• by Karlene Lukovitz  @KLmarketdaily, June 24, 2013

Kellogg's recently employed what it describes as the world’s first "Instashop." 

At marketing events in Stockholm, Sweden, the company let customers "buy" a box of Special K with a hashtagged Instagram photo. 

Consumers took a photo of the product and uploaded it to Instagram; hashtagged the photo with #nyaspecialk; and swapped the photo for a box of Special K at the promotion's "checkout."

The promotion was designed to drive awareness and sales of a new Special K formula, featuring more whole grains, being introduced in Scandinavia and other European markets. Special K is Sweden's best-selling cereal, according to Kellogg.

Kellogg has used other social media for similar promotions in other countries, with "overwhelmingly positive" results, according to the company.

In the U.K. and Canada, consumers have been given opportunities to swap a tweet for a Kellogg’s product. 

"Our Scandinavian target audience is more active on Instagram than on Twitter, so opening a pop-up store where Instagram photos are used as social currency seemed like a great fit for launching the new recipe for Special K," said Jan Hedegaard, nordic marketing director at Kellogg Company.

While Kellogg currently has no plans to extend the concept to the U.S., it's "always looking to reapply good ideas from around the world," a spokesperson told Marketing Daily.