As the population of tweens (ages 8 – 12) in America increases, so does their appetite for bigger and better things.  In an effort to take a bite out of the snack market and to help satisfy tweens’ craving for a bigger snacking experience, Kellogg Company, with Porter Novelli, introduced Kellogg’s® Snack’Ums.  Utilizing a high-impact, multi-disciplined media relations campaign, which included direct-to-tween outreach, celebrity alignment and online visibility, the Snack’Ums launch hit the bullseye.  More than 79 million consumer impressions were garnered including national media coverage in super-popular tween outlets, including: Teen, Jump, Girls’ Life, J-14, React.com and Teen People Online.  In addition, coverage on The Rosie O’Donnell Show (5 times) and The Tonight Show (2 times) suggested that Snack’Ums’ popularity had bridged the generation gap.

OPPORTUNITY 

  • To create that ever-powerful “tween push, mom approves” purchasing dynamic
  • Monetary size of snack business
  • Opportunity to offer a wholesome alternative

RESEARCH

According to a recent MCA Snack Study, kids (6-12) have the highest per capita sweet snack eating habits.  Tweens alone influence nearly $250 billion in purchases by their parents and, according to a Channel One Influence Study, they directly influence 41 percent of all sweet snack purchases while indirectly affecting 36 percent of those items bought.

Kellogg also found in an independent Omnibus poll that girls snack once or twice a week more than boys and boys eat more sweet snacks than girls.

In purchasing products, tweens look for lifestyle relevance, a sense of cool, free stuff and their own sense of discovery.  They rely heavily on media, friends, celebrities and music to influence their purchasing power.

All of this research on teen/tween trends was used to craft a public relations campaign that was speaking directly to this powerhouse market.

OBJECTIVES

Generate awareness of Kellogg’s Snack’Ums among tweens (primary audience)

Generate awareness and “approval” of Kellogg’s Snack’Ums among moms (secondary audience)

STRATEGIC APPROACH

Let tweens “discover” Snack’Ums by influencing their information resources (media, celebrities, Internet, etc.).  Use reverse “media” psychology by gaining mom’s approval by customizing Snack’Ums messages to her media mediums.

CAMPAIGN EXECUTION

Outreach to Long-lead and Trade Media (Timing: November – December 1999) 

Deskside Briefings: Omnibus survey results on snacking and tweens were unveiled to tween media at scheduled deskside briefings.  Thirteen deskside briefings were conducted to reach three key audiences – tweens, moms and marketing trades.  Publications included: Teen, YM, Seventeen, Jump, Working Mother, Parents, Discount Merchandiser and Supermarket News.  Editors were given Snack’Ums “snack attack” packages consisting of product samples, a branded snack table, mouse pad and a Snack’Ums press kit containing a press release, product photo and a “Top 10 Things To Do With Snack’Ums” list and survey results. 

Editorial Giveaways : Capitalizing on today’s coolest trends among tweens, Kellogg created “Snack Packs” - complete with three Snack’Ums flavors, a branded mouse pad, tie-dyed T-shirt and a funky feather pen, all packaged inside a branded inflatable backpack.  Six Snack’Ums editorial promotions were custom developed with teen/tween magazines and online publications including Teen, American Cheerleader, Jump, Girls’ Life, J-14 and React.com, offering more than 150 Snack Packs to tweens.  These offers appeared in publications simultaneously as the product was launching.

Generating Buzz Among Tweens Tween Influencers (Timing: December - March) 

Very Important Snackers Deliveries: Kellogg targeted teen/tween influencers by conducting Snack’Ums deliveries to 75 Very Important Snackers (VIS).  As a result, positive feedback in the form of letters, phone calls and unsolicited endorsements were received from many VIS, including NBA star Kobe Bryant, singers Jessica Simpson and Mariah Carey, and Nickelodeon actress Amanda Bynes.  A few VIS (i.e. Minnie Driver) appeared on The Rosie O’Donnell Show and touted Snack’Ums.

MTV’s “Total Request Live” Sampling: Kellogg brought Snack’Ums to the street by distributing Snack’Ums and inflatable Snack’Ums canisters to the more than 300 tween fans outside of the window of one of their favorite shows, MTV’s TRL (Total Request Live).  

Snack’Ums Outreaches to the Media and Moms (Timing: January- March)

Outreach to Short-lead Media: Continuing the buzz, PNNY announced the new product news to the media by distributing press kits to kids’, food and new product editors at the top 300 daily newspapers and to top TV and radio outlets and wire services across the nation.  Placements were secured in more than 60 media outlets in top markets, including New York, Dallas, San Francisco, Atlanta, Denver, Phoenix and Minneapolis.

Rosie “SuperKid” Sponsorship: Snack’Ums sponsored a “SuperKid” on The Rosie O’Donnell Show to reach moms (secondary audience).  “SuperKids” are heroes who have achieved something, overcome a hardship and/or who have demonstrated strong morals and great character in the process.  Product samples were given to the 250-person audience of the show, as were Snack’Ums necklaces made out of Big Rollin’ Froot Loops and Big Boomin’ Pops.  Rosie loved Snack’Ums so much that she and her guests ate them on-air on four additional occasions.  

RESULTS
The Kellogg’s Snack’Ums five-month-long program generated 79,223,027 consumer impressions with 86 print stories, 7 national and 6 local broadcast stories and 7 online stories in top markets including New York, Dallas, San Francisco, Atlanta, Denver, Phoenix, Minneapolis; and national media coverage on The Rosie O’Donnell Show (5X), The Tonight Show (2X), Playboy.com, True Story and in tween magazines (online and off-line), Teen, Jump, Girls’ Life, American Cheerleader, J-14, Teen People Online and React.com.  The cost to the brand was $.003 per impression.