On the supermarket shelves, the cereal is even placed lower than the other Kellogg cereals, so it is at small children's' eye level. In contrast, Frosted Flakes 1/3 Less Sugar, another popular children's cereal features advertisements displaying mothers as well as children, advocating a kind of compromise strategy between a sugary breakfast and a healthy breakfast. Special K, however, makes use of a shapely leg upon its advertising, and stresses its slimming properties. Both Frosted Flakes 1/3 Sugar and Special K were on sale at the supermarket for 1.99 when this study was conducted, unlike the Scooby Doo cereal, indicating that they are occasionally targeted at consumers such as parents who consider price as well as taste and eye appeal when selecting cereals.

             What is the marketing environment (Competitive, social cultural, technological, Economic, political-Legal)?.

             Scooby Doo's main cereal competitors are the tried and true kid-friendly junk food cereals, from companies such as General Mills or Quaker Oats. Although the cereal might deter some parents because of its unabashed status as unhealthy carbohydrates in a bowl that likely turns the milk blue, it has the advantage of being connected to a popular cartoon character with a recently released movie and the appealing shape of dog bones in a bowl. In contrast, 1/3 Less Sugar Frosted Flakes is an obvious effort to compete with General Mills' line of whole grain kids cereals, and attempts to pacify parents who want to give their children the products they desire, but with less guilt about sugar. The cereal makes use of new technology, such as artificial sweeteners, even though it still has the branding of a popular children's cereal and is promoted by a cartoon character. Special K makes use of guilt of a different kind, that of the personal, weight-related guilt many persons feel, especially women, in today's image-conscious society.