20 Most Memorable Cereal Slogans
By Mr Breakfast
Plop, plop, fizz, fizz - Oh what a relief it is when advertisers come up with the perfect catchphrase or slogan to sell a product. This is our list of the most memorable lines ever used to sell a breakfast cereal.
Before you read the list, ask yourself, "Got Milk?" Because the best slogans not only bring the product to mind, they also make you a little hungry for Incredible, Edible... breakfast cereals.
See if your favorite tagline made the cut.
#20. "The cereal shot from guns"
The grandaddy of cereal slogans is for Quaker Puffed Rice. The cereal is actually made using a process that resembles shooting rice from a gun. In 1904, Quaker introduced the cereal to the mass public by shooting Puffed Rice from cannons at the World's Fair. In 1913, an astute ad man decided to promote the cereal by exploiting how it's made and this famous, yet mostly forgotten, slogan was invented.
#19. "Brings out the tiger in you, in you!"
Tony the Tiger may be the most famous breakfast cereal mascot of all time (and possible the most well known for any product). When you hear this slogan, you know exactly who the tiger is and the product he promotes. Most people automatically hear the musical jingle in their head. It's a triple whammy. You might say, It's Grrrr... (keep reading).
#18. "What are you eating? Nutin' honey."
This slogan for Kellogg's Nut & Honey Crunch was a study in name reinforcement. When characters in commercials were asked what they were eating, their reply of "Nut & Honey" was misinterpreted as "Nutin' (ie. nothing) honey." By the time the person asking figured out what was going on (if they ever did), the name of the cereal had been spoken several times - so many times that it's now in our heads forever.
#17. "It takes (x) bowls of your cereal to match the nutrition in one bowl of Total."
This bold ad campaign would pit Total cereal against best-selling cereals in a battle of nutrition. TV ads would show characters enjoying their favorite cereal only to be told by an off-screen voice that they'd have to eat several bowls (usually quantified by an exact number) of their cereal to equal the vitamin nutrition in a bowl of Total.
#16. "Stays crunchy, even in milk!"
When Cap'n Crunch cereal was introduced in 1963, the idea of a crunchy breakfast cereal was fairly new. In fact, the cereal was created as a response to a study that showed children, on average, didn't care for soggy cereals. This catchphrase (along with the obvious implication of the cereal's name) may be the reason we still hold Cap'n Crunch as the standard by which all crunchy cereals are measured.
#15. "Can't get enough Super Sugar Crisp"
This one-line jingle for Super Sugar Crisp was delivered with a cool assured swagger by the cereal's mascot Sugar Bear. The voice of Sugar Bear was inspired by crooner and actor Dean Martin. Super Sugar Crisp was originally called Sugar Crisp. During that time, the slogan went: "Can't get enough
of that Sugar Crisp."
#14. "Quisp for Quazy energy"
Early boxes of Quisp cereal claimed it was "the vitamin powered sugary cereal for QUAZY energy." Despite having quite a quirky and que-ative catchphrase, most people remember this cereal by a visual recognition of it's mascot, a pink alien with a propeller poking out of his head.
#13. "It's a honey of an O..."
... It's Honey Nut Cheerios. This was the cereal's most famous tagline throughout the 80's. A later line, "nobody can say no to Honey Nut Cheerios," may have sold some boxes by never resonated in our collective memory. The cereal's current catchphrase, "Bee Happy, Bee Healthy" is a real contender to make this list in the coming years.
#12. "Kid tested. Mother approved."
This famous tagline for Kix Cereal first appeared in 1978. The cereal itself was introduced several decades earlier in 1937. According to ads, kids liked the crisp corn crunch, while moms liked nutritional aspects of the cereal. Another memorable line was "Kids love Kix for what Kix has got. Moms love Kix for what Kix has not."
#11. "Honey-Comb's big! Yeah, yeah, yeah! It's not small... no, no, no!"
According to the rest of the jingle, "Honey-Comb's got... a big, big taste... a big, big crunch... for a big, big bite!" The jingle was popular throughout the late-70's and early-80's. In TV ads, it was often sung by kids in the Honey-Comb Hideout, a plank board shack where youngsters met to appreciate the size and taste of the cereal.
#10. "Two scoops of raisins..."
The idea that Kellogg's Raisin Bran has "two scoops of raisins in every box" was first hammered into our brains in late 1960's. It was a far more effective slogan than earlier efforts like "the sunniest bran under the sun" or "cereal with fruit". Kellogg's Raisin Bran first hit store shelves in 1942.
