Caution: High Absurdity Levels. Verified Effective.
Casey's Case Study
Casey’s, the beloved Midwest gas station chain, approached Acadia with a major perception gap. Gen Z only knew Casey’s as a place to pump gas, not as the 5th largest pizza chain in the U.S.
To win with this audience, we needed to break through the noise, shift brand relevance, and make Casey’s pizza famous within Gen Z culture.
The catch? Gen Z has the shortest attention span of any generation and communicates through memes, chaos, and viral moments.
To win with this audience, Casey’s needed to completely shift perception.
We uncovered that Gen Z, raised on the internet and fluent in meme culture, gravitates toward absurdism and viral chaos.
They embrace the unexpected, the surreal, the intentionally chaotic. So instead of polished storytelling, we leaned all the way into content chaos: unpredictable, meme-fluent, culturally reactive content that felt native to the “scroll.”
We didn’t tell Gen Z that Casey’s pizza is craveable, affordable, and convenient; we showed it in wildly unexpected ways that traveled fast.
💡 Key Strategies
1. Lean Into Absurd Cravability
To show just how crave-worthy and convenient Casey’s really is, we highlighted the passion of real fans. Like dunking slices into car consoles filled with ranch. Messy? Yes. Unforgettable? Also yes.
2. Prove Quality in Unexpected Ways
We flew a Casey’s pizza from Iowa to NYC, home of pizza purists, to let New Yorkers judge for themselves. Spoiler: They approved.
3. Insert Casey’s Into Pop Culture Moments
Casey’s showed up where Gen Z already was: Wicked at the Oscars, Viral relationship trends, Midwest icons (including the Pope of the Midwest). We made sure Casey’s was always in the cultural stream, not waiting on the sidelines.
4. Build Influence Through Real Community
Beyond pizza lovers, we partnered with Midwest NIL college athletes and NFL Super Bowl champion (and hometown hero) Cooper DeJean, turning influencers into believers.
Casey’s has proved that social media can make a legacy brand famous among Gen Z, drive real sales, and redefine what it means to be a convenience store.
At peak during Casey’s 40th birthday pizza celebration, pizza sales doubled. Stores literally ran out of pizza.
Social didn’t just get Gen Z's attention. It made Casey’s pizza famous. And it sold a ton of it, too. 🍕🔥
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