CPG Brand Madness Tournament: Who Will Make the Sweet 16?

With Round 2 of the CPG Brand Madness Tournament underway, we await the potential (Sweet) 16 brands. As the risk of getting booted out increases, there has already been mercy rule wins and various upsets. Some divisions had clear winners, while others had toss ups in which Facebook fan count played a very critical role. Most of the early picks are performing as expected. Oreo (Chips Ahoy! didn’t stand a chance) and Mr. Clean are crushing each of their matchups so far thanks to their incredibly influential squads.

As mentioned, Facebook fan count did play a huge role when the survey counts were neck & neck. However, that is where the underdogs rose for the upset. Though DiGiorno & Annie’s have a  similar fan count, DiGiorno’s total engagements and influencer index are significantly better than Annie’s. Out of nowhere, Annie’s fans came together and destroyed DiGiorno in the first round, pairing Annie’s with Lean Cuisine. Dollar Shave Club was pinned against power house Gillette right out of the gate. While their initial metrics go back and forth, Dollar Shave Club came out with 4x the votes over Gillette. This is why we play.

Just like in basketball, this tournament has us at the edge of our seats. Given their surprising starts in the tournament, we think that these are the brands to watch: Pop-tarts, Dollar Shave Club, IAMS, and Annie’s.

The competition is only getting more intense. As we march through Round 2, these CPG brands need your help to advance to the Sweet 16!