Lucky Charms: Chase For The Charms

Bringing AR to Life for Nostalgic Cereal Fans

We created Chase For The Charms, an augmented reality app that combined AR with first-person video to immerse grown-up Lucky Charms fans in an epic chase for the charms. Players used their mobile devices to hunt and capture all 8 of Lucky's charms in their own environment. Each char, when caught, earned instant-win prizes like Lucky Charms personal cereal dispensers or the chance to be animated into a national TV commercial, plus sweepstakes entries for the grand prize—a real pot of gold worth $10,000.

The campaign launched on St. Patrick's Day 2013, targeting the 45% of Lucky Charms consumers who are adults. We created a Hollywood-style movie trailer featuring obsessive "charm chasers"—think storm chasers, but hunting Lucky's magically delicious charms—which launched in movie theaters alongside 30 and 60-second spots on YouTube and Facebook. The app made a 50-year-old campaign idea relevant for today by using AR in a seamless way that let nostalgic fans actually experience the chase instead of just watching it on TV. Built in partnership with Ogmento (AR app development) and Machinima (YouTube distribution), it was Lucky Charms' first mobile app.

This arrived at a pivotal moment when CPG brands were figuring out how to use augmented reality meaningfully. The experience tapped into nostalgia while demonstrating AR's potential beyond gimmickry—proving the technology could create genuine engagement when paired with strong brand storytelling and real incentives.

Impact: Lucky Charms: Facebook following increased by 10,000 during campaign launch. FWA Mobile of the Day (May 28, 2013). Featured in Saatchi & Saatchi's "Mobile Magic" book as a case study. Press: Mobile Marketer, Marketing Dive, Digiday, PRNewswire, Augmented Reality News.

Role: Concept, Creative Direction, Art Direction, Design