Jimmy Dean Shine On! Float

The Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade just happened for the 86th time! The American spectacle that is seen by over 3 Million people on the streets of New York City, and 50 Million more on NBC (that’s almost half as many viewers as the Super Bowl), has been said to be one of the earliest forms of “Branded Entertainment”.
Macy’s certainly is not the only corporation to get in on the marketing action. Kiernan Maletsky, of the Denver Westword Blog, recently claimed that the Parade is “little more than a really long advertisement for kids movies and food companies.” I can’t say that I disagree with her, but I do disagree with her assessment of the Jimmy Dean float. She said, “The marketing message here is that, if you eat the protein-rich Jimmy Dean breakfast sausage, you will be able to Shine On! throughout the day. That works if you're a protein bar company or a health food pusher or something, but whenever we eat Jimmy Dean for breakfast, we just want to take a nap.”
To give you a little background, the Jimmy Dean Shine On! Float was introduced in 2008, the same year that Sara Lee introduced the Jimmy Dean brand to the U.S. market. The brand has now become the company’s best-selling frozen processed food offering.
CMO Philippe Schaillee was quoted in Adweek this past March, saying that through research and focus groups they were able to narrow down their target to what Schaillee described as the “chaotic compromiser." She is a hardworking mom, and breakfast for her consists mainly of frozen meals because “her family likes them." According to Schaillee, “moms subconsciously know there are better breakfast options out there than the ones they [serve up] in the morning.”
In 2009, in light of this insight, Sara Lee added Jimmy Dean D-lights Turkey Sausage Whole Grain Bagel Sandwich and Jimmy Dean D- lights Turkey Bacon Breakfast Bowl. Both were billed as calorie-controlled other frozen processed food options, offering a filling meal option for “under 300 calories.” The development of Jimmy Dean's breakfast offer has been a shift in emphasis from a traditional breakfast brand to one focused on the provision of protein and convenience in line with prevailing consumer interests. Also in line with this strategy, the company launched Jimmy Dean Breakfast Entrées - croissants or scrambled eggs combined with sides of potatoes and fruit.
The brand promise has subsequently shifted from a “happy breakfast” to a “lasting breakfast.” Instead of focusing on cheering people up, the most recent ads still feature a man dressed up as the sun, but they emphasize the energy component of what is considered the most important meal of the day.
This year’s Shine On! Float featured the country music band Gloriana singing the very energetic song, “Wild At Heart”, which is about “a couple kids running loose and wild.” The obvious implication being that their energy came from a Jimmy Dean breakfast!