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Finding the kid inside us all.
+13.5%
lift in national brand awareness
+375%
increase in advertising recall
+355%
return-on-advertising spend
+7% / +$73 million
growth in nationwide purchases
"WE FEEL STUCK."
These are the words of Ed Mizzell, the Luckie & Co. Chief Operating Officer heading up the McKee Foods account. He's the guy who has basically built the Little Debbie brand over the past 30+ years. As Ed describes it, the marketing, the positioning, and the advertising have become stale. The creative department, he feels, needs new inspiration and stronger guidance. Most of all, Ed explains, we need to get moving now, to capture the imagination of the next generation of Little Debbie consumers.
"Can you take the lead?" Ed asks me.
It's time to earn his trust.
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TAKING ON A REVITALIZED HOSTESS
To me, the marketing problem seems fairly straightforward: Hostess - Little Debbie's #1 rival - has emerged from bankruptcy with new capital, new leadership, and a new marketing program, Hostess has aggressively re-entered the retail space in force, with large-scale aisle-dominant displays, retailer incentives, and rapid new product launches.
Most brands might retreat from the core markets of such a well known competitor, but the folks at McKee are up for a fight. The question is: How can Little Debbie, a relative unknown in western and midwestern markets (strongholds for Hostess), connect with these consumers in a way that is stronger than the Hostess brand they grew up with?
That's where research comes in...
THE CORE OF THE BRAND: "THE TASTE YOU CRAVE"
A mentor once told me, "Sometimes, the best way to uncover insights is to stop looking for them...and just observe what's going on around you!"
The first time I witness the "crave" phenomenon, I am attending Little Debbie product testing groups as an observer. When the moderator presents the room with a platter of delicious packaged baked snacks...
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Participants Ooohhh Ahhhh, as eyes grow wide and smiles stretch across their faces.
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Several giggle as they hoard snack cakes, three deep, in front of them.
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Other participants struggle to answer the moderator's questions with swollen cheeks, their mouths stuffed full of chocolate and sweet creamy stuff.
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Some are even seen stashing extras in their pockets and purses for later.
​In fact, in virtually every discussion group - from blind product testing to concept discussions to advertising feedback - the reaction is always the same: When a platter of these sweet temptations is introduced, a room full of conservative and well behaved adults suddenly becomes an unhinged group of indulgent children.
It is a simple yet powerful insight: For adults, snack cakes are an immediate throwback to the fun, freedom, and abandon of childhood!
Now, this may sound like a "Duh"-level of simple...but that's what makes it so powerful. Again and again through cross-market research, we find that these emotions, experiences, and passions are deeply embedded in this consumer's history and personal narrative.
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A simpler time when life was far less burdened with responsibilities and disappointment.
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A time when you received a treat for a good grade...or a job well done.
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Special surprises from Mom in your childhood lunch box.
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Trading snack cakes in grade school lunchrooms.
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A time when meals were fun...and dessert was even funner!
Now, contrast that with today's adult menu. Sitting around a stuffy conference table at a team lunch, hoping that the deli at least included a stale cookie with your Cobb salad? Or worse, brown-bagging it at your desk? C-store pizza? A vending machine sandwich? Three-day-old Chinese takeout with a side of celery? No craving. No reward. No celebration. And certainly no fun!
If only your nine-year-old self could see you now...Ugh!
And THAT is the paradox we can leverage:
The tension between being the adults we have to be...versus being the kids we really want to be!
"THE KID IN YOU"
Just like the insight, the advertising campaign is simple and empathetic.
Developed by Luckie & Co. creatives Bob Harrison and Jason Martin: The adult version of us has forgotten the experience of the "crave"...and the little kid version of us suddenly shows up ("Hey...you are...me?") to remind us just how much we loved Little Debbie when we were young. And, in an immediate and overwhelming moment, we jet off to feed our craving!
Click on the images to watch the original TV/Video spots.
Consumers respond wildly to this campaign, as the work receives some of the highest test scores in Little Debbie / AmeriTest history. For our Hostess viewers, it doesn't really matter that Little Debbie wasn't the brand of their youth. Undeniably and authentically capturing their adult disappointments and their childhood memories...and connecting with those feelings...proves much more important.
Instantly, Little Debbie becomes "the brand that gets me!"
And consumers reward us with their business:
PERFORMANCE
By the end of the campaign...
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Brand recognition grows an additional +13.5%.
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​Recall of Little Debbie advertising increases a full +375%.
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​Without having to suffer the high cost of a point-of-sale war with Hostess - and with a return-on-advertising rate of 355% - we drive an increase in brand purchases of more than +7% for the period (somewhere in the neighborhood of +$73 million).
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