Cinco de Mayo usually welcomes revelers for one of the prime party days in America. Spring has sprung, the weather is warmer and there’s not much to dislike about Mexican food or margaritas. The day not only brings business to many bars and restaurants across America, but for many adjacent brands as well.
This year, brands pivoted to encourage activities and engagement for Cinco de Mayo—at home—complete with appropriate hashtags for easy sharing. Taco Bell, Avocados from Mexico and Bacardi’s Patrón all debuted original campaigns for revelers to celebrate, even in quarantine.
Taco Bell, known for experiential marketing campaigns like “The Bell,” a Taco Bell-themed hotel and resort and “Steal A Base, Steal A Taco” during the World Series, continues to win new customers and curious onlookers. For Cinco de Mayo Taco Bell launched the At Home Taco Bar, available for delivery and drive-thru pickup, which includes all the fixings and recipes for a virtual get-together or home gathering.
"Our food has always been a catalyst of bringing people together, and we're finding new ways to do this from a safe distance until we can all be together again," said Melissa Friebe, senior vice president of brand marketing and consumer insights at Taco Bell in a press release. Fans can share their experience on social with the hashtag #TacoBellCreations.
And who can enjoy tacos without some guacamole? Avocados from Mexico launched #HomemadeCinco which includes a digital platform with access to innovative recipes for the holiday, including a digital wheel that randomly selects an ingredient to add to homemade guacamole. Home chefs can enter the chance to win cash prizes by sharing photos of their creations with hashtags #HomemadeCinco and #Guacamole.
Have you checked out our #HomemadeCinco guac generator yet? Find your new favorite #guacamole recipe here: https://t.co/c0BBK6cujf 🥑👯♀️
— Avocados From Mexico (@AvosFromMexico) April 29, 2020
Fans of Mexican food will, of course, need something to wash it all down. A margarita perhaps? The spirit Patrón may not be able to promote its liquor in-person with revelers this year, so it is inviting users to its virtual bar on Instagram Stories, hosting bartenders from across the country to show their best margarita-making skills.
We may not be going out to celebrate Cinco, so we are going all in. Use #CincoSimply to show us how you’re preparing for your celebration. https://t.co/gm2PwT8out pic.twitter.com/vx3Bg9PgHh
— Patrón Tequila (@Patron) May 2, 2020
Patron’s event encourages not only community, but support of those within the service industry. Since mid-April the company has hired many out-of-work bartenders from across the country to virtually display their skills and talk shop with followers.
Adrian Parker, VP of marketing at Patrón told Marketing Dive about the role Cinco de Mayo will play in supporting its partners.
"Our first response is, how do we support our bartenders, our trade partners and their families to make sure they have relief to get through, but also have jobs to come back to?" Parker said. "Thanks to Cinco we can empower bartenders across the country to work their craft to make a meaningful income and inspire consumers to do the same."