ESPN started running a series of comical Domino’s Pizza spots this week framed as sports-related shorts in a 90-second advertorial format.
The spots, airing during ESPN’s early evening “SportsCenter,” are the latest generation of ESPN Shorts to run on the cable sports network. “Planner presented by Domino’s Pizza” is a sequence of eight spots slated to run over the next eight weeks.
ESPN Shorts started with a series of Sears Craftsman spots in 2004. A year later, Miller spots aired with a timely humorous plotline about a Boston family coping with the untimely demise of an uncle who has a heart attack while watching the Red Sox during the sixth game of the World Series. Toyota also produced content in 90-second sequences.
The latest ESPN Shorts series chronicles the misadventures of sports party planner Stanley Palochak and his protégé, Reid, as they traverse the country producing private parties around big sports events with Domino’s Pizza and its delivery service prominently featured in the plot lines.
“Advertisers are interested in ESPN’s brand as well as SportsCenter’s brand and always looking for ways to break through,” said Eric Johnson, executive vice president of ESPN multimedia sales.
The debut of the Domino’s shorts was timed to coincide with the pre- and post-Super Bowl hoopla on “SportsCenter.”
Ground Zero was the creative agency on the Domino’s campaign. The spots were produced by ESPN.
