers – all are welcome!
LBB> Tell us more about this research process. How did it factor into the final creative, and were there any other key takeaways you haven’t yet mentioned?
ZAK> After conducting two research studies, we found that dipping sauces significantly impact Canadians' pizza restaurant choices. This led us to celebrate Canada’s love for dipping sauces during the creative development phase. As a leader in the pizza and dipping sauce category, we saw an opportunity to innovate and continue changing the game.
PP> Aside from the aforementioned social listening, there was research in the brief development stage, and even research while the campaign was live! It was surprisingly extensive, as it was important to further identify the impact of dipping sauces and how receptive Canadians were to the ‘Dip Roller’.
LBB> Let’s talk about the roller itself - what was the design process like behind this? How long did it take from start to finish?
ZAK> The design and manufacturing process was very unique, and took about four weeks. The goal was to create a paint roller and tray, but shrunk to a size that could be leveraged for dipping sauce. We partnered with a 3D printing manufacturing company that could produce the custom ‘Dip Roller’ using environmentally-friendly food-grade materials.
LBB> The accompanying spot is also super fun! What was the filming process like?
ZAK> The wonderful Zulubot team led the production, and Jim Norton was the director. The goal was to ensure that the pizza looked appetising and that the ‘Dip Roller’ worked well as this content was being leveraged across all channels.
Beyond that, the filming process was an absolute blast. Pizza Pizza was a great partner and supplied a space for us to capture content for the ‘Dip Roller’. During the shoot, we met the Pizza Pizza chef cooking all the pizzas and discovered he had worked for Pizza Pizza for over 30 years. Not only is he super passionate about his work, but he also trains all the new franchise owners in the kitchen. Thanks to this gentleman, the pizza looked great, and tasted even better!
LBB> The music is also great! How did this aspect come to life?
ZAK> We wanted a track that was grand, inspirational, and fun; after all, the ‘Dip Roller’ is a fun brand action. Once we watched the rough cut with the track, we knew it was perfect, and the feeling was unanimous.
LBB> What challenges have you faced during this project? How did you overcome them?
ZAK> During the prototyping phase, one of the challenges was developing a roller that would apply the dipping sauces evenly across the pizza. Since this product didn’t exist, and because it was so unique, we had to design it from scratch. So, we’d all jump on video calls to watch the producer complete live tests - rolling dip across several slices of pizza. As we progressed through different roller designs, initial prototypes weren’t working as desired. Thankfully, our manufacturing partners were very collaborative, and as we explored multiple prototypes, completed extensive testing, and ate lots of pizza, we consolidated comments and reviewed them to create the final product.
LBB> What lessons did you learn in the making of this campaign?
PP> We’ve learned that dipping pizza (particularly with ‘Creamy Garlic’) is a conversation Canadians were really excited about! By tapping into something people are passionate about (pizza, dipping and eating behaviours), we were able to create a lot of fun attention from something seemingly superfluous.
LBB> How have people reacted to this campaign? And how many rollers will you be giving away?
ZAK> Overall, the reception has been great. Since the launch of the campaign, there have been nearly 100,000 Canadians who’ve entered to win a ‘Dip Roller’. Over 150 Dip Rollers are currently available, and contestants will be notified in May if they’ve won.
PP> The reception has been absolutely amazing. We’ve been blown away by the level of interest and the fun banter we’re watching unfold that’s now in the zeitgeist. To date, we’ve received millions of positive impressions and solid engagement through earned media, influencers, and social commentary, not to mention an increase in dip demand. As a matter of fact, we’re actually looking into manufacturing more ‘Dip Rollers’ since the demand has well exceeded our expectations!
LBB> How does this campaign fit into Pizza Pizza’s branding for 2023, and how does it develop the ‘Everyone Deserves Pizza’ platform?
PP> Since launching ‘Everyone Deserves Pizza’ last year, we’ve been committed to demonstrating it in practice through a series of brand actions – from launching the first ever ‘Fixed-Rate Pizza’, to catering to singles on Valentine’s Day with free pizza. Showing we encourage people to dip any way they like is another tangible demonstration of our ‘Everyone Deserves Pizza’ motto, and we hope to continue to demonstrate it in new and exciting ways going forward!
LBB> Any dipping advice for the readers?
ZAK> We’ve tried the dip roller ourselves, and we must say, it’s perfect. Especially when paired with the best dip: ‘Creamy Garlic’.
Aside from that, dip is meant to be slathered on the whole pizza. After all, Canadians love the ‘Creamy Garlic’ sauce so much that Pizza Pizza even created a ‘Creamy Garlic Pizza’. Check it out!
PP> A hot tip we got from some gen zs is that there’s a new movement of dipping a cheese or pepperoni slice with our ‘Caramel Dip’. Something worth trying!