#9. "A is for Apple. J is for Jacks."
Cinnamon toasty Apple Jacks. This catchy jingle was popular from the early 80's all the way through the early 90's. The rest of the lyrics changed from commercial to commercial. One ad finished the song like this: "Lot's of crunch in every bite... just right for your appetite. Apple Jacks... Apple Jacks... Apple flavor, that's where it's at... Cinnamon toasty, apple tasty... Kellogg's Apple Jacks!"
#8. "Snap! Crackle! Pop!"
These are arguably the three most familiar words in the English language (which pertain to selling breakfast cereal). They were first heard in a radio jingle in 1932, four years after the cereal was introduced. They mimicked the sound the cereal made when doused with milk. In 1939, Snap! Crackle! and Pop! also began referring to the cereal's three mascots. That was the year they first appeared together on a package. Snap! had appeared years earlier as a solo act.
#7. "Follow my nose. It always knows."
This slogan for Froot Loops continues, "The flavor of fruit! Wherever it grows!" The "nose" in question belongs to Toucan Sam, the cereal's mascot since 1963. When the tagline debuted, the voice of Toucan Sam was provided by Mel Blanc who also created voices for Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck and Barney Rubble.
#6. "I'm coo-coo for Cocoa Puffs!"
This slogan for munchy, crunchy, chocolatey Cocoa Puffs was first heard in 1963. It was delivered by Sonny the Cuckoo Bird. In TV ads, the animated bird would go absolutely bonkers when exposed to the cereal, Most often, he would repeat the tagline three times in quick succession.
#5. "The Breakfast of Champions"
This famous tagline for Wheaties debuted in the early 1930's on a billboard at a minor league baseball game. Wheaties is responsible for two major milestones in breakfast cereal advertising. In 1926, it was the first cereal to ever have a jingle. In 1939, it was the first cereal to ever be advertised on television.
#4. "He likes it! Hey Mikey!'"
This catch phrase for Life Cereal is from the longest continuously running commercial campaigns in television history. It was 1972 when America first heard, "I'm not gonna try it - you try it. Let's get Mikey... he hates everything." In the end, the finicky young eater liked the cereal. The Mikey character reemerged in the mid-80's as a young adult (played by the same actor, John Gilchrist) in a tribute to the original commercial.
#3. "They're Magically Delicious!"
This tagline was part of a short jingle that went "Frosted Lucky Charms... they're magically delicious!" It was sung by Lucky The Leprechaun, the cereal's mascot since Lucky Charms debuted in 1964. Lucky is responsible for another famous catchphrase, "They're Always After Me Lucky Charms!"
#2. "Silly Rabbit, Trix are for kids!"
Trix cereal first hit shelves in 1954. Four years later, the Trix Rabbit appeared on the box. In his words, "Rabbits are supposed to like carrots. But I hate carrots. I like Trix." Unfortunately, every time the rabbit would get close to eating Trix, some kid would appear and say the famous line. In 1980, General Mills ran a promotion asking kids to vote whether or not the Rabbit should get to eat Trix. The nation's kids voted in favor of the rabbit. He got to eat one bowl.
#1. "They're Gr-r-reat!"
Tony The Tiger has been the mascot for Frosted Flakes Cereal since 1952 when it was called Sugar Frosted Flakes. The cereal has had a few memorable taglines over the years, including "They bring out the tiger in you" and "The taste adults have grown to love." But the most popular line, by far, was Tony's deep-throated "They're not good. They're Gr-r-reat!"
- "Oh those Golden Grahams. Oh those Golden Grahams." - Golden Grahams
- "It's what's for breakfast" - Honey Bunches of Oats
- "The Taste You Can See!" - Cinnamon Toast Crunch
- "I vant to eat your cereal!" - Count Chocula
- "It tastes like a chocolate milkshake, only crunchy!" - Cocoa Krispies
- "They're A-B-C Delicious" Alpha-Bits
- ""The taste adults have grown to love" - Kellogg's Frosted Flakes
- "Bee Happy, Bee Healthy" - Honey Nut Cheerios
- "They're Always After Me Lucky Charms!" - Lucky Charms
What's your favorite cereal slogan? Is there one that you'd like to see added to this list? Connect with Mr Breakfast on Facebook or Twitter and let me know.
This article was written by Mr Breakfast (aka Eddy Chavey).
