Kroger coordinated the messages of its in-store promotional materials with the labels on its chocolate milk packages.

The marketing team at the milk processing arm of Kroger Co., Cincinnati, Ohio, created a themed label for half-gallon jugs of low-fat chocolate milk for its “Chocolate Milk – The Official Drink of Halloween” campaign.

Copy on the package labels was coordinated to tie-in with MilkPEP’s static clings, banners, balloons and other point-of-sale materials. The copy included “Happy Halloween, the official drink of Halloween” and “got chocolate milk?”

Kroger’s retail divisions (2,000 locations) supported the campaign with various sales and promotions leading up to Halloween. Throughout October, weekly store ads featured chocolate milk, and stores held sampling events. During the campaign’s three-day feature deal (10 half-gallons for $10), sales were 30 times greater than normal weekend sales.

The company was the winner in the Marketing and Product Innovation category.

Vince Front, Kroger’s dairy sales planning manager, said teamwork is what made the promotion successful. Various teams came together to execute the entire program in a timely manner, he said. “Being coordinated as both retailer and manufacturer gives us a distinct edge to engage all parties necessary to make this type of promotion happen.”