Tic Tac Drives Engagement and Conversation With Vessel Launch Into Space

Breath mint brand Tic Tac has often relied on the portability of the product and the amount of calories in a mint as a marketing strategy and selling point. Since the brand’s inception in 1969, the mint has caught the eyes of consumers with slogans such as “The 1½ Calorie Breath Mint” or “Refreshment to be shared.” The brand—manufactured by Ferrero—took another route toward connecting with fans this time. It took off into a new stratosphere, launching a vessel into outer space on Aug. 6. With 100 packs of Tic Tacs and a screen featuring tweets from fans, the flight of the vessel lasted 175 minutes and reached an altitude of 121,099 feet. https://twitter.com/TicTacUSA/status/1409950567519170560 Tic Tac and outer space have some commonalities. 1969 was the first year that man landed on the moon and was also the first year of Tic Tac’s inception. Additionally in 2004, Navy Pilot Chad Underwood filmed a UFO that was the shape of a Tic Tac. "We're always looking for opportunities to stay top-of-mind from a pop culture standpoint and it seemed like a natural fit," marketing director of Tic Tac at Ferrero, Neal Finkler told Adweek. "With a lot of chatter about space, and the government about to release the report on UFOs, the billionaire space race, we just felt like this was a really fun topic and fun activation to get in on." How the strategy came together It all started with a discussion about leaning into the brand’s messaging around making connections that could involve consumers. Tic Tac partner Golin suggested involving a U.K.-based company called Sent Into Space that… literally sends objects into space. Creating the hovering UFO took a few weeks, according to Finkler. The screen that was installed into the vessel showcased some of the funnier and engaging tweets Tic Tac got from followers. https://twitter.com/TicTacUSA/status/1429796869664874500 Tic Tac sent up three flavors—freshmint, orange and fruit adventure—in limited edition packs. The vessel landed back on Earth, and now the 100 packs from space will be sent to fans. "The theme around sending the packs is sharing positive and kind messages with our consumers," said Finkler. "We thought it was a perfect opportunity to send up these limited edition pack that are also about sharing messages." Driving fan engagement Tic Tac has drawn significant interest with its launch into space. The brand generated over 2.5 million impressions across all social channels after activating in space according to its own research, and saw a 1,057% increase in engagement across all social channels since its first tweet about the Tic Tac UFO on June 25. Since posting more UFOs, the reach on Tic Tac-owned channels is now at 4.2 million, an 878% increase from two months prior. “Our brand is about like creating refreshing moments and connections,” said Finkler. “We really wanted to reinforce that point, drive conversation, drive excitement and make sure that the brand was was involved in the conversation through social media. Based on engagement rates and, we believe that we achieved that.” Is Out of Home Ready for Outer Space?