Winter Wonderland
You don’t have to be Santa to understand how important December is to the retail industry.
That’s one reason we’re pleased to bring you our cover story on Best Buy. Managing editor Dan Hanover spent some quality time with the consumer-electronics chain’s top marketing brass to learn about the enhanced role promotion plays in the retailer’s new marketing strategy.
And what’s holiday shopping without a toy story? The industrious Mr. Hanover also scored a private tour of Toys “R” Us’s new flagship store in New York City’s Times Square with no less than executive vp-worldwide marketing and brand management Warren Kornblum as his guide. Dan won’t say whether he got to ride the store’s full-size Ferris wheel, but he does share the insights he gained into the partner-heavy strategy on which this store’s success will turn.
On the other end of the spectrum, we give you a sweeping view of the numerous Olympics-themed campaigns now at the starting gate for the Winter Games in Salt Lake City. Senior writer Carrie MacMillan spoke with nearly two dozen Olympic sponsors about their snow dreams. Most campaigns will spotlight individual athletes — a welcome touch of American pride.
Elsewhere, don’t forget to check out the winners of our annual Dialog Awards, presented to the best interactive campaigns. We started the program six years ago to praise the best in phonecard promotions, but this year broadened its scope to include the Internet, e-mail, in-store, and CD-ROM technology — anything that will get consumers talking back, figuratively or literally. You’ll notice that many of this year’s winning campaigns combined high-tech media pitches with high-touch face-to-face encounters.
Of course, a good promotion idea of any kind is always worth “borrowing,” no matter what form it takes. And if you score a few ideas from the case studies we present on the Globes, awarded to top campaigns around the world by the Association of Promotion Marketing Agencies Worldwide, you may at least gain U.S. bragging rights for the concept.
This issue is a special one for PROMO, because it begins our 15th year of publication. To commemorate this milestone, we’ll be bringing you special coverage as the new year progresses. Details to follow.
In the meantime, we wish you happy holidays and a prosperous New Year.
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