FDBusiness.com

General Mills wanted to resonate better with young, diverse Lucky Charms consumers through its #LuckyToBe digital campaign which honored Pride month, its marketing manager says.

Last month the cereal giant launched its #LuckyToBe digital campaign to honor and celebrate lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) Pride month. The campaign featured the iconic multi-colored rainbow Lucky Charm marshmallow.

“This campaign seeks to reach our diverse younger adult audience in a way we know will resonate with them – by providing a dynamic platform for self-expression… Lucky To Be is an example of reaching our adult audience,” said Nicci Pannier, assistant marketing manager for Lucky Charms.

General Mills previously said 40% of its Lucky Charms consumers are adults. “We know these consumers want to be part of the story, not told it,” Pannier told BakeryandSnacks.com.

Celebrating and supporting diversity

The campaign was launched in honor of Pride month, Pannier said.

“We have always been supportive of diversity, and we wanted to provide an open, dynamic platform for self-expression…Acceptance and inclusion of diversity is in our DNA as a company and a brand.”

When asked why there was no direct reference to LGBT consumers, Pannier said the firm wanted to keep the appeal broader.

“The campaign is not for any one group of people, and we wanted to make our message transcend to all of our fans… We try to be inclusive to all audiences,” she said.

Tumblr was strategic

General Mills asked consumers to participate via Twitter using its #LuckyToBe hash tag and submit pictures and tweets on why they are lucky. It then posted selected tweets and pictures on a dedicated Tumblr page.

Pannier said the decision to use Tumblr as a social media platform was intentional. “We decided on  a Tumblr execution since we know our audience is there. We’re seeing millennials (younger adults) and this diverse, creative, artful and self-expressive group, really gravitate to this platform,” she said.

The campaign has led to over 11,000 online interactions so far with people submitting tweets and photos to the page.

Same-sex marriage support

The Lucky Charms campaign is not the first move from General Mills voicing its stance on issues surrounding lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender.

Last year, it outwardly opposed a proposal to ban same-sex marriage in the US state of Minnesota. The company’s vice president of global diversity and inclusion Ken Charles said that while General Mills doesn’t normally get involved on ballot measures, it values diversity and inclusion.

Previous pride celebration

Other food companies have also celebrated LGBT Pride with marketing campaigns.

Kraft Foods last year used its Oreo cookie brand to celebrate Gay Pride day. It uploaded a Facebook picture of an Oreo with a rainbow-colored filling with the tagline ‘June 25: Pride’ and adjoining comment ‘Proudly support love!’. The post generated over 150,000 likes and more than 20,000 comments by the afternoon of its upload.