By Jimi Galvao
Image source: http://themarketingguy.wordpress.com/2008/03/27/new-diamond-shreddies-a-new-spin/?referer=sphere_related_content/
In January 2008, Post (Kraft Canada), the well-known cereal company, launched a quirky ad campaign centred on one of its core products: Shreddies. The bland and relatively tasteless whole wheat cereal was first introduced on the market over 60 years ago. Sold only in Canada, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom, Shreddies, even though enjoyed by consumers, had lost pizzazz in the public eye and company executives soon realized that it had been many years since any marketing attention had been directed its way (some 15 years ago to be exact, and with cartoon Shreddie-shaped mascots “Freddie” and “Eddie” singing a “Good, good, whole wheat Shreddies” jingle).
Toronto-based agency Ogilvy & Mather rose to the occasion with an expansive, and consequently, award-winning, marketing campaign hinged around a very simple concept: turning the square cereal on a 45 degree angle to give the questionable appearance of a “new Diamond” variety being created. The campaign included an array of communication tactics that involved print, billboard, television, and a new cereal box design. However, where the campaign truly picked up steam was on the Internet via social media.
A website, www.diamondshreddies.com, was developed, on which a video was launched in September 2008. The video features the “president” of Shreddies introducing a regular/diamond cereal box combo-pack. A unique teaser campaign was put together to promote the video, and press releases were sent, specifically targeted at bloggers and social media web portals.
The question of “Are they kidding or are they being serious?” quickly became viral and fodder for blog sites everywhere. When I did a Google search on Diamond Shreddies, 57 pages of results were generated, with the vast majority being blog postings or comments to blog postings. And then, of course, there was YouTube. Hollie Shaw writes in “Shredding the Cassies pays for O&M”:
As word-of-mouth grew consumers began enacting Shreddies stunts in online media. People made spoof videos and one individual held an eBay auction for a box of “last of the square Shreddies.” It sold for $36.
The Diamond Shreddies campaign continues on, although I think everyone knows by now that it is a joke. While I agree that the brilliance of the campaign can be attributed to the simplicity of the idea behind it, I feel that it was the use of social media that made it a success. The PR professionals involved recognized early on the importance of social media in communicating messages to large audience groups. Mangala D’sa, Senior Product Manager of Kraft Canada says, “We felt our customers had taken to the Internet, and this was the fastest way to reach them.”
Social media, whether we like it or not, is a major part of how the world communicates today. As such, the public relations industry cannot ignore the vast potential that this form of media holds in conveying and delivering messages. It is a powerful tool that will continue to be refined as new technologies are invented and implemented.
As for my vote on diamond versus square Shreddies, the jury is still out.
