At the THINKING Blog, they share their thoughts on the revival of Hydrox, which if you didn't know what a Hydrox was, could be a hybrid automobile, a new wonder drug, or a refreshing beverage.
(Hint: It's a cookie. Think of a cheap Oreo.)
THINKing |  |
Posted: 25 Aug 2008 08:08 AM CDT
Was just reading an interesting piece at MediaPost about Kellogg trying to resuscitate a brand - Hydrox - that long had been on life support. Hydrox - developed by Sunshine Bakeries - was the original creme filled cookie. Oreo is the knock-off. But like IBM, whose mantra used to be “second with power”, Oreo out-marketed the cookie pioneer. Mergers and acquisitions turned Sunshine to Keebler and Keebler to Kellogg. Hydrox was shelved. It has an atrocious name - sounds like a bad tasting medicine. And it was competing as the distant #2 in the category against Oreo.
So why bring it back? A core of dedicated consumers, for one. Next, it was first made in 1908. Kellogg probably thought that a 100-year-old brand with a small, rabid group of fans could have some success. Will it be successful? Let’s review the brand revival guide from Jeff Himmel, who brought back such brands as Ovaltine and Lavoris.
1. Point of difference. Will consumers buy this product instead of another brand?
2. Unique selling proposition. Does the product tell a unique story?
3. Make the brand stand out.
4. Dominant share of advertising.
5. Frequency of advertising. Make sure the message about your product is repeated over and over to the public.
6. Listen to the consumer, and then listen again more carefully.
7. Produce creative advertising that strikes a chord with the consumer.
8. Control commercial production costs. (He tends to only spend about $2,000 producing a commercial.)
9. Use your money to place ads, not make ads, and get a dominant share of advertising.
10. Live in a state of perpetual paranoia and always know what your competitors are doing.
11. Consider the X factors about your product. For example, does it have an existing distribution, or will it have to be created from scratch?
12. Have discipline to follow all the points on this list.
Do you think Kellogg is going to spend the kind of money necessary to out market Nabisco’s Oreo? Neither do I. Sometimes it is better just to kill a brand than to try to bring it back. Hydrox, I believe, is probably one of those brands that needs to be euthanized.
What do you think?
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