Dive Brief:
- Lala, a flagship brand for Borden Dairy, is coordinating a national U.S. expansion with a new marketing campaign featuring the coined term "yogurting" — though notably, not the product name.
- The ads feature activities like commuting and surfing that are more relevant to the targeted younger audience, Desiree Johnson, director of marketing for Lala USA at Borden Dairy, told Ad Age.
- "Yogurting" is a term referring to the convenience of Lala's yogurt smoothies in a re-sealable bottle as a grab-and-go food that doesn't require a spoon. This appeals to consumers' current demand for more convenient products for easier-to-eat sustenance.
Dive Insight:
Lala's yogurt smoothies hit on a number of current trends besides convenience, as the product is also positioned in the better-for-you foods segment and has a high protein content. The product comes in both Greek and traditional varieties.
In market testing, Johnson told Ad Age that hearing the brand name "broke the feel of the spot," and removing it offers "a more youthful feel."
The approach is similar to Hershey's new experience-centric masterbrand campaign that takes the emphasis off the products themselves and transfers focus to experiences associated with those products that evoke an emotion or nostalgia. Coca-Cola, on the other hand, is testing the opposite strategy by putting its products in full view in lieu of disconnected messaging of the past.
Johnson said Lala is increasing its marketing budget by about 200 times higher than last year with the expectation of boosting spending to $30 million in the first five months of this year. The push will support the expansion of Lala to about 70% of U.S. grocery stores by this spring, more than double the 30% of stores the product was in last year.