Schick, Vevo Ink Sponsorship Deal

Schick Hydro, an Energizer brand, has signed on as the exclusive launch sponsor of a new channel showcasing emerging artists on entertainment site Vevo.“The Next Wave,” as the channel is called, went live on Vevo this week, and features original programming from Boston-based electronic pop band Passion Pit. Over the next few months, “The Next Wave” will promote music from a variety of genres, including rock, alternative, hip-hop and R&B, said David Kohl, Vevo’s evp of sales and customer operations.“This is the first-ever programming channel on the Vevo platform that celebrates emerging music, aggregating the industry’s hottest developing acts across multiple genres,” Kohl said. Schick and Vevo are partnering through the end of this year.The deal will allow Schick Hydro to tap into new ways of marketing its razor, which hit shelves in April and is being positioned as a “breakthrough” in male grooming. Energizer describes it as the “most thoroughly tested, highest-rated products in the brand’s 88-year history,” with new features like a flip trimmer, advanced hydrating gel reservoir and skin guards. An ad, now running, shows a boxer and a soccer player experiencing a “blast of hydration.” In each of the scenarios, a blast of water literally hits the men in the face. The tagline is, “Free your skin.” (Meanwhile, Procter & Gamble has introduced the Gillette Fusion ProGlide, which also aims to deliver a closer shave, according to ads.)Schick Hydro's target demo is 18- to- 34-year-old males, which is why partnering with Vevo made a lot of sense, said Dan Kinton, Schick's senior brand manager. “Men have [many] media and entertainment options at their disposal, and can often be distracted, so we needed a platform that integrates the brand’s message in a way that’s not interrupted,” Kinton said. Schick Hydro’s core target is interested in “learning about music discovery and new artists and bands,” he added.Energizer spent $5 million since April advertising Schick Hydro, excluding online, per the Nielsen Co. The razor brand worked with MEC:Access, the entertainment and sports partnership arm of media agency MEC, to broker the deal. Other partners who participated in the launch include Amplitude Marketing Group in Newtown, Conn.In addition to Vevo, Kinton said the brand will continue to explore cutting-edge digital channels to market its razors. One example is “Clean Break,” an unscripted Web series launching next week on the Sony Pictures Entertainment-owned online video network, Crackle. The plot involves two tour guides who travel the country in pursuit of “the hottest action water sports and coolest locals-only experiences,” per Energizer. Through Facebook and other social nets, the brand is allowing consumers to shape the storyline.

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Schick, Vevo Ink Sponsorship Deal

Elaine Wong

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