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Jelly Belly® creates mystery out of new flavor

Jelly Belly Mystery Flavor Promotion
Press Release
February 22, 2006

What is Jelly Belly’s newest true-to-life flavor? It’s a mystery! But once consumers discover what it is, they could win big!

Jelly Belly kicked off 2006 with “The $250,000 Mystery Flavor Promotion” at mass marketers, grocery stores, drug stores, candy specialty stores, and other retailers nationwide. Mixed in with the wide variety of colored beans with the signature Jelly Belly logo, consumers are finding Mystery Flavor Beans, white beans with a red question mark. Consumers are invited to go to “TasteTheMystery.com” where they can make their guess at what they think the Mystery Flavor is, and get a shot at a share of the over $250,000 in prizes Jelly Belly is offering to those who guess correctly.

Prizes include Jelly Belly Mini Bean machines, Apple iPod ® Shuffles, Mini Cooper ® cars, and even a trip to Jelly Belly headquarters outside San Francisco where one lucky winner will have the chance to play a game to win $100,000 cash during “Mystery Flavor Celebration Day.” Everyone who plays gets at minimum a fun Mr. Jelly Belly computer desktop toy which was specially created for the promotion.

“We always knew consumers were passionate about our flavors,” said Jelly Belly President Bob Simpson, “but the response to a Mystery Flavor has been incredible. Consumers were trying to guess the flavor even before the promotion began.”

“The key to the Jelly Belly brand essence is flavor,” says Kevin Keating, President of Chicago-based Launch Creative Marketing, the agency that created the promotion. “When we saw the interest consumers had in tasting new flavors introduced at the Jelly Belly Visitors Center, we knew that creating an interactive taste experience around the next new flavor could be big.”

Adding the opportunity to win prizes to the inherent fun of identifying the Mystery Flavor makes the promotion all the more compelling. And consumers can win prizes in three ways: in-pack game pieces offer the chance to win instantly, entering a code from the game piece at TasteTheMystery.com and guessing the flavor wins a sweepstakes entry, and consumers can play an online game with a chance at even more prizes. iC Group in Chicago is handling the online game development, prizing and risk management portion of the promotion.

“This is by far the biggest promotion we’ve ever undertaken, and retailers have really embraced it,” says Kathy Hemphill, Merchandising and Promotions Manager for Jelly Belly, whose group created special displays and Point-Of-Purchase kits to help retailers dress up their stores.

“We’re always experimenting with new flavors to introduce. So the only challenge with coming up with the Mystery Flavor was choosing which one,” says Rob Swaigen, Jelly Belly Senior Product Marketing Manager.

Although Swaigen wouldn’t give any clues to the Mystery Flavor, he did say a quick trip to the TasteTheMystery.com site reveals it’s one of five choices: Apple Pie, Papaya, Ice Cream Sandwich, Raisin, or Maple Syrup.

Game pieces are available in specially marked packages (3.5-oz., 7-oz., and 9-oz. sizes) at most Jelly Belly retailers, and at participating specialty candy stores that carry bulk Jelly Belly jelly beans. TasteTheMystery.com also gives directions to consumers on how to obtain a game piece without purchase.

The promotion was created and designed by Launch Creative Marketing, Chicago, with iC Group of Chicago handling online game development, web hosting and risk management and Los Angeles-based Zugara handling online animation.

FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT: Tom Baer, Director of Promotion Strategy, Launch Creative Marketing at 312-234-9800, ext. 13 or
tomb [at] launchcreative.com

ABOUT JELLY BELLY ( www.jellybelly.com):

Jelly Belly Candy Company is a privately held confectionery manufacturer, owned and operated by the fourth and fifth generation of the candy making family. Best known for that presidential favorite, Jelly Belly jelly beans, the company also makes chocolate-covered candies, gummies, jells, candy corn, and sweets for all the major seasons. Headquartered in Fairfield, California, the company operates two U.S. manufacturing facilities as well as public tours in California and Wisconsin which attract 750,000 visitors a year and was the “No. 1 Rated Factory Tour for 2005” by Reader’s Digest magazine.

ABOUT LAUNCH CREATIVE MARKETING (www.launchcreative.com):

Launch Creative Marketing, Inc. is an award-winning integrated marketing agency with expertise in branding, promotion, P-O-P, online, package design, and strategic planning. Based in Chicago for more than 30 years, Launch handles marketing communications for Fortune 500 corporate clients from packaged goods, office supplies, and other categories. Launch’s outstanding creative solutions have resulted in lasting, sales-motivating partnerships with agency clients.

ABOUT iC GROUP (www.icgroupinc.com):

iC Group is a leading provider of interactive promotions, games, contests, sweepstakes administration, promotion risk management and insurance solutions. They are a trusted partner in the design and implementation of secure, high-impact promotion solutions for over 30% of the world’s top brands and leading promotion agencies. Clients rely on them to deliver incentive solutions that create immediate impact and drive measurable results, without typical promotion risks that can jeopardize the bottom line.