On the Game Again

WILLIE NELSON KNOWS a thing or two about lax tax bills. The country music legend had a run-in with the IRS in 1990 when he failed to pay $16 million in back taxes. His assets were frozen, but he’s since squared away his bill with the government. Now, H&R Block has signed the “outlaw” singer for a Super Bowl spot implying the trouble he could have avoided had he sought the tax preparer’s expert advice.

The Kansas City, MO-based financial services company is touting its Double Check service, in which H&R Block reviews filed tax forms up to three years old. “Willie got some very bad advice; he didn’t knowingly or ever intend to have a tax situation,” says Karl Ploeger, VP-creative and media services at H&R Block. “We are utilizing his history to show that you don’t have to live with bad advice and you can check past returns.”

This is H&R Block’s second year of sponsoring the Super Bowl pre-game show and running spots during the game. Last year’s Coen Brothers-directed “Taxman” commercial brought in record sales for the firm. The company also ditched its two-year old Million-Dollar Giveaway campaign for a Tax Freedom for Life sweeps to tout Double Check (which is free for new clients and generates an average of $1,300 for customers). One grand-prize winner will receive the equivalent of having their federal taxes paid for life (or $500,000). Ten runners-up score $10,000 for 2002 taxes. Direct mail and ads in USA Weekend, Parade, Entertainment Weekly, Sports Illustrated, and People support. Consumers can also enter through tax season (by April 15) at any H&R Block business — in offices, through tax software programs, and via online tax filing.

And they couldn’t ask for a better campaign kick-off than the Super Bowl. “The timing for us — right when people are getting their W-2 forms — is probably better than any other singular advertiser in the game,” says Ploeger. Campbell-Mithun, Minneapolis, handles. (See Hot Properties for more Super Bowl coverage.)

Gatorade takes its National Basketball Association sponsorship global for its first-ever international push behind a single sport. The multi-year deal begins Jan. 1 and includes NBA-themed ads and promos, grassroots events, and merchandising. Gatorade’s existing endorsement deals with Michael Jordan (Washington Wizards) and Vince Carter (Toronto Raptors) will put those players on packages and P-O-P in non-U.S. markets. Gatorade has sponsored the NBA since 1984, and wants to capitalize on international interest in basketball. Purchase, NY-based PepsiCo owns Gatorade.

Los Angeles-based New Line Cinema and Verizon Wireless of Bedminster, NJ, inked a two-year alliance to create a range of promotions tied to the Lord of the Rings theatrical and DVD releases. The deal encompasses broadcast, print, radio, online, in-store efforts, exclusive wireless content (such as games and chat rooms) for Verizon customers, and a co-branded Web site, verizonwireless.com/lotr. The second film in the series, The Two Towers, opened last month.

H.J. Heinz Co., Pittsburgh, targets nine- to 14-year-olds with an Ore Ida Bagel Bites Extreme Redeem auction that runs through May. Kids collect on-pack points, then go to bagelbites.com to bid on prizes from snowboard lessons and Sony PlayStation 2 videogames to T-shirts. Think 360, based in Hawthorne, NY, handles the campaign; FairMarket, based in Boston, handles the auction itself. Heinz wants to boost purchase frequency and engage kids online.

Nextel Communications Inc., Reston, VA, has teamed with the National Hockey League for a Donate a Phone promotion through Jan. 19 to aid the NHL’s Hockey Fights Cancer program. In 11 NHL markets, teams are asking fans to recycle their old wireless phones during designated “Nextel Nights” and hosting hockey skills contests for fans. Winners score trips to the 2003 NHL All-Star Weekend in Sunrise, FL, where they square off against other contestants. The winner shoots against a professional goalie between periods during the Feb. 2 All-Star Game for the chance to win $250,000. Octagon, Stamford, CT, handles.

Motorola Inc., Plantation, FL, is supporting its new line of accessories for iDEN multi-communications phones with a Connect with Color sweepstakes, giving away a 2003 Hummer H2 vehicle as the grand prize. The accessories (such as ear buds, carrying cases, and battery charges) come in blue, purple, smoke, and clear colors. Consumers enter at motorolawinners.com and the winner will be drawn in June. Through the end of May, select Motorola products will carry scratch-off game cards offering up accessory prizes.

General Mills‘ Wheaties has signed a two-year National Basketball Association sponsorship deal. The deal gives Minneapolis-based Mills league, team, and player rights for the NBA and WNBA. Other corporate sponsors for this season so far include Adidas, Lego, Dell Computer, MBNA, and Southwest Airlines.

Krakus Polish Hams brings fine art to the deli. A sweeps will send one winner to San Francisco to view the art exhibit “Leonardo da Vinci and the Splendor of Poland.” Consumers in Milwaukee and Chicago can enter the sweeps via FSIs, radio promotions, and via tear pads at deli counters this month. The campaign, which supports the launch of six new meat products, will then run in New England in February and March. Blue Chip Marketing & Communications, Northfield, IL, handles for Krakus Foods International, Cudahy, WI.

Dodge’s Ram brand logo is coming in handy for this year’s Asian Lunar New Year (the Year of the Lamb). The Auburn Hills, MI-based DaimlerChrysler brand is participating in three different New Year events this month and next. First up is title sponsorship of the Asian American Expo in Los Angeles Jan. 25 and 26, followed by a guerrilla marketing event in San Francisco Feb. 15 and 16. An exclusive sponsorship of a celebration in Flushing, NY, is tentatively planned for early February, too. Dodge will showcase its full fleet of vehicles at the events, including the new Dodge SRT-4 compact car, and host various activities such as games. DaimlerChrysler’s multicultural marketing agency GlobalHue, Southfield, MI, handles.

Verizon next month slides out its seventh Luge Challenge event at six ski resorts. Adults and children over the age of 10 can take their turns going down an icy track carved into the mountain face. USA Luge athletes and coaches will demonstrate and teach participants techniques, such as the basics of accelerating, steering, and stopping. The five individuals who clock the fastest in each age group will win prizes from various sporting companies, including Duofold Clothing and LaCrosse Footwear. The events will take place on weekends in January through March at resorts in Oregon, Vermont, Utah, and New Hampshire, kicking off Jan. 11 at Ski Windham in New York. IMG Group, New York City, handles. The New York City-based company is a sponsor of the USA Luge team.

Just in time for New Year’s diet resolutions, Framingham, MA-based Jazzercise and Gorton’s, Gloucester, MA, this month have teamed for a cross promotion. By sending in two UPCs of Gorton’s Grilled Fillets, consumers can attend three free 60-minute Jazzercise classes through the end of August. Cohen-Friedberg Associates, Framingham, handles. P-O-P displays at 13,000 stores and activity at jazzercise.com and gortons.com/jazzercise support.

Tony’s Plays Game Boy

Nintendo of America, Redmond, WA, and Marshall, MN-based Schwan’s Consumer Brands — parent of Tony’s Pizza — have teamed for an on-pack sweepstakes running in grocery stores through July 1. Specially-marked boxes of Tony’s Pizza will feature the chance to win 3,000 Game Boy Advance prizes, including tip cards with secret hints for playing new games such as Super Mario World and Legend of Zelda. First-prize winners (350 total) receive a Game Boy Advance hand-held video game system, while 600 second-prize winners receive Game Boy Advance games. Another 2,000 third-prize winners receive a Game Boy Advance Game Link cable. M-Factor, Minneapolis, handles.