Here is a transcript of the brief recording, in its entirety:
"Gentlemen, Twinkies sales have been stagnate for ten years now. Something has to be done."
"What about Jim's idea?"
"You mean Chocolate Creme Twinkies? That was a disaster!"
"No, the other one. You know, Neapolitan Twinkies."
"Well, I admit that one's not bad, but we need to think outside the box! Gentlemen, Little Debbie's has been slowly creeping up on us with those Zebra Cakes of theirs, and it's time to get serious!"
"Uh, sir?"
"Huh? Speak up, son! What have you got?"
"Well, it seems to me the best way to get people to want something is to take it away from them."
"Hmm..."
Fake Bankruptcy?
NNA has an ongoing investigation into this situation. Could it be that Hostess Brands went bankrupt on purpose to create a new demand for their classic treats? If so, this could be the most ambitious and daring marketing ploy in history, putting them just ahead of Coca Cola's infamous New Coke ploy, which dramatically boosted the sales of the so-called Coke Classic in 1985.
We contacted Apollo Global Management, the company that recently acquired the rights to Twinkies, to see if they were aware of the recording. We reached company spokesperson, Bob Smith, who apparently hasn't been with the company long, as we couldn't find him listed on their web site. Bob told us that Apollo Global is a legitimate company with real products and real employees. He also informed us that their home office is not located in Nigeria.
Frustrated with that dead end, we decided to visit McKee Foods Corporation, the makers of Little Debbie products. We played the recording for their CEO, Olympus Dionysus McKee, who told us we were obviously "on to something" and offered his support in the investigation. We let him examine the flash drive and he suggested we make copies of the file in case something were to happen to the original. We now fully understand the need for such protocol, as Mr. McKee accidentally dropped the flash drive into his paper shredder. We assured him we'd pay for a new shredder.
Send Another Copy
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3XUBNLIEGDI
NNA hopes that whoever sent the original flash drive will read this article and send a replacement as soon as possible.
http://jonnicholas.hubpages.com/hub/Hostess-Twinkies-Greatest-Marketing-Strategy-Ever
