Second Set
Irvine, CA-based Lincoln Mercury late this month heads back to the United States Tennis Center in Flushing, NY, for the second flight of a five-year, $20 million US Open tennis sponsorship first inked in mid-2000.
Lincoln’s first attempt to maximize the sponsorship proved to be a show stopper at last year’s Open (September 2000 PROMO): The Ford Motor Co. unit converted one of the tennis complex’s unused buildings — the size of three courts — into an interactive “Immersion” with sound stages, wind machines, pumped-in odors, and other elements to present a new definition of American luxury. The exhibit concluded by debuting the new Blackwood pick-up/SUV hybrid. Some 60,000 people took the tour.
The company will commandeer the same building this year for Innovations, an endeavor designed to herald Lincoln’s auto designs and the brand’s sense of “indulgent luxury.” The exhibit will once again carry a tennis theme, but instead of sound stages and exhibits will feature more interactive components such as masseuses giving backrubs and tennis pros (provided by Wilson) running clinics on a miniature court. It will wrap with a presentation of the Mark IV concept car and an interactive farewell still being developed at press time. New York City-based Wunderman’s Irvine office handles.
Last year was a passive walk-through,” says Jennifer Beindorf, Lincoln’s integrated marketing manager. “This year, we’re adding more energy.”
Lincoln will use vehicle displays positioned around the Tennis Center grounds and manned by “product specialists” to drive traffic to Innovations. The displays will feature messaging and interactive efforts of their own: One for the Blackwood will feature a faux stadium in front of which visitors will be photographed holding a replica of the men’s championship trophy. The photos will be e-mailed to them after the event along with product information and possibly a sweeps.
Joining the festivities will be tennis champ and newly signed Lincoln spokesperson John McEnroe, who will be featured in TV spots (via Wunderman sister Young & Rubicam’s Irvine office) running before and during matches on CBS and USA Network. McEnroe will also make on-site appearances.
“We’re planning some interesting things to spark dialog with consumers,” says Beindorf. “We’re trying to not take ourselves too seriously this year.”
Citrus marketing cooperative Sunkist Growers and Chicago-based Bally Total Fitness last month broke a national program offering free health club trials with produce purchases. Sherman Oaks, CA-based Sunkist is distributing 750,000 two-week trial membership vouchers in four-pound bags of oranges and five-pound bags of grapefruits. In-store fitness demonstrations by personal trainers in such retail chains as Ralphs, Randall’s, and Tom Thumb support. Chain-specific sweeps for fitness equipment and a national sweeps serving one-year Bally memberships add to the buzz. This is the third time the two have partnered.
Friskies PetCare Co., Glendale, CA, unleashed Say Come ‘N Get It and Win’ an on-pack sweepstakes offering more than $100,000 in total prizes and a $25,000 grand prize. Packaging contains a gamepiece with a PIN consumers punch in after calling a toll-free number; they then must shout out their own dinner call for their pet. P-O-P includes interactive floor ads (from Troy, MI-based FloorGraphics) with 3-D images and an audio message that barks out the promotional pitch when pressed. Friskies dropped an FSI last month to drive consumers to participating chains Brunos, Kroger, Winn-Dixie, Food Lion, Safeway, Super K, Vons, P&C, Food-A-Rama, and Big V. The sweeps will also be supported by a direct-mail campaign to 25,000 customers, national publicity, online activity, and events in Charlotte, NC, and Portland, OR. The sweeps ends in May 2002.
Ford Motor Co.’s Jaguar, Mahwah, NJ, hit the road last month as sponsor of singer Janet Jackson’s All For You World Tour 2001, which runs through mid-October. The brand’s new X-Type model is featured along with Jackson in a video that opens each performance, and will be displayed at each venue. Jaguar also gets title billing, arena signage, and inclusion in all tour advertising, promotion, and publicity. A radio overlay will offer the car for a two-year lease. Jaguar’s first tour sponsorship, the deal “is a powerful statement of our intentions to become more accessible to a new generation,” says Jaguar North America vp-marketing Michelle Cervantez. The tour is produced by New York City-based Clear Channel Entertainment (formerly SFX, Inc.).
The Dannon Co., Tarrytown, NY, is partnering with Web search engine Lycos, Inc. on a summer kids’ campaign that puts tags for the Waltham, MA-based portal’s Lycos Zone kids site on a whopping 200 million Dannon Danimals yogurt cups and bottles. In return for the packaging real estate, Dannon scores ad space on lycoszone.com, which will also contain Dannon-branded games.
Marathon Ashland Petroleum, Findlay, OH, is giving consumers two million reasons to filler-up through Sept. 4 with a Million Dollar Madness Giveaway, which presents petrol purchasers with scratch-off gamecards carrying a code entered at milliondollarmadness.com to reveal prizes. The grand prize is $2 million. Cohen Friedberg Associates, Boston, handles.
JVC, Wayne, NJ, throttles back on Ride the Wild Side, a campaign that has recruited Motley Crue member Nicky Sixx, snowboarding and mountain bike champion Shaun Palmer, and skateboarder Jason Maxwell to woo 18- to 29-year-old males in a new loyalty program. For every purchase, consumers earn points that can be redeemed for DVDs and CDs, Fender guitars (including a Buddy Guy-autographed Stratocaster), Hoffman BMX bikes, and Dragon sunglasses. A Wild Side Weekend sweeps overlay will award travel packages of the winner’s choice to consumers and promotional partners. Elsewhere, JVC signed a three-year, $40 million deal with Los Angeles-based New Line Cinema making it the exclusive electronics partner for the studio’s upcoming trilogy, The Lord of the Rings. The first film premieres Dec. 19.
Ben & Jerry’s, South Burlington, VT, is looking for potential stars for Citizen Cool, a movie project that will highlight people doing extraordinary things in their communities. Scoop Trucks are touring top markets through August collecting tales of local good deeds and sampling ice cream. P-O-P in supermarkets and Ben & Jerry’s outlets, FSIs, radio spots, and information on benjerry.com support. The Citizen Cool premiere will be held this fall at the annual Ben & Jerry’s Golden Cone Awards in Burlington. Centra Marketing & Communications, Westbury, NY, handles.
Stamford, CT-based Mott’s, Inc. is readying a national program tying its Margaritaville line of mixes to the line’s inspiration: singer Jimmy Buffet. Mott’s will sample the mixes and distribute coupons at Buffet concerts in August and September. A retail-based sweeps supports through Oct. 1; four winners will receive a trip for two to a city with one of Buffet’s Margaritaville restaurants. Ryan Partnership, Westport, CT, handles.
