DISCUSSION
What makes a good brand mascot in 2019?
Written by RetailWire Staff
Sources: Starbucks, Geico, KFC, M&M, McDonald's
Some mascots seem like an inseparable part of the brands they promote. Others are quickly consigned to the commercials and cereal boxes of advertising history. A recent survey set out to find which brand mascots stuck in consumers’ memories most strongly, and discovered some interesting trends in the process.
The survey, conducted by Crestline, found that the most memorable mascot among the 1,630 U.S. residents polled was the Starbucks mermaid. Col. Sanders from KFC, the Geico Gecko, M&M’s talking candies and Ronald McDonald all scored within a few percentage points.
The least memorable were Coco the Monkey from Coco Pops, the Duracell bunny (not to be confused with the Energizer bunny), the bear from Golden Crisp cereal, the Chicken of the Sea mermaid and Erin from Esurance. The survey further explored a number of other characteristics of how the public perceives brand mascots. Among its findings were that:
The least memorable were Coco the Monkey from Coco Pops, the Duracell bunny (not to be confused with the Energizer bunny), the bear from Golden Crisp cereal, the Chicken of the Sea mermaid and Erin from Esurance. The survey further explored a number of other characteristics of how the public perceives brand mascots. Among its findings were that:
- Restaurants and food brands tend to have the strongest mascot recognition;
- Human mascots do not tend to be recognized as easily as cartoon mascots;
- The generation of the audience plays a significant role, with far more Baby Boomers being able to connect the mascot with the brand for Blue Bonnet and Keebler, and far more Gen Zers being able to do the same with Chuck E. Cheese and the Honey Nut Cheerios bee.
- Today, nearly all speaking mascots have social media accounts.