Agency News

NEW YORK A new campaign for Metropolitan Life Insurance from Young & Rubicam, New York, retains the client's longstanding tagline, "Get Met. It pays," but reduces the role of Snoopy, the Peanuts character and longtime brand icon. Instead, three TV spots that broke March 11 emphasize the company's history and the diversity of its sales force. Met Life has budgeted $7 million for the effort, which also includes print ads. The One Club, New York, recognized winners in its One Show Interactive competition. The New York-based Gold Pencil honorees are: Ogilvy Interactive Worldwide, New York, for its IBM campaign; Lowe & Partners/SMS for Sun Microsystems; and Nicholson NY for The Mashantucket Pequot Nation. Grey Advertising's MediaCom unit helped The New York State Lottery make a splash at last month's 1999 Empire State Winter Games torch-lighting ceremony in Lake Placid. MediaCom helped plan the event, which the lottery sponsored. Of the 42 television stations in New York, 36 broadcasted the ceremony live. The 19th annual Empire State Games featured more than 1,200 amateur athletes from across the Northeast competing in winter sports at Olympic venues. WPP Group, based in London and New York, will form Banner McBride North America, a unit which aligns clients' internal communications to their brand image strategy. Max Caldwell, currently director of Towers Perrin's worldwide employee communications practice, will serve as chairman and chief executive of the unit. The move follows Banner McBride's 1997 launch in the United Kingdom and its completion of work for TNT, Compaq, Shell, Arthur Andersen and other clients. Television and print advertising created by Lyons Lavey Nickel Swift and HMC Advertising, both New York, for Pfizer's Zyrtec took top honors in the pharmaceutical category at the Mobius Advertising Awards competition. The "Power of Zyrtec" television spot was selected as best healthcare commercial and best of show. Brand consultancy Interbrand Group, New York, acquired Argentina corporate design firm Avalos & Bourse Comunicaci-n Visual. The new unit, based in Buenos Aires, will be called Interbrand Avalon & Bourse. Lotas Minard Patton McIver, based in New York, has won ad duties on Tequesta, Fla.-based Brause Health's LiFizz Effervescent Vita-mins, an assignment worth $7 million. Financial services company Western Union retained Strategic Sports Group, New York, to develop a series of national grass-roots soccer programs. SSG also extended its contract with Block Drug Company; it will now play an expanded role in Block's sports sponsorship programs. Bates Worldwide has relocated its New York office to 498 Seventh Ave., effective March 22. Phone numbers and e-mail and Web site addresses remain the same. NEW JERSEY Unifoil Corp. selected Block Advertising & Marketing, Verona, to promote its Unilustre line of bright paper and paperboard products. Block will position the brand as, "The brilliant sales force." Unifide Industries, a Sea Bright-based manufacturer of automotive chemicals, performance additives and appearance products, named Green, Lind & McNulty, Union, its advertising and public relations agency. The shop will create industry-specific direct mail and trade advertising for the remainder of 1999. PENNSYLVANIA Hill Flaherty Sabol Marketing Communications, Pittsburgh, was selected by Baker/ Geo Research to market its GeoLink Mapping System. HFS will integrate the product's advertising, collateral materials and direct mail projects. Bozell Kamstra, Pittsburgh, took home six honors from the Pittsburgh American Advertising Awards. The shop's work for the Pennsylvania Center for Travel, Tourism and Film won five Addys and its television spot for the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center received one trophy. LevLane Public Relations, based in Bala Cynwyd, has been retained by SEI Investments' asset management group.

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