Bacon as Currency?

In a revolutionary new ad campaign, instead of spending millions on television commercials, Oscar Mayer is promoting its new Butcher Thick Cut bacon by sending actor Josh Sankey across the country with nothing but a truck full of bacon. No cash. No cards. Just bacon.

The idea behind the journey is to generate awareness and excitement about the product by using it as currency. “We think it's worth its weight in gold,” said Tom Bick, mastermind behind the so-named Great American Bacon Barter, and integrated marketing communications and advertising director at Oscar Mayer. Sankey will have no way of paying for any of his needs (food, gas, lodging, etc.) except by trading it for bacon.

The trip began this week and can be followed via its website or on twitter @BaconBarter. The site tracks everything Sankey has traded for and how much bacon it cost him. It also includes the current bacon exchange rate (a place to crash=15 bricks), and how much bacon he has left. So far, Sankey is down to 2,914 bricks of bacon and has acquired a first-aid kit, some Civil War artifacts, and several meals. Anyone interested in meeting up or making a trade can contact Sankey using Facebook, Twitter, or email. He will also use the website to post requests for specific items he needs.

This promotion comes as a response to the rise in popularity of higher-end bacon brands which are taking business away from mainstream ones like Oscar Mayer. “If we don't do something to put Oscar Mayer is its rightful place, then shame on us” said Bick, “we have to think beyond the traditional means we've used.”

Sankey started out in New York City and will travel through supposed bacon-loving cities like Charleston, WV; Louisville, KY; and Chicago, before reaching the final destination in Los Angeles. Throughout the journey Sankey will be completely dependent on the willingness of Americans to trade him stuff for bacon. And as the website states; “it's all to find out if America loves this bacon as much as money.”

Check out this video of Sankey 'meating' Wall Street trading guru Josh Brown for some bartering advice:

Visit baconbarter.com to see when the truck will be near you. “How much bacon will you get?” asks Sankey, “depends on what you got.”

More like this...