Local, Regional Market: Budget under $1 Million

April 6, 2009

So, you’re a TV network looking to build awareness for a series about a familyrun grocery store and you decide to take your message on the road. Naturally, you set up shop at—where else?—the nation’s grocery stores.

Of course, not all of them. Teaming up with SKI Activation last January, TBS entered four markets—Chicago, Los Angeles, Dallas and Columbus, Ohio—with an experiential campaign to promote the premiere of its 10 Items or Less late-night comedy series. The show appeals to the 18-34 age group with its loosely scripted, offbeat portrayal of the lives of employees at Greens & Grains in Columbus.

Stores including HOWS in Los Angeles and Central Market in Dallas were decked out in show signage (vegetable bin flags, shelf signs, posters and banners) while employees wore 10 Items T-shirts, provided bag stuffers and answered questions about the promotion. The idea was to give shoppers a full brand experience through premiere parties, screenings, improvisational skits, games, refreshments and cast appearances.

There was something for everyone. A deejay performed while out-takes from the series were shown on a large screen. An on-site sweepstakes dangled prizes including an Xbox360 and iPod. Gift bags were distributed with branded merchandise.  The efforts were promoted in-store by brand ambassadors in high-traffic areas and live P.A. announcements. Radio ads ran through existing TBS partnerships, and a local media blitz delivered some 55,000 e-blasts and 500,000 online banner impressions.

The series received extensive promotion for an entire week at each location, boosting store traffic. Central Market in Dallas, for example, estimated weekly store traffic at nearly 25,000. The parties averaged over 150 guests apiece, besting the goal of 100. And local media extended the PR boost with mentions of the events, putting the TBS comedy series on the fast lane to success.


Husky is the latest USSTC brand to enter the fast-growing price/value smokeless tobacco segment dominated by Grizzly. Facing strict government limitations on in-store marketing, Husky needed a creative promotion to stand out from the pack—and Colangelo delivered in the form of a sweepstakes adventure called the “Husky eXtreme 24 Hr. Challenge.”
   
The concept? Find the most enduring, extreme, outdoor-savvy consumers, and drop them in the middle of nowhere armed only with a GPS unit to hunt for a double grand prize: two Ford Sport Trac pickups.
   
Three teams of two consumers each traversed the 31,000 acres of the High Lonesome Ranch in Colorado. The contestants were put through rigorous training and GPS coordinate challenges to gain as many sets of keys as they could find in a day. The team that found the most keys scored the grand prize. Husky shot footage of the event and placed webisodes on HuskyUntamed.com. On-pack and in-store merchandising, as well as a direct mail piece, helped spread word of the promotion.
   
Husky beefed up its database with more than 21,000 contest entries. The brand experienced a jump in volume sales (up 4.3 percent) and dollar sales (up 5.9 percent) in comparing the 22-week period prior to, and following, the promotion.


In tough economic times, politicians often talk about putting money back into the pockets of consumers—but Burger King (BK) really meant it.  To reinforce its value message last fall, BK engaged in “reverse pick-pocketing” in Chicago, Orlando and Phoenix. Lucky consumers discovered wallets—filled with money (from $1 up to $100) and a variety of “King” paraphernalia—on sidewalks, at bus stops, on subway seats and in phone booths. The “Drop” spread good cheer and drove traffic to BK restaurants with Crown gift cards and local maps. In all, more than 14,000 wallets were scattered in the three markets and the campaign generated over 5 million PR impressions.