More General Mills brands are turning pink this month, thanks to Pink Together, a multi-faceted campaign that has added $8 million to the company’s support of the breast cancer cause since 2007.  

Pink Together consists of two major tenets: A social website and a cross-brand I-marketing opportunity. Combined with the Yoplait Save Lids to Save Lives campaign, Pink Together boosts General Mills to the No. 1 Consumer Packaged Goods partner of Susan G. Komen for the Cure, the leading global breast cancer organization.

Launched four years ago, PinkTogether.com is an emotionally charged site that has nearly 700,000 members who have been touched by breast cancer. The online community offers newly diagnosed, survivors, friends, caregivers and supporters the opportunities to connect, find support, share stories and offer each other strength and hope.

Music and links to supportive resources pack the website, as well as videos of the 2010 ambassadors who share their stories on-camera. One of the five featured survivors is General Mills employee Libby Pomroy.

Messages of hope “The community of support on the Pink Together site is unparalleled,” says Pomroy, who has survived breast cancer twice in the last 15 years. “I didn’t have an online community during my treatment. If I would have, I’d have received answers to my many, many questions.”

That human touch is what makes the Pink Together initiative stand out.

“Our site makes a powerful impact because it provides an online community of real people sharing the real messages of their personal journeys,” says employee Michelle Tufts. “Among the sea of pink, we can differentiate because our consumers can see the real people they’re supporting when they buy our products.”

In addition to offering hope and help, the Pink Together program is a marketing opportunity that spans beyond Yoplait and across General Mills products. Pillsbury, along with Nature Valley, Big G, Chex, Progresso, Green Giant frozen, Cascadian Farm, Fiber One and “Restaurant Favorites” packaged dinners from the Meals division are among the brands now participating.

Each brand adds its own “pink” to its packaging and, according to Tufts, once these products and displays hit the market, it’s a General Mills presence that consumers can’t miss.

Adding more for the cure The Pink Together program contributes $2 million a year to Susan G. Komen, and also funds customer account-specific local programs and programs directed by our sales team benefiting the cause. In addition, $150,000 was given in 2010 to the Circle of Promise, a Komen effort targeting the population of African-American women, many of whom are underserved in their communities.

While the efforts for the cause can’t be measured in human terms, the Pink Together site has provided the company with unique marketing presence, an abundance of blogger buzz and many opportunities for future growth.

“Pink Together is a very prominent and vital way to partner with our retailers and consumers in support of this well-known cause,” says Tufts. “It demonstrates the depth of commitment General Mills has in upholding our mission of Nourishing Lives.”

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