Calling all daddies: Kellogg Co. wants you, and it wants you bad.
Apparently, the largest cereal maker in the United States, Kellogg Co., is struggling, and is setting its eyes on fathers for a boost in sales.
Per Bloomberg, the company is rolling out a new campaign for Frosted Flakes, pitching a new animatronic Tony the Tiger to trigger cereal-related nostalgia in fathers across the nation.
Developed with help from Jim Henson’s Creature Shop, the new life-size Tony is able to engage in conversation, and requires a three-person team to operate; it made its debut on September 15 in New York, and is slated to be the head of a new social media marketing campaign to make Frosted Flakes great again.
Christie Crouch, the associate marketing director for Frosted Flakes, told Bloomberg that the company is also trying to appeal to younger customers, by updating the classic “They’re GR-R-REAT” slogan with a 2016-bent. Now, tweens are encouraged to tweet about their love of the cereal with the hashtag “#LetYourGreatOut.”
“He hasn’t been quite as present in tween culture,” Crouch told Bloomberg. “That’s contributed to tweens being less aware of Tony over time.”
“We know that dad and tweens have a lot of influence on what makes it onto mom’s shopping list,” Crouch added. “When they love a brand, they make that request.”
Of course, this kind of targeted marketing is toward a very specific family dynamic; namely, heterosexual relationships in which the woman is expected to do the shopping, and then man expected to dictate what goes on that grocery list.
Do YOU think Kellogg’s marketing idea is a good one? Sound off in the comments below.