Soup’s on for Campbell’s

For the first time in Campbell Soup Co.’s 125-year-plus history, the company is uniting all of its brands under one single campaign. The push kicked off late last month and includes a line-up of humorous TV spots combining celebrities with ordinary people, a kids’ tie-in for the fall and sampling programs at Wal-Mart.

“It’s not just condensed or chunky soup, it’s a Campbell’s campaign,” says Terry Atkins, director of consumer promotion and licensing at Camden, NJ-based Campbell Soup Co. “We are tapping into every aspect of consumer marketing, from event marketing to co-marketing to a robust Internet program.”

The campaign has a sturdy base in traditional TV advertising with a reality twist. About 30 new national spots have been produced, most of which star Food Network host Gordon Elliott. In one series, Elliott visits homes unannounced, armed with a can of soup and a list of simple ingredients to make a meal.

The impromptu Elliott spots were tested in Columbus, OH, last winter as part of Campbell’s Tasty Tuesdays retail program (June PROMO). Meal-center displays in stores link to Sunday circulars and www.TastyTuesdays.com, where consumers can register to get a weekly recipe via e-mail for 13 weeks. The program rolled out nationally last month.

Other spots include: Elliott visiting office buildings and distributing Campbell’s M’m! M’m! Good! To Go microwaveable soup; Elliott interacting with NFL players to tout the Chunky portable soup; Elliott playing basketball with Lil’ Bow Wow; and Elliott visiting TV hostess B. Smith’s house. The Campbell’s star also stops by the Dilly household, home to sextuplets who get to customize their tomato soup; the Dilly family will also appear on the Campbell’s Web site, FSIs and in-store posters.

Campbell’s has created several account-specific programs with retailers. Through this month, Wal-Mart will host soup sampling days.

The company is also targeting kids directly for the first time, with a Souper Star Fantasy campaign. Condensed soup cans in October and November will contain codes for kids to enter online and play an instant-win game. Prizes include spending the day with an NFL player or a Hollywood star. “Mom has always been our target with condensed soup, but kids more and more are having control of where the food dollars are spent,” Atkins says.

BBDO Detroit handles ads and Ryan Partnership, Wilton, CT handles co-marketing. Gepetto Group, New York City, takes care of kids’ initiatives.

Simon Property Group is hosting a national teen tour dubbed Simon Dtour Live, stopping only at its malls and featuring a variety of integrated sponsorships from brands such as Sprite, Nestlé, Mentos and Clearasil. Sprite will sponsor live performances, including free concerts by artists Lil’ Mo and 3LW, as well as a DJ mixing station where teens can try “scratching” their own music mix. The tour also includes a Tune In/Tune Out talent competition for local high schools, an interactive surfing pavilion sponsored by Cool Water by Davidoff, a video game pavilion sponsored by Strength magazine, a basketball contest, Delia’s Henna Tattoo Station and swag bags, offering free samples from sponsors and retailers. Simon Dtour Live will run through Oct. 26. Alloy, Inc.-owned AMP, Boston, handles.

Sbarro restaurants last month began packing CD-ROMs with four music singles in the lids of 32 oz. soft drink cups. The promotion runs through October. The four groups featured are Lifehouse, 40 Foot Echo, Boomkat and Kooler Kids. The artists were recruited by Melville, NY-based Sbarro, Pepsi, DreamWorks, Hollywood Records and Strategic Integration, which handles packaging.

Planning that dream vacation? Online travel service Expedia.com is offering the chance to win a free trip every day, a travel package created by visitors who plan their own getaway. The contest, Picture Your Perfect Trip, runs through Sept 30 and includes instant-win prizes. Contestants log onto www.expediapromotions.com and enter an e-mail address to play. Travelers can build their own customized vacations, including flights, lodging, car rental and activities. Each day one grand-prize winner receives a trip worth up to $2,000 and five first-place winners receive Nikon COOLPIX 2500 digital cameras.

Virgin Mobile taps its retail siblings for a U.K. cross-promo to boost telecom sales and retail traffic with a loyalty program dubbed Flash-It. The program gives shoppers a one-pound rebate (about $1.50) for every 10 pounds ($15) they spend in Virgin Megastores or Virgin Megastores Xpress. Telecom subscribers show their Virgin Mobile phones at checkout to get a scratch-off phone card, according to U.K. news reports. The effort supports fledgling Virgin Mobile Specialist departments now in 10 Virgin Megastores; Virgin plans to add telecom departments to all 160 stores by 2005. Flash-It first launched at the beginning of the year in Australia, where sibling Virgin Blue airline and third-party retailers and restaurants have since signed on.

Showtime Networks has re-teamed with Toys “R” Us to offer a $50 gift card to new Showtime subscribers. The cards will be available through Dec. 31. Last year, New York City-based Showtime attributed a 22% lift in total business to the promotion. This year, Showtime is expanding the program for the holiday season with a national incentive sweepstakes. Hundreds of prizes, including Vespa Scooters and $5,000 Visa Gift Cards, are being offered. Direct mail, radio spots and direct response television will support. Showtime handles in-house.

Going Bananas

CARTOON NETWORK’S CLASSIC CARTOON sister network, Boomerang, is teaming up with Sunkist Growers, Del Monte Fresh Produce and the National Watermelon Promotion Board for the network’s first consumer promotion, urging consumers to eat fresh produce. Through this month, the partners will offer The Wacky Days of Summer, a promo tailored specifically for 1,272 Albertsons Supermarkets in 37 markets. In-store P-O-P including fruit bin wraps, posters and grocery-bag stuffers will support, as well as live weekend events at select Albertsons stores that feature Boomerang costume character appearances, games and radio broadcasts. Plus, shoppers purchasing fresh produce from one of the partnering brands with their Albertsons Preferred Cards are entered into a sweepstakes offering eight animated cells signed by William Hanna and Joseph Barbera, worth up to $600. Consumer Effects, Sacramento, CA, handles.