• by Les Luchter , February 18, 2022

Go figure. After a period when participatory events were rare due to fear of catching COVID, Reckitt's Mucinex is asking people in three major markets to conduct scavenger hunts designed to educate them about alleviating cold and flu symptoms. They’ll also get a chance to win trips to Los Angeles and VIP concert tickets.

To be sure, Reckitt’s announcement of the promotion takes pains to point out that participants should “educate themselves on the benefits of vaccines and get vaccinated when possible” and to “encourage all participants to practice good hygiene, social distance when possible, and wear proper face masks.”

Then again, if scavengers do somehow come down with such symptoms as sore throats, aches and pain, nasal and chest congestion, fever, headaches or cough, why not take Reckitt’s one-dose Mucinex Fast Max Cold & Flu All in One for relief? The four year-old product is the object of the promotion.

Participants can learn all about four of those symptoms from Feb. 19 to Feb. 25 by finding “creative signs hidden in secret spots” at shopping malls in New York (Queens Center), Chicago (The Shops at North Bridge) and Los Angeles (Santa Monica Place).

Those who track down all four symptom signs via a process that includes QR codes and the free Scavify scavenger hunt app will be eligible to win two tickets to a concert of their choice at the iHeartRadio Theater in Los Angeles. One winner will be selected per market, with all three also getting a one-night hotel stay, two of them getting air transportation, and the L.A. recipient getting a $250 gift card for Uber or Lyft.

Promotional activities to get people hunting take on added significance, since Mucinex says it will also donate $5,000 to a nonprofit in the city that gets the most participants. Using resources from McCann New York and Legend PR, the campaigns in each market include paid social and influencer support, retailer support, earned media, and paid media support with iHeart Radio. 

Cough and cold remedies in general continue to show strong sales strength, according to a recent analysis by the Catalina Marketing’s Buyer Intelligence Database, which found sales up 61.8% YOY during a two-month period in September and October --  due to more people seeking treatments to deal with a resurgent cough, cold and flu season versus a milder season in 2020, when people were relatively sequestered.  Mucinex was the top brand in the category, with sales up a whopping 94% over the previous year.