A recent production slip-up at Hema (盒马, known as Fresh Hippo) has made the brand a target for its rivals viral-marketing sharp-shots. It began with a range of strawberry cakes that were ‘salty to the point of bitterness.’ Hema’s salty cake slip-up, it turns out, were down to a slip-up on the production line where sugar was swapped for salt.
- #盒马承认生产草莓蛋糕出问题# (lit. Hema admits production issue with strawberry cake) had hit no.1 on Weibo’s hot search list
Hema responded to the complaints with apologies, refunds and recalls. But the cat was out the bag. News of the salty strawberry cake was generating traction on social media. Rivals were circling.
Before long, the hashtag #盒马承认生产草莓蛋糕出问题# (lit. Hema admits production issue with strawberry cake) had hit no.1 on Weibo’s hot search list and related posts were clocking thousands of likes.
In the process, complaint turned meme. What began as a rapid containment plan had become a viral moment. But it wasn’t Hema’s alone. Rival brands got involved. On supermarket shelves at Walmart, Metro and Aldi, strawberry cakes began to appear alongside promises of sweetness.
Aldi posted a picture of their own strawberry cake with the line ‘we guarantee only sweetness’ (我们保证只甜), generating engagement for their own products. The move wasn’t a potshot at a vulnerable rival so much as it was a chance to jump on board with the viral moment.
Aldi, Metro and Walmart used the moment to demonstrate cultural fluency – a savvy play for free attention. For Hema, the virality worked like a pressure valve. It allowed them to take a we-all-make-mistakes-type attitude. In a world dominated by social media, crises no longer play out as simply as screw up, make a statement. Social media means your mistakes carry fast, but it can also be a way to connect with customers on a human level, which as Hema’s salty cake slip-up shows, is the best way to solve a slip-up.
