Integrated Impact Marketing Newsletter

This week, we're sinking our teeth into a campaign that mashed up Quaker Chewy Bars with the mighty Jurassic World in their "Feed the Imagination" campaign. Did this collaboration roar to success, or did it get eaten by the competition? For us, it's a complicated one – a HAD IT for the strategic fit, but a definite HIT for the execution on certain levels.

Quaker: - ⭐⭐⭐ Prehistoric Pairing: Perfect or Problematic

Why it didn't quite work (for Quaker):

A Flavor Combo That Doesn't Quite Chew Right: Look, we get the appeal: dinosaurs! Kids! Imagination! But let's be honest, Jurassic World and Quaker Chewy Bars feel like a forced marriage. Dinosaurs are about wild, untamed adventure; granola bars are about, well, a quick, relatively healthy snack. The "Feed the Imagination" tagline is a nice attempt to bridge the gap, but the connection feels flimsy. It's trying to inject epic into everyday life, and it lands with more of a shrug than a roar. Does munching a chewy bar really transport you to Isla Nublar? Probably not. The conceptual leap is just a bit too wide, making the collaboration feel more opportunistic than organic.

Target Audience Mismatch: Here's where the wheels really come off. The ad shows young children actively playing with dinosaurs, clearly aiming for an audience of families with younger children. Yet, Jurassic World films, while appealing to kids, often target a slightly older demographic due to their themes and intensity. This creates a huge disconnect. Who exactly is this ad for? Is it for the parents of toddlers who might buy Chewy Bars, or is it trying to appeal to the pre-teens who are actually watching Jurassic World? The partnership simply doesn't align the target audiences effectively, making the message less potent for everyone. It feels very disjointed, leaving viewers wondering who the intended consumer truly is. 

Why it was a (Visual) Hit:

Despite the strategic fumbles, we have to give credit where credit is due…

It has Jaw-Dropping Graphics & Visuals: Let's be honest, the ad looks amazing. The dinosaur graphics are top-notch, clearly leveraging Jurassic World's incredible visual IP assets. The way the dinosaurs are integrated into the kids' play, whether it's a T-Rex chasing a bike or a friendly Triceratops, is visually stunning and executed with high production value. For pure visual appeal and quality of animation/CGI, this ad is a winner. It's eye-catching, engaging to watch, and clearly had a significant budget behind its visual storytelling. It draws you in just for the spectacle, making it incredibly effective from a pure "look and feel" perspective.

And it was definitely a Win for Jurassic World: Let's be clear, while it might not have been a slam dunk for Quaker, this partnership was almost certainly a win for Jurassic World. Any additional eyeballs on the film's trailer or branding is a bonus for them, regardless of the product it's paired with. It's a classic example of a cross-promotion where one party benefits more significantly from the exposure than the other from the association.