IKEA, a well-known Swedish furniture retailer, has used 3D printing technology to promote its latest recruitment campaign, which aims to fill key technical positions in the Netherlands, Sweden, Germany and Switzerland.
IKEA's latest "Taste the Future" campaign invites candidates to participate in a unique job interview and taste a plate of plant-based 3D printed Swedish meatballs, with the aim of appealing to a diverse range of digital professionals.
△ IKEA's plant-based 3D printed Swedish meatballs, the picture comes from IKEA
IKEA also announced plans to offer 50 percent plant-based meals in all of their restaurants by 2025. It remains to be seen, though, whether 3D-printed meatballs will be on your local IKEA menu anytime soon.
Pascal Pauwels, IKEA Group Chief Information Officer, said: "IKEA is at the beginning of a journey to embrace data and technology to become more affordable, convenient and sustainable in an omni-channel environment where those with the imagination will play an important role in exploration. So we are looking for people who want to work together to create a better everyday life, and this event is a good opportunity to start a conversation."
3D printed meatballs
IKEA's Swedish meatballs are a signature of their company's delicacy, and coupled with their reputation for 3D printing, there's a certain appeal to those less familiar with the technology that will undoubtedly interest candidates.
IKEA's recruitment campaign hopes to attract a variety of technical talent to fill the 150 positions offered across Europe. These 3D printed meatballs will be offered to selected candidates as part of IKEA's normal application and interview process.
Karen Rivoire, head of employer branding at IKEA, said: "We are looking for down-to-earth data scientists, architects of the future, web guardians, engineers and common sense creators who want to create a better everyday life for the less affluent majority."
△ 3D printed meatballs are part of IKEA's latest recruiting campaign, photo via IKEA
Speaking of the meatballs themselves, it was produced by a 3D food printer and reproduced the texture, taste and appearance of the original meatballs, but without the meat. This plant-based alternative was born out of IKEA's experimentation with new technology to make meatballs more sustainable.
Ikea is vague about the food 3D printing technology involved in making the meatballs, and it's unclear whether it leverages third-party technology and hardware or developed the technology in-house. It is considered more likely that third-party technology is used.
IKEA already offers plant-based meatballs and traditional meatballs in restaurants, and has committed to offering 50 percent of plant-based main meals in its stores by 2025. Still, the company says it has no current plans to put 3D-printed meatballs on restaurant menus.
△ IKEA hopes that vegetarian 3D printing will attract the interest of a new generation of scientific and technological talents. The picture comes from IKEA
It's clear, at least for now, that 3D-printed meatballs are just a marketing gimmick for IKEA to attract the next generation of data and tech talent by getting eyeballs on this marketing campaign. What's more interesting, however, is that 3D printing technology is also booming, with mainstream brands using the technology as a hook at such events.
The starring role of 3D printing in marketing campaigns
Examples of additive manufacturing as a new or revolutionary technology being used for marketing purposes abound, including a recent advertising video by the British Heart Foundation. The foundation is funding the development of 3D-printed hearts to save children's lives, and the technology may be one of those mentioned at the recent "This Is Science" campaign, which called for donations to "turn sci-fi into reality" ".
Of course, the caveat for this event is that 3D printing a real heart is still a long way off. Currently, the deployment of 3D printing in this field is largely limited to patient models and tissue engineering studies.
△British Heart Foundation advertisement on the London Underground, photo by Michael Petch
Interestingly, behind the wave of 3D printing hype in 2013-2014, brands like Coca-Cola, Carolina Herrera, Louis Vuitton, Macy's, Netflix, Nike, and others adopted 3D printing in some ways as part of their omnichannel marketing strategies. The Ekocycle 3D printer, developed by Coca-Cola in 2014 in partnership with 3D Systems and musician Will.i.am, is a prime example, and 3D printers were added to Macy's back-office stores in 2015 as the retailer tries to attract The new millennial consumer demographic.
Armani used Massivit 3D printing technology to produce a pair of shoes with 3D structure on a large outdoor billboard and installed it in the billboard, combining 2D printing and 3D printing to form a better advertising effect.
Does 3D printing appear in an ad campaign a sign that another wave of hype is about to break out?