Clean Sweep: P&G puts Dryel through its paces for mall visitors.

Procter & Gamble’s Dryel fabric care product promises to save consumers a bundle in costs and time previously devoted to dry cleaning. When P&G was planning the product’s rapid national rollout two years ago, it became clear that an advertising-only campaign might raise more questions than it would answer.

Dryel is positioned as an everyday alternative to professional dry cleaning, but many consumers aren’t entirely sure how dry cleaning actually works. P&G realized it would have to meet consumers face-to-face and give them the full story on Dryel to prove they could trust the product with their delicate garments.

Before plotting its strategy, P&G and agency U.S. Marketing & Promotions, Torrance, CA, identified malls as the ideal place to reach dry-cleaning customers at a time when they are receptive to a pitch. “People are not really at a mall [only] to shop. They are there to socialize,” says USM&P director of client services Michael Napoliello.

Of the average two-and-a-half-hour mall visit, only one hour is devoted to shopping, with the rest spent eating or meeting other people, according to research compiled by USM&P. And since the average American goes to the mall twice a month, a display of even a two-week duration will reach almost everyone in town. Furthermore, research found that 85 percent of “dry clean only” clothing purchases are made in malls, Napoliello says.

P&G test-marketed the idea at six events in Columbus, OH, before the official rollout. The demonstrations produced a conversion rate of 33 percent, says P&G assistant brand manager Allen Hwang.

P&G launched the Dryel National Mall Tour in September to provide full-scale demonstrations showing how the product turns the home dryer into a super appliance. Demos featured two working dryers manned by eight “ambassadors” who took consumers through the cleaning process. Twenty-six crews, running 10-day programs at each stop, will conduct 350,000 demos in 275 U.S. and Canadian malls before the tour ends March 12.

Spicing up some of the stops in the $15 million effort are meet-and-greets with celebrities who talk for 20 minutes to 30 minutes about Dryel’s benefits. Featured speakers on Fridays and Saturdays at 89 venues have included General Hospital soap opera star Alison Cuffe, Olympic gold medal speed skater Cathy Turner, Shannon MacMillan of the U.S. National Women’s Hockey Team, and WNBA hoopster La’keshia Frett.

The tour kicked off at the Mall of America in Minneapolis with a Liz Claiborne fashion show hosted by Mrs. Minnesota, Tawnja Bauer. Claiborne herself provided an endorsement for the product.

“People are coming back to the mall after two or three days to report that they bought the product,” says Hwang, adding that stores near the events are reporting increased sales and some sell-outs. “We have been more than happy with the end results – and the execution – of this program,” he says.

More than 1.5 million consumers interacted with the displays, and five million more picked up literature at the kiosks by the end of January, Procter & Gamble reported. The tour is also expected to produce 20 million media impressions. And the brand is on pace to become a $120 million product in its first year, says Hwang.

Call this one a tour de force.

Why are festivals and fairs thriving as venues for corporate selling, even though attendance figures aren’t exactly soaring? Maybe because they’re a gathering place for the American family, where companies can sample, host events, and showcase their products in a fun, leisurely atmosphere.

“Attendance at fairs isn’t way up. It’s kind of stable,” says Jeffrey Milgrom, president of promotion development firm Event Marketing Strategies, Dublin, OH. Unlike the old days, when state fairs and traveling festivals were highly anticipated events, today’s consumers have many more activities to draw their interest – from Six Flags theme parks to IMax theaters, Milgrom notes.

Corporate sponsorship of fairs, on the other hand, is booming. “Companies are much more likely to look at fairs now, and [the market is] growing each year,” Milgrom says. North American companies spent $685 million in 1999 to sponsor fairs, festivals, and annual events. The figure represents nine percent of total sponsorship spending and will increase to $740 million this year, according to IEG, Inc., Chicago.

Average income growth among fairs was 31 percent in 1999, with sponsorships accounting for 47 percent of total income, according to IEG. The average sponsorship renewal rate was 88 percent in 1999.

Fox Family Channel mounted a summer tour last year, called the Fox Family Fest, after completely revamping its programming lineup with shows targeted to younger audiences. Hitting the fair circuit represented a means of “getting out where the families are,” says Fox Family Channel director of marketing operations Bob Green.

The Fox Fest featured interactive elements such as stage events, magic shows, readings by network star Captain Kangaroo, and a haunted house. As a leading Fox advertiser, Hasbro was invited to showcase its toys on the tour, which stopped for three-day visits at 18 fairs and festivals including the Los Angeles County Fair, the Ohio State Fair, and the Puyalup (Washington) State Fair.

Fox also used the tour to introduce its new gender-specific Boys and Girls digital channels. Visitors could learn about the new services via computers at the fair sites.

Of the estimated 2.6 million people who attended the fairs, 1.6 million participated in Fox’s activities, says Brad Bryen, executive vp at U.S. Concepts, New York City, which handled.

Cable companies like Fox, Nickelodeon, and the Discovery Channel that exploit the fair/festival circuit use the tours to build relations with local cable affiliates in addition to reaching potential viewers. Affiliate stations shared in Fox Fest equity by signing deals with one local sponsor that was allowed to sell its services in dedicated booths.

Green says he’s committed to programs that engage consumers, and doesn’t see fairs as the only option. “We’re considering an amusement park tour, where we could showcase our musical talent,” he says. “We have to get out wherever the families are.”