Rudolf Gains More Friends
NEW YORK Four Christmas themed videos will team with M&M/Mars this holiday season for an offer that includes instant wins, a sweepstakes, and $1 off any of the videos.
Golden Books Home Video will launch its biggest promotion ever to back the home video release of four classic titles – Rudolph, The Red-Nosed Reindeer; Frosty the Snowman; Santa Claus is Comin’ to Town; and The Little Drummer Boy. While all the videos have been released before, Golden recently bought the rights to the videos and this is the first time the company will market and distribute the titles.
The company’s main partner is M&M/Mars. More than 13 million specially marked miniatures, including Snickers, Milky Way, and Three Musketeers brands, will carry the tie-in details. Called Who Ate Santa’s Miniatures, consumers can win prizes by calling a toll-free number inside each package and guessing which character from the movies ate Santa’s candy. All winners are qualified to win one of four grand prizes of $10,000.
Customers who buy a bag of candy and a video will receive a $1 off the video.
“One of the goals we have is to put the minis and the videos next to each other,” says Cindy Bressler, senior vp and gm, Golden Books Home Video and Audio. “We’re thrilled to be aligned with M&M/Mars. They are a terrific partner anytime of the year, but the fourth quarter is a big time of year for candy sales.”
Bressler says that although each title could stand alone, packaging the properties together should lead to greater awareness and shelf space in stores.
The Rudolf video will contain a bonus five minutes of action that was only shown during the program’s initial airing in 1964. The Rudolf video will also include a five-minute LCI phonecard.
The titles will be joined by 1993’s Frosty Returns and Cricket on the Hearth, an animated film that hasn’t been seen in more than 30 years. The Frosty Returns video will include a specially made Hallmark holiday-themed card.
Although most of these titles are shown annually on TV, Bressler expects sales for the $12.95 videos should be brisk.
