Marshmallow Easter Treat Peeps Gets Social

While Peeps has been an Easter treat for six decades, who knew that 30 percent of the iconic marshmallow chicks are bought to make cool creations like dioramas, bonnets and birdhouses? Riffing off these myriad inspirations, Peeps is targeting crafty moms with its “Express Your Peepsonality” campaign, featuring its first digital effort as well as a new broadcast TV spot airing tonight—its first in several years.

“We’ve always embraced the crafts and recipes part of our brand,” said Mark Hoffman, senior brand manager. “But how we are communicating it now really brings it all together.”

Peep’s agency, Terri & Sandy Solution, hatched a sweet spot called Brothers by culling ad copy from the Web. In the :30 spot, a boy indoctrinates his younger brother on Peeps possibilities (Peeps in a blanket, Peeps topiaries, Peeps Abraham Lincoln statues, etc.) as they celebrate the Easter holiday. A :60 version of the commercial is available on YouTube.

Meanwhile, Peeps will also target moms on Facebook with display ads; the brand’s 250,000 fans will see a new Peeps post every day until Easter.

For those who fret that Peeps will soon fly the coop, have no fear. “People know us mainly from Easter,” Hoffman explained. “But we plan on carrying through our messaging to encourage Peeps s’mores in the summertime and into the Christmas season.”