The Proof is in the Fit of the Jeans

Can your cereal box do Jumping Jacks?

Can your cereal box do Jumping Jacks? Not even Kellogg’s can say yes to that, though 20 million boxes of its Special K cereal suddenly became more animated.

How so? Shoppers can swipe their smartphones over a Microsoft Tag 2D barcode that launches a video showing a Lucky Magazineeditor speaking about finding jeans that flatter. This partnership with the fashion-and-shopping title adds a new dimension to the Special K Challenge weight-loss initiative featuring a ‘Jeans Don’t Lie’ message. What better proof of weight satisfaction than a smiling woman in jeans that look great on her?

The Lempert Report applauds this concept of marrying print with video and combining complementary messages that enhance this holistic approach to food. In our view, this is a brilliant application that ties to the brand essence of Special K.  

Go back five years and our sister newsletter XR23 reported on IconNicholson’s RFID hotspot in a retail store that launched videos upon the swipe of an RFID tag on DVDs and clothing. “Most exciting,” said editor Phil Lempert at the time, would be the ability in coming years “to combine print advertising with full-motion video in-store.”  With the Special K-Lucky effort, which began reaching retail shelves this month, that day is essentially here. 

This is an engaging way to involve and motivate shoppers who aspire to become skinnier with the help of a cereal brand – not just any cereal brand, but one that understands the proof is in the mirror and has enlisted the authority of a fashion shopping magazine to help them meet their personal goal.