Kellogg Takes Bolder Tack in Launch Effort

Kellogg's resolve to encourage boldness and innovation in its advertising gets a new test this week in J. Walter Thompson's $10-20 million launch of Raisin Bran Crunch cereal.
Two TV spots are targeted at 18-25-year-old breakfast skippers, not a demo traditionally of interest to the Battle Creek, Mich., giant.
One spot shows a trio of goateed slackers waking to an alarm clock in the wee hours of the morning. Without a word, they gather at the breakfast table and eat Raisin Bran Crunch before going right back to bed. The tagline: "Breakfast is back."
In a second spot, a milkman is propositioned by an unattractive woman. When he spies a box of Raisin Bran Crunch on the table, he accepts her offer. The strategy: the cereal is so good, people go to extremes to get it.
"I told all our agencies to make me nervous," said Fred Jaques, executive vice president and general manager of U.S. cereals at Kellogg.
"Kellogg's has been incredibly supportive. They told us to be truthful and not change things to satisfy them," said John Clinton, chairman of JWT Canada, who oversaw the New York office's efforts.
Beset by competition, Kellogg last year challenged its shops to provide more creative firepower and added The Martin Agency, Richmond, Va., to its roster. It joins JWT and Chicago shops Leo Burnett and Burrell Communications.
Kellogg's share of the $7 billion U.S. ready-to-eat cereal business has fallen to about 30 percent, around 10 points lower than a decade ago.