Chewing gum brand Juicy Fruit is driving brand engagement with an iPhone application called ?Juicy Fruit Sweet Talk.?

The application lets users choose between five different characters, portrayed as disembodied mouths, who spout off humorous one-liners. Sweet Talk was the second most downloaded free entertainment application for the iPhone and the sixth most downloaded free application in any category for the iPhone as of Aug. 11.

?The Sweet Talk app is an effective way to engage our target audience,? said Paul Chibe, vice president and general manager of gums and mints at The William Wrigley Jr. Co., Chicago. ?Juicy Fruit fans treat it like social currency and once they discover an app like this, they love to talk about it and share it with their friends.?

Wrigley is the producer of Juicy Fruit and a subsidiary of Mars Inc.

How it works
Once launched, the application home page includes tabs for the five different Sweet Talk characters.

The characters are named DJ Spraytan, Melrose, Double XL, Mama Cita and Mrs. Nextdoor.

Clicking on a character?s tab launches a screen where users can choose from five different video clips.

Each video clip shows the disembodied mouth of the character uttering a catchphrase that begins with the words ?You?re so sweet.?

Examples of one-liners include:

? ?You?re so sweet, I might have to ask for your fax number right now? (DJ Spraytan)

? ?You?re so sweet, I?m gonna take you out for ice cream sundaes. You?re the toppings? (Mama Cita)

? ?You?re so sweet, I would take you on vacation just to babysit my terribly misbehaved Labradoodle? (Mrs. Nextdoor)

A navigation bar at the bottom of the application lets users toggle between the home page, a random video feature and sharing options such as Facebook and email.

Here is a screen grab of the home page:

The company is driving awareness of the application with targeted mobile advertising that includes text, banners and rich media.

Additionally, Wrigley's is integrating a mobile search strategy to catch the attention of mobile owners looking for information on Juicy Fruit or entertaining mobile content.

Entertainment as branding
More brands have begun using mobile entertainment as a tool to drive brand engagement.

For example, Summit Entertainment generated buzz for the release of ?The Twilight Saga: Eclipse? with a line of free and premium mobile games (see story).

Likewise, Dreyer?s promoted its Skinny Cow ice cream brand with a mobile game (see story).

This is Juicy Fruit?s first mobile application, and one that the company is confident will promote its brand well.

?Juicy Fruit fans have been sharing the sweet taste of Juicy Fruit for more than 100 years and the Sweet Talk app is just a brand new way for fans to enjoy a sweet experience where they can make friends laugh or simply sweeten their day,? Mr. Chibe said.

Final Take
Peter Finocchiaro, editorial assistant at Mobile Marketer, New York

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