Birthday Battle Plans
Think back a few weeks to June 14. Remember the date for any special reason? If all you can come up with is Flag Day, the marketing folks at the U.S. Army are bound to be disappointed.
This year, June 14 also marked the Army’s 225th anniversary. To celebrate, the service put on quite a wingding, giving their own troops and all of America a grand opportunity to stand up and salute more than just the flag.
In Washington, DC, events included an early-morning staff run capped off with a parachute jump by the Army’s own Golden Knights and Today Show news anchor Ann Curry, a ceremonial cake-cutting at the Capitol, and a black-tie birthday ball. Major and Minor League Baseball parks across the country staged events, Army secretary Louis Caldera rang the opening bell at the New York Stock Exchange, and bases at home and abroad held bashes.
To prolong the festivities, the Army held an online promotion through June for personnel and their families and friends that featured a daily sweepstakes, e-mail birthday cards, downloadable video vignettes of Army life, and the “Army Insignia Concentration Game.” Framingham, MA-based Cohen-Friedberg Associates, handled.
The original seed for the worldwide celebration was planted 25 years ago, when the oldest of the nation’s armed services was marking its 200th birthday (dating back to the formation of the Continental Army after the Boston Tea Party). Unfortunately, there was scant attention paid to that bicentennial, primarily because the nation’s own highly anticipated and ballyhooed 200th a year later was already occupying major attention.
Army marketers considered a 250th shindig, but realized that most of them would likely have been reassigned to that big barracks in the sky by then, and therefore opted for a blowout commemorating 225.
“The Army has done too much not to celebrate,” says Major John Suttle, deputy director, U.S. Army Marketing, Washington, DC. “The American people, especially recent generations who haven’t served, don’t know what the Army has done.” Beyond fighting wars around the world, he cites non-military feats such as the Lewis and Clark expedition, the cure for yellow fever, and the launch of the first satellite.
To ensure that the Army, its soldiers, and their accomplishments were properly lauded, Army leadership set out nearly a year ago to develop a strategic plan for promoting and conducting the celebration, which was dubbed “Birth of an Army, Birth of Freedom” and assigned an estimated budget of $1.46 million. Army Public Affairs conducted focus groups with military and civilian participants to determine awareness of the anniversary, test key messages, and access proposed tactics. The results, combined with other research, led to a defined set of objectives, the most important of which was to let as many Americans as possible join the festivities. (Additionally, the occasion presented ideal on-site recruiting opportunities at events.)
Restricted by government regulations that generally prohibit commercial sponsorships, Army Public Affairs launched a massive p.r. campaign aimed at national, local, and internal media. Although it proved to be a “really hard sell,” Suttle admits, the effort was able to land the Today Show jump, a weather report-related gig on Good Morning America, a feature in U.S. News and World Report, and various other coverage.
Supporting promotions included an Army-sponsored car in the Coca-Cola 600 NASCAR race during Memorial Day weekend, the marketing of commemorative coins and a coffee-table book, and a week of Army-related programs on The History Channel. The Army and Air Force Exchange System of on-base retail stores were set to carry special publications and in-store promotions through the summer.
“All this helps build esprit de corps within the Army,” says Suttle. “It gives a sense of the Army’s place in history.”
Cohen-Friedberg was one of the few outside agencies enlisted for the anniversary preparation. “This was our first time working with the government,” says co-owner Mark Cohen, whose agency’s clients include Lycos, The New York Times Co., and IBM. “They were terrific to work with – very detailed, good at giving direction, and willing to be flexible. We looked at them like any corporate client targeting a market. Their goal was to try and build a warm feeling when people came to the site.”
Breaking traditional ranks, the site was sponsored by Military.com, a San Francisco-based Internet venture that provides news, information, and e-commerce links related to all armed services branches.
If all this hoopla did pass under your radar screen, be sure to give an extra salute to Old Glory next June 14.
Sporting goods manufacturer Mizuno Corp., Norcross, GA, is back barnstorming this summer with the Dare to Dream tour, which targets retailers and communities through a tie-in with local and professional baseball. Mizuno credits the four-year-old tour with helping it become the second-largest seller of baseball gloves through sporting-goods chains.
The tour kicked off this spring and runs through the end of the baseball season, making 200 appearances at Little League fields, retail outlets, and Major League Baseball parks in 50 cities nationwide. Mizuno has partnered with more than 100 retailers including Sports Authority, Dick’s Sporting Goods, Modell’s, and Oshman’s Sporting Goods.
The Dare to Dream Baseball Tour features an inflatable batting cage, an interactive pitching station, appearances by MLB players, and demonstrations of glove- and cleat-making (with the items raffled off at each stop.) “With today’s game, there’s a certain disconnect between players and the fans, and we try to bring that back with our tours,” says Jeff Fiorini, Mizuno’s vp-diamond sports.
The tour has drawn more than 500,000 consumers since its ’97 debut. “It’s been an excellent vehicle for awareness,” says Stan Poladski, director of special events and promotions for Houston-based Oshman’s. “These efforts may not see payback immediately, but they set the stage [for] down the road.”
Mizuno’s recent baseball efforts have included extending its contracts with pro players. The company currently outfits 200 Major Leaguers with fielding gloves, 85 with batting gloves, 85 with cleats, and 60 with wristbands.
Electronic bookstore barnesandnoble.com kicked off a year-long mobile marketing tour that will bring it face-to-face with consumers around the nation in the company’s largest promotion yet. Dubbed Barnesandnoble.com On Tour, the effort will visit about 40 cities with a traveling caravan of technology including 20 computers, two video walls, and six hand-held personal digital assistants. The devices will allow consumers to experience the impact of technology on book reading and buying, says vp-brand marketing John Rindlab.
Visitors to the 80-foot-long trailer exhibit will learn helpful reading hints and test drive electronic-book readers. Other activities will vary.
New York City-based Barnesandnoble.com added a cause component with a link to First Book, a nonprofit literacy program that gives books to underprivileged children. M3 Marketing, Birmingham, MI, handles.
