Chocolate, Healthy?
So in the last issue of Brandweek we all got, there is an article titled "Healthy Chocolate Comes to the Cereal Category." While many consumers know that dark chocolate is a healthier form of chocolate and that the actual chocolate cocoa bean is not bad for you, Chocolate still has a fattening and unhealthy negative association to it. Quaker oats and Kellogs believes that chocolate's image has transformed into something more positive and health related, I don't agree. The introduction of cereal's with chocolate, in my opinion, creates a more kid oriented product, which is not who these cereal brands are trying to target. Although they are having promotions and weight loss contests to prove that they are healthy and yummy, I think consumers will see it as a cocoa puffs kind of cereal that is made for kids and not at all healthy. It's like when Kellogs came out with their Special K with strawberries cereal and claimed that it will help you lose weight, yea if you substitute one bowl of cereal for two of your meals (real healthy huh). So anyways, I agree with the author Sonia Reyes and I think that "for the cereal industry, chocolate is just the latest attempt at pumping up sales." In addition, since they are targeting health conscious adults with this new product, it might hurt they brand meaning associated with their other healthy cereals.
-Shauny Lamba
posted by Brand007 @ 11:26 AM
2 Comments:
I totally dislike the idea of chocolate and healthy cereal. Why putting chocolate into a healthy cereal? Like the new chocolate whipped yogurt from Yoplait, I am always questioning about the product when I see the ads. Because if you really want chocolate, just go and get a piece of chocolate. Why lie to yourself that you are eating something healthy with the chocolate flavor?? Plus, I think one of the reason why people in the US are mostly overweight is because there are too many "healthy product" like the chocolate cereal and yogurt that mislead people, so people increase the portion size when they eat those food since they feel good that they are eating "healthy".
I have to agree that I do not think chocolate as a product, particularly dark chocolate, has gained enough credibililty to take on the role of a healthy cereal. I feel that promos will help the cereal gain recognition but the buzz generated may not be positive. It seemes like brands such as Kellogs and Quaker are counting on their 'healthy' brand image to have the dominant meaning and may be underestimating the meanings that chocolate carries and its potential impact on the cereal brands.
Kellogs is just one example of a healthy cereal brand making the choice to branch into somehing like chocolate, but many people may also be unaware of or forget that chocolate cereals are trying to do the reverse.
Cereals that were initially positioned as kids cereals are trying to become healthier, by using whole wheat for example. For Nestle's Nesquik chocolate cereal (http://www.ciao.co.uk/Nestle_Nesquik_Chocolate_Cereal__5181666
Half of the reviews/posts of the cereal commented on the health benefits but the other half were neg comments. Although parents may see whole wheat and think healthier, it wont influence their purchase decision because they will see it as an added perk to a product they were going to purchase regardless of the health effects. Some one who is buying cocoa puffs doesnt buy it for the wheat used but purely for the taste.
One option the healthy cereals could take would be to position the chocolate cereals as cereals, but as cereals used as snacks. A popular example of this is the cereal cookie crisp or even cinnamon toast crunch. Adults eat these 'kids' cereals for breakfast as well as snacks.
On the other hand the approach Frosted Flakes took (with the adults admiting to likeing the cereal, while hiding their identity) is something that may work to launch the healthy cereals using chocolate.
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