Knight
When I consider the glut of information clogging the 24/7 media world, I realize I could never pay attention to all the news even if I wanted to, which I don’t). I could spend all my waking hours immersed in minutiae about the ongoing, ever-changing dramas and disasters that befall our world, but this is not how I wish to spend my time. There are people who thrive on being up-to-the-moment, and I appreciate them for their service. It is good and necessary for our society that some are paying attention. I often go to them when I have questions about an issue.
This is not to say I ignore the news. Why, just the other day, my attention focused in on a short piece dealing with international business. According to CNN Business, the multinational enterprise Kellogg is splitting itself into three different companies: Kellogg’s North American cereal unit, which includes Raisin Bran and Rice Krispies; a snacking unit, including Cheez-Its and Pringles; and a new “pure-play, plant-based foods company,” including MorningStar Farms brands.
In my own self-interest, I probably should pay more attention to economic news. But I can’t seem to keep my eyes from glazing over when I read or hear someone going on about GDP expectations for 2Q, or year-over-year growth in a particular tech stock or a corporation’s shrinking market shares. Such concerns were not the reason I bothered to learn about the changes at Kellogg. No, When I read the name I thought back to Saturday mornings sitting cross-legged glued to the TV consuming both the soggy cereal in my bowl and the commercial jungle, “K-E-double-L-O-double-good, Kellogg’s best to you.” It struck me that the Kellogg corporation was one more element in the atmosphere of my childhood.
I was, we all were, developing brand loyalty as we watched Kellogg’s Tony the Tiger or Snap, Crackle and Pop pitch their tasty wares. And if the Kellogg spokescharacters didn’t appear during the particular cartoon show you tuned into, you change channels (by hand) and caught General Mills’ Lucky the Leprechaun or Post’s Sugar Bear, or Quaker Oats’ Cap’t Crunch sailing the seas selling cereal.
A study out of Cornell University’s Food and Brand Lab had evidence that eye-contact causes people to view others as more credible, competent and attentive. They also knew that brand characters can “create a strong aura of trust among children.” Researchers wondered if contact with the eyes of brand mascots on cereal boxes would create more positive attitudes toward the products.
They measured eye-levels of shoppers as they stood in front of the products on the supermarket aisles. According to the findings of the experiment, cereals marketed to adults tend to look straight into their eyes while those mascots marketed to children tend to gaze downward, putting them at eye-contact level with kids. The results seem to verify the assertion that brand mascots can influence shoppers in a positive way.
This experiment was not without its critics. Only 10 stores were used; the shelf height in different stores across the country likely are not the same; and the experiment measured only eye-contact with adults and inferred the same effects on children. Still, as a onetime kid myself, I know felt pretty positive around my cereal mascot friends. I even felt a little sorry for General Mill’s spokes rabbit who, in every commercial, was confronted with “Silly rabbit! Trix are for kids!” I know I wasn’t the only one who thought those cartoon kids were selfish. (I also wasn’t the only kid shoveling in excessive additives during those Saturday mornings. As an example, the original Trix, it is claimed, was composed of more than 46% sugar.)
Anyway, I assume Kellogg is making a smart business move by dividing itself up into three companies. I can only speculate, of course. I haven’t read all the latest market analyses. And I probably won’t.
Norman Knight, a retired Clark-Pleasant Middle School teacher, writes this weekly column for the Daily Journal. Send comments to [email protected].
