The Phenomenon
At a time when Cap’N Crunch was the only successful cereal introduction in 5 years, Freakies cereal went to the test market and got a 65% higher trial than Cap’N Crunch had acquired in its test market. It also got a 98% awareness with an advertising budget about one-fourth the size of Cap’N Crunch.
In 1974, Ralston Purina took Freakies cereal national, and the Freakies phenomenon in the test market was duplicated throughout the country. Freakies fan clubs sprang up among kids 5 to 12 years old and among Sororities and Fraternities.
Freakies T-shirts offered on the package sides were often on backorder.
The company's owner that manufactured the Freakies premiums became a millionaire in the first year. Kids and college students wrote letters begging for more Freakies characters.
The line extensions, Cocoa Freakies and Fruity Freakies were incredibly successful and to this day, these package backs and premiums command thousands in the cereal memorabilia market.
The Freakies did so well because seven different characters
meant there was a Freakie for every kid to relate to. -the Freakies were lovable and funny.
In a time when all cereal advertising mandated simple adversarial storylines, the personality conflicts between the Freakies were far more interesting to kids.