Riding High
Sweeps, games and contests emerged relatively unscathed from the McScandal of 2001 to enjoy a spending increase of 9 percent to $1.8 billion in 2002, according to PROMO estimates. Budget cutbacks and privacy concerns haven’t slowed down marketers’ enthusiasm for sweeps and games, tailor-made to generate lots of publicity without breaking the bank or taking too much time to implement.
While the McDonald’s sweepstakes fraud scandal shifted the emphasis to security in 2001, a different worry surfaced in 2002 when marketers and lawyers became aware of a patent for online fulfillment of on-pack game pieces, held by Laurie Cairns, who began approaching marketers in April 2002 to negotiate licensing fees. Marketers worried that a per-game piece fee in Cairns’ initial offer could make on-pack/online games cost-prohibitive. Law firms Winston & Strawn, Chicago, and Cohen, Silverman & Rowan, New York City, hunted for prior art to show that on-pack/online promos were in use before Cairns filed her patent claim in Feb. 1998.
The glut of games and sweepstakes is forcing marketers to differentiate themselves from the rest of the pack. Purchase, NY-based Pepsi-Cola will raise the bar this fall with a game show on the WB Network that could award the winner $1 billion dollars. The contest will be structured to make winning the grand prize difficult, but Pepsi is said to have put up the prize itself and is eager to insure the show against a potential winner.
Online games are being used more often in conjunction with sweepstakes. Polaroid Corp., Cambridge, MA, combined sweepstakes and gaming elements for its Click Instantly promotion, which runs through December 2004 in both the U.S. and Canada. When a customer loads a pack of specially marked Click Instantly film, the camera ejects a “dark slide” that acts as a game piece featuring code numbers used to enter an instant-win sweepstakes at polaroid.com/clickinstantly. Participants can also download five 3-D interactive games — one targeting the older Polaroid 600 audience, one targeting younger I-Zone users, and three general audience games. DVC Interactive, Morristown, NJ, is handling the Web site, while DVC BrandGames, New York City, developed the games.
Sweeps aren’t just for consumers anymore. “We’re seeing a lot of interest in trade-oriented sweepstakes,” says Doug Lawton, director of sales and marketing at The National Sweepstakes Co., Rochester, NY. However, the trade folks aren’t as experienced with sweeps so you spend as much time educating as you do implementing.”
Contests tend to attract consumers who are already passionate about the brand — a boon for brands that refocused marketing dollars on core customers last year. “Contests are gaining new life as brands look for effective ways to get their messages across,” says Jay Zempke, VP-business development at Gage Marketing, Minneapolis. “We’re not necessarily seeing more contests, but we are seeing better ones.”
A successful contest can set up a promotional franchise for a brand. Last year, Pillsbury celebrated the 53rd anniversary of its Bake-Off contest, which asks consumers to create recipes featuring Pillsbury ingredients. “A sweepstakes is random,” says Jeff Peterson, director of corporate promotion and marketing for Pillsbury parent General Mills. “With a contest, you earn the prize.”
Elsewhere, Atlanta-based Georgia Pacific revitalized its Brawny paper towel brand with the Do You Know a Brawny Man contest, which asked women to send photos and 150-word descriptions explaining why their guy was as rugged as the product. The winner got a Dodge Durango and his likeness featured on Brawny packages for a limited time. The Brawny Man contest boosted household penetration by 10 percent and volume 12 percent.
GAMES CONTESTS SWEEPS SNAPSHOT
total spent in 2002: $1.80 billion
Spending on games, contests and sweeps rose 9 percent in 2002
Contests gained favor as brands sought a more personal connection with loyal customers
Marketers are differentiating sweepstakes by raising the bar for prizes
