How to make your competition look boring AF 🍅
Ketchup smoothies. Vodka pasta sauce. Welcome to "WTF marketing"
Hey there 👋
Sam here with your Friday Quick Growth Idea.
Today we're stealing from Heinz's “WTF Marketing” playbook.
While competitors play it safe, Heinz asks: "What would break the internet?"
Heinz just dropped a ketchup smoothie. Yes, you read that right.
Heinz Simply Ketchup blended with strawberries, raspberries, acai sorbet, and apple juice is being served at Smoothie King locations across five US cities.
The internet's reaction?
Exactly what Heinz wanted. Confusion, disgust, curiosity, and most importantly... conversation.
Most freelancers and solopreneurs hide behind "professional" branding, terrified of standing out.
Heinz shows us a different way: strategic weirdness is winning in 2025.
Here's how to steal their “WTF Marketing” playbook as a Quick Growth Idea.
🎯 Find Your Industry's Debate
While everyone knows the age-old question “is a tomato a fruit or a vegetable?” the internet has been asking, “if tomatoes are a fruit, is ketchup a smoothie?”
Every industry has these ridiculous debates simmering in Facebook groups, LinkedIn comment sections, and Twitter threads.
Your audience is already arguing about them.
You just need to pick a side and go nuclear.
Copywriter example:
Debate: "Is AI replacing copywriters?"
Your stance: "I only write with AI and beat human-only writers in conversions"
Result: Case studies showing AI-enhanced results
🤝 The "Impossible Partnership" Method
Heinz + Smoothie King sounds insane until it works. The key? Both brands benefit from the other's audience.
How can you apply this?
List your "opposite" industries (Spotify x Starbucks - tech meets coffee)
Find the connection (Both create experiences and set moods)
Create something together (Integrated playlists in stores - customers control music)
Another example:
Email marketer + Personal trainer: "Inbox Abs Challenge" - daily email workouts with marketing conversion tips (fitness for your body AND business)
🔥 Make It Ridiculous on Purpose
This isn't Heinz's first rodeo with ridiculous collaborations:
Absolut vodka pasta sauce (inspired by Gigi Hadid's viral recipe)
Barbie-cue pink vegan mayo for Barbie's 65th birthday
The Godfather pasta sauce with film-accurate ingredients
Notice the pattern? Each collaboration hijacks existing cultural moments, internet debates, or pop culture obsessions.
How can you apply this?
Monitor trending topics in your industry
Connect your service to the trend
Act fast before everyone else copies
Examples you could steal:
Olympics + Productivity expert: "Gold Medal Morning Routines" - studying athlete schedules.
ChatGPT hype + Any service: "How [your industry] professionals use AI" - position yourself as the AI expert.
📈 Your "WTF marketing" Action Plan
Find your debate fuel. Spend 30 mins scrolling through industry Twitter/LinkedIn posts. Screenshot every heated argument. Pick the spiciest one and choose your side publicly.
Build your "enemies list." List 10 businesses that look nothing like yours but serve your clients. Message 3 with one weird collab idea each.
Set up trend alerts. Use Google Alerts for "[your industry] + trending" and "[your niche] + viral." When something blows up, you've got 48 hours before it's old news.
Create your controversy content. Write one post that'll make half your audience love you and half hate you. The middle ground gets ignored.
Track your weird wins. Screenshot DMs, comments, and shares from your boldest content. Double down on what gets people talking.
Plan your partnership pitch. Draft a template: "I do [X] for [audience]. You do [Y] for the same audience. What if we created [weird thing] together?" Send it to a decision maker.
💡 Your Friday takeaway
The biggest risk in 2025 isn't being wrong. It's being boring.
Heinz could have launched "Premium Tomato Beverage" and sold dozens. Instead, they launched "Ketchup Smoothie" and generated millions in free publicity.
Remember: weird beats perfect, attention beats polish, and conversation beats silence.
Your audience is swamped in boring content.
Give them something to talk about by following this “WTF Marketing” playbook 🍅
See you next week 🚀
Sam
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