• by Karlene Lukovitz  @KLmarketdaily, October 17, 2014

While it might not sound like a major breakthrough, according to General Mills, adding more cinnamon to Cinnamon Toast Crunch helped drive a 7% sales jump for the brand during the company's latest quarter, ended Aug. 24.

That reflected only a few weeks' impact. The reformulated cereal wasn't even fully rolled out on retail shelves until late July — after which the brand launched a full-blown marketing campaign timed to capitalize on both the jacked-up flavor and the brand's 30th anniversary.

One campaign component is two new 15-second TV spots that began running in early August and will continue to air through January. The ads, from McCann, feature the brand's "crazy squares" mascots (screen shot above). But don't be misled by the animation: They're running on adult programming on national networks and cable.

Launched in 1984, Cinnamon Toast Crunch is still the fifth top-selling U.S. cereal brand, with $313.75 million in sales in the 52-week period ending in August, according to IRI data. Adults account for roughly half of the brand's current customer base, and the new campaign aims both to re-woo young adults and capture the upcoming generation.

"Cinnamon Toast Crunch is not only a favorite among families, but also adults who grew up in the ’80s," associate marketing manager Elizabeth Crocker tells Marketing Daily. "We are seeing an uptick in interest from both Millennial consumers who enjoy the taste and fun, as well as older consumers who fondly remember it from their childhood."

The brand's updated flavor is one of many examples of General Mills' renewed strategic focus on innovation — backed by a new in-house "brand champions" program, and combined with operational streamlining. 

On one hand, the innovation includes major initiatives like Yoplait's belated jump into Greek yogurt and its now-expanding Greek 100 line, and a growing number of "better for you" snacks, including cookies and other extensions of its heavily marketed Fiber One brand. At the same time, with U.S. cereal category sales still in decline, the push includes efforts to rejuvenate General Mills's core cereal business, in part by tweaking old favorites. The company also rolled out a fruitier flavor for Trix over this past summer, and reported success last year with pumping up Cocoa Puffs' chocolate flavor.

The Cinnamon Toast Crunch campaign also includes sampling efforts conducted in workplaces and on the street, at live events — notably, a brand birthday brunch on Oct. 5, at an Austin, Tex., music festival — and through promotions on Twitter and other social and digital media. 

CTC — which last year was the most "liked" cereal brand, pulling the most Facebook likes in 27 states (its Facebook page currently shows a total of more than 1.3 million likes) — is also leveraging social and video to encourage using the cereal in recipes ranging from pies and milkshakes to chicken and pancakes.

The brand partnered with the Tastemade network/video content producer to recruit well-known chefs to create recipes and demonstrate how to make several videos, which launched in mid-September and are currently showing more than 550,000 views on YouTube. The recipes are also being featured on non-video sites like BettyCrocker.com.

In addition, mommy bloggers (such as 5MinutesforMom and NYCSingleMom) are spreading the word about the cereal's anniversary and improved flavor, the recipe videos and a promotion in which one entrant from each participating blog's audience will win a box of the cereal, Cinnamon Toast Crunch lip balm, and a $20 Visa gift card.