Post Foods is tapping into Instagram's creative capabilities with a new campaign for HoneyComb cereal that enlists user-generated content to hopefully build long-term engagement.

HoneyComb?s new campaign asks consumers to compete weekly tasks by interacting with the brand?s Instagram page weekly. The cereal brand is also enlisting teenage celebrity Jacob Latimore to give the campaign some extra star power.

?Insights show that Instagram has now surpassed both Twitter and Facebook to become tweens' and teens preferred social network,? said Susan Fruzzetti-Reich, senior brand manager at Post Foods? Honeycomb, Parsippany, NJ.

?We found Instagram to be the best platform to encourage our creative tween and teen fan base to interact with our brand and submit their entries for our weekly challenges,? she said. ?The challenges are fun and social, so we wanted the method for submitting entries to reflect that same creativity while encouraging social interaction.? 

Triggering weekly engagement
Each week, HoneyComb will post new content to its Instagram account.

The first call-to-action asks consumers to follow the brand on Instagram and then post a selfie tagged with the #HoneycombShine hashtag. In exchange for posting content, the brand will dole out 25 pairs of headphones.

In addition to photos, HoneyComb will also ask consumers to post short video clips as entries for upcoming challenges.

The weekly challenges run through May 26, and one lucky fan will win tickets and the chance to meet Mr. Latimore this summer while he is on tour.

HoneyComb originally launched its Instagram campaign in January and used it to post photos of artwork, pop culture references and memes about the cereal brand.

Millennial-focused marketers are increasingly turning to Instagram to connect with smartphone-wielding consumers who are posting and browsing through photos and videos of their friends multiple times per day.

The challenge with these sweepstakes and promotions is building up some long-term engagement with a fickle group. HoneyComb is trying to tackle this by churning out weekly content, but it remains to be seen if consistent messages during a set promotional time are effective in driving long-term engagement.

CPGs ramp up mobile, social efforts
HoneyComb?s initiative builds on two other similar campaigns that Post Foods has run recently.

Honey Bunches of Oats ran a campaign in November that targeted Hispanics. The campaign involved a microsite where consumers could upload videos of themselves dancing (see story). 

Additionally, the CPG giant?s Cocoa Pebbles and Fruity Pebbles launched a mobile app at the end of last year that tightly integrates social media (see story). 

Unlike the previous efforts, HoneyComb?s campaign is slightly different since it lives on the third-party Instagram platform versus an owned mobile site or app.

?Mobile usage continues to grow for our consumers, including the use of mobile devices for entertainment and social engagement,? Ms. Fruzzetti-Reich said. ?We want to continue to reach our consumers where they spend their time.?

Final Take
Lauren Johnson is associate reporter on Mobile Marketer, New York