General Mills Goes All Digital to Promote New "Tiny Toast" Brand
By Larissa Faw
This summer General Mills is introducing Tiny Toast its first all new cereal brand in 15 years with the "Humans Can't Resist" campaign.
Developed with agency Walrus, the "quirky, admittedly weird and fresh approach" is designed to specifically appeal to a young adult audience in today's digital world.
The campaign (which includes these spots: "Seagull," "Sheep," and "Birds") is 100% mobile and supported by digital, social and streaming radio, according to the agency.
The concept centers around the insight that every animal has a food it can't resist – a food that will make it run faster, wade into danger, do silly tricks and lose all volition. For horses it's carrots, for dolphins it's fish, for mice it's cheese, and for humans, it's Tiny Toast.
The ads run across youth-oriented channels via a "you gotta see this"-type activation for Snapchat, YouTube, Tumblr and Instagram. Fans are also encouraged to follow the brand across social media using @TinyToastCereal.
This youth-focused non-traditional campaign is designed to resonate with the cereal's target buyer. "It's a very whimsical product, very whimsical name, whimsical marketing and it fits the niche for teens and we think it's a good cereal for teens," said General Mills' Ken Powell during a call with investors.
Moreover, this heavy digital presence illustrates General Mills' new strategy in effectively using its budget to connect with the right consumer. After years of spending nearly a billion dollars on print inserts and TV ads, General Mills spent $823 million on advertising during fiscal 2015 with a new focus on allocating more money to digital media. In fiscal 2016, 25% of its money will go to digital and 73% to TV, compared to fiscal 2015 where 18% of its budget went to digital and 79% to TV.
A few long-held marketing tactics, however, are still being utilized. This campaign is supported with in-store signage, "optimized" shelf placement, and price discounts to drive sales.
Source
"General Mills Goes All Digital to Promote New 'Tiny Toast' Brand." MediaPost, 7/8/16.