Hut Crew - Influencer Network

2022

Pizza Hut challenged RQ to help build a TikTok strategy that resonated with Gen Z and drove brand awareness and affinity.

To reach Gen Z —the most diverse generation in the country— and get them to love Pizza Hut, we built The Hut Crew. We identified, engaged, and nurtured our diverse group of TikTok creators across the year, using them for multiple paid and organic opportunities.

As digital natives, Gen Z overwhelmingly prefers to consume content in multiple short-form videos than other mediums. Skeptical of corporate advertisements, they prefer content that showcases authenticity and comes from a trusted source, like a creator, influencer or friend. That’s why we worked with TikTok to build The Hut Crew – a group of diverse creators who love Pizza and personify Pissa Hut’s values. We started with ten creators with their own unique style and niche followings, to create TikTok content on their channels and on Pizza Hut’s owned channel, to drive brand love. We challenged them with an open brief: create content that is true to you. The only requirement is that Pizza Hut is included in some way. Then, we watched the magic unfold. Over the course of the year, we continued to search for creators that met our criteria and added them to Pizza Hut’s growing Hut Crew. We nurtured these relationships (i.e. sending them Pizza Hut swag, hosting birthday parties, etc.) and taped the Hut Crew for brand campaigns, product launch announcements, cultural events and more. The “Hut Crew” has become an important piece of all marketing efforts in 2022.