› return to food & beverage

Sweet'N Low

Sweet'N Low, the much-loved sugar substitute manufactured by Cumberland Packing Corp., faced stiff competition from aggressive newcomer Splenda (with a marketing spend that tops that of Sweet'N Low many times over). While Sweet'N Low had the honor of inventing the category and boasted a large and brand-loyal user base, the brand needed to contemporize its image and quell any misperceptions the public had about product safety.

Cumberland turned to Ruder Finn to create a media-intensive, multi-faceted program that would showcase Sweet'N Low among a broad audience of consumers, while at the same time educating them about the safety realities of sugar substitutes.

 

 

OBJECTIVES

• Heighten Sweet'N Low brand awareness; blend "rich heritage" with "contemporary" to tell the complete story.
• Blunt attacks from Splenda; communicate the safety of Sweet'N Low.

PROGRAM

• Ruder Finn utilized a "media machine" approach – a comprehensive media relations-focused juggernaut of outreach – to tell the right Sweet'N Low story to the right audience at the right time.
• We leveraged the iconic status of Sweet'N Low to showcase the emotional connection between brand and consumer with a "Stolen Pink Packet" poll that proved that the ubiquitous pink packets of sweetener are among the most purloined products across the nation.
• Shape Up America! partnered with Sweet'N Low to dispel the myths about sweeteners. The organization's president, Dr. Barbara Moore, made clear via SMT and print interviews that Sweet'N Low was completely safe, and that Splenda was not a natural product as it claimed to be.
• Sweet'N Low went Hollywood, sponsoring the premiere of the Steve Martin film "The Pink Panther. Local market radio and newspaper promos, specialty packet delivery and a presence at the premiere party showed that Sweet'N Low could hang with the cool cat with no problem at all.
• Ruder Finn created a sweetener comparison chart for use by the media that gave the clear differences of sweeteners in the marketplace. We also corrected reporters' misperceptions about sweetener safety on an ongoing basis, monitoring for misinformed statements and following up with each with correct information and offers to speak with experts.
• Recipes featuring Sweet'N Low are distributed regularly, ensuring the brand a spot on the critical food pages of newspapers and women's magazines.

RESULTS

• Sweet'N Low quality placements have ranged from The Today Show to Forbes.com, and from Newsweek to The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson.