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Borrow a high-frequency ritual your audience already values, reframe your product as native to it, and time promotion to when they plan.
Hellmann's partnered with the NBA to reach new customers by embedding mayonnaise into the cultural frame of game-night eating, according to Unilever. The collaboration positioned the condiment not as a sandwich staple but as a dip and recipe ingredient tied to watching basketball. Unilever reported the partnership delivered new fans and measurable brand growth, converting sports viewership into grocery basket expansion.
The mechanics were straightforward. Hellmann's ran co-branded content, in-stadium activation, and retail promotion timed to NBA playoff windows. The brand created recipe content—wings, loaded fries, dip platters—that matched the snacking cadence of live sports. Distribution followed: point-of-sale displays in grocery chains linked Hellmann's to NBA imagery during high-traffic shopping weeks. The brand treated the NBA logo as social proof that mayonnaise belonged in the game-night repertoire, not just the lunch rotation.
The mechanism is borrowed occasion. Hellmann's did not invent a new use case. It borrowed the existing, high-frequency ritual of sports viewing and inserted itself into the purchase decision that precedes it. Basketball fans already plan around the game. Hellmann's gave them permission to add mayo to that plan by framing it as part of the experience. The partnership worked because the NBA carries built-in engagement: fans show up, spend time, and share the moment. Hellmann's piggybacked on that energy without having to generate it from scratch. The result was new household penetration—customers who previously bought other condiments or none at all now added Hellmann's to the basket because it was contextually relevant to an activity they already valued.
A small physical-product brand can run the same play without a league deal. Start by identifying a recurring ritual your product can serve but does not currently own. A hot sauce brand targets podcast listeners who snack while consuming long-form content. A jerky brand aligns with road-trippers who plan snacks around drive time. The key is to pick a behavior with existing frequency and emotional investment, then position your product as native to that moment. Next, create content that demonstrates use within that ritual. Film recipe videos, usage scenarios, or testimonials that show your product in the context of the borrowed occasion. A candle brand targeting remote workers films a morning routine where lighting the candle signals focus time. A protein bar brand films a pre-gym ritual where the bar is the transition moment between work and workout. Distribute this content in the channels where your target audience already gathers: relevant subreddits, niche podcasts, email newsletters that serve the community around that ritual. Finally, run time-limited retail or DTC promotions that mirror the ritual's calendar. If the occasion is weekend hiking, launch the promo Thursday. If it's holiday baking, go live mid-November. The goal is to intersect intent with availability, making the purchase feel like preparation rather than impulse.
The broader pattern is that brands with modest budgets do not need to create demand. They need to redirect existing demand by recontextualizing the product within a moment people already plan around. Hellmann's did not make basketball fans hungry. It made them think of mayo when they were already thinking about game night.
Pick one recurring community ritual—gaming nights, book clubs, trail runs—and create content showing your product as the prep step before it starts.
For the operator
Map your product's current purchase triggers, identify adjacent high-frequency rituals your target already engages, and build activation calendar around those moments.
For the house
When sourcing for events or gifting, prioritize suppliers who can contextualize product use within your audience's existing routines rather than inventing new ones.
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