Got Milk? ads reboot for TikTok era. California’s leading ag industry seeks videos
A dairy industry group is revamping the venerable Got Milk? campaign with an eye on social media users.
The California Milk Processor Board invites people to create TikTok or Instagram videos of up to 30 seconds. They need not mention the product, but they must convey “something unexpected that is authentic to you,” the rules state.
The contest is part of the Get Real promotion. The organizers don’t say it explicitly, but the cow milk industry has faced competition in recent years from almond, soy and other plant-based alternatives.
The contest is open to California residents 18 and older and runs through 11:59 p.m. Sept. 26. Three entrants will be chosen at random to receive $2,000 and a year’s supply of milk (and no, it won’t be almond milk).
Two videos to inspire you
The announcement features a YouTube video with a song that begins, “Now if the world was as real as real milk.” Images that follow include a sign saying, “This loan is a bad idea,” and a politician’s banner announcing that “Nothing will change.”
My Nguyen, a chef and TikTok influencer, posted her own video to inspire others.
Stanislaus County is among the top players in the state’s dairy industry, which in turn leads the nation. The county also turns out almond milk, including the Blue Diamond Growers plant in Turlock and SunOpta in Modesto.
Slogan dates to 1993
Advertising experts consider Got Milk? among the best campaigns ever. The first TV spot in 1993 featured a man with a mouthful of peanut butter and an empty carton of milk. He was taking part in a radio quiz where the answer was “Aaron Burr.” He could only say, “Eh-wuh Buh.”
The spot won a Clio award that year. A 2005 survey of marketing professionals ranked “Got Milk?” first among TV slogans since 1948.
The “Got Milk?” tagline also has been used by the national Milk Processor Education Program for its series of celebrities bearing milk mustaches. Turlock-raised quarterback Colin Kaepernick wore one for a USA Today ad just before Super Bowl XLVII.
Details on the video contest are at www.gotmilk.com.
This story was originally published September 9, 2022 at 12:02 PM.
