Agency News

New York Saatchi & Saatchi's first U.S. work for Beck's beer pokes fun at the client's German heritage. One TV spot shows a German standup comedian unable to get laughs; another features a tight-collared man unable to relax; and in a third, actors portray Romeo and Juliet in stiff, absurd costumes. Each spot ends with the thump of a wet Beck's bottle on a counter and the tagline: "Beck's. The best of what Germans do best." Backed by print ads, billboards and radio spots, the $20 million campaign broke earlier this month. Saatchi & Saatchi, which also handles Beck's in Germany, landed U.S. and Italian duties in April. J. Walter Thompson in New York breaks two new 30-second TV spots in its campaign for Zantac 75 with the tagline, "Doctors know." Leveraging its status as the most-prescribed acid reducer, one spot shows a cowboy suffering from heartburn. He is offered Zantac by a city slicker who turns out to be a doctor. Warner-Lambert in Morris Plains, N.J., spent roughly $50 million on the brand last year, according to Competitive Media Reporting. True North Communications, New York, has signed a long-term deal under which Competitive Media Reporting will continue to provide research services to True North companies, including the Bozell and Foote, Cone & Belding agency networks. True North has also selected Nielsen Media Research, New York, as the primary supplier of competitive advertising information to FCB. BCA Advertising, New York, picked up the ad accounts of the Doyle Washington Hotel in Washington, D.C., and Startec Global Communications in Bethesda, Md. The Lowe Group, New York, has purchased a minority stake in the Steven Rifking Co., an urban marketing specialist. SRC developed the "Street Team," which uses hip-hop performers to market products to urban consumers. DeVito Fitterman, New York, has taken on two new assignments. Franklin Electronic Publishers has tapped the agency to handle ad duties on the launch of its new REX Pro organizer. The shop will also update the image of the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers in a campaign that will include print and radio ads. Brand-image firm Desgrippes Gobƒ, New York, has been accepted into the American Association of Advertising Agencies. The agency has developed branding efforts for such clients as Coca-Cola, Gillette, IBM and Sears. Stein Rogan + Partners, New York, has been selected by Discovery Enterprises Worldwide to develop direct mail campaigns for five of its publishing and home-video products. The campaigns are slated for fall 1998 and early 1999. Harrison Leifer Miller & Speyer, New York, bowed a print, radio and direct mail campaign marking the opening of two new Harvey Electronics stores in Long Island and Westchester. The campaign, with the theme "The in place for the out of the ordinary," launches in The New York Times and will run in newspapers across the New York area through the end of December. Unilever Home & Personal Care, manufacturer of such products as Mentadent, Thermasilk, Dove, Pond's and Wisk, named Lunt Sausville Burek, New York, as its business-to-business ad shop. Greg Loh, partner, director of public relations services at Eric Mower Associates, Syracuse, has won the "40 Under 40" award. That honor, given to upstate New York business leaders less than 40 years old, is sponsored by The Central New York Business Journal, the Greater Syracuse Chamber of Commerce, Leadership Greater Syracuse and M&T Bank. New York-based Unidigital has acquired Hy Zazula Associates, a digital retouching and pre-press company also based in New York. Zazula will be absorbed into Unidigital's Kwik International Color division and will be known as Kwik/Zazula. New Jersey Scelba Scelba DeTitta & Wolfson in Montville has received Print Magazine's National Design Excellence Award for print advertising. The winning ad, designed for Olflex Wire & Cable, depicts three identically dressed robots with the headline, "When you need an automation cable specialist, you can't afford to talk to a robot." TMP Worldwide Direct, Mt. Olive, has been selected by Michelin North America to develop and implement a dealer locator direct response program for its Michelin, B.F. Goodrich and Uniroyal brands. TMP was also chosen to handle a direct response campaign for Hewi, a manufacturer of home hardware accessories. The Research & Development Council of New Jersey has tapped Richartz & Fliss Integrated Marketing Communications as its public relations and administrative management firm. R&D is a non- profit organization consisting of major corporations and small high-technology companies in New Jersey. Pennsylvania Impax Marketing Group, Philadelphia, has relocated from Arch Street to South 23rd Street to accommodate new employees. The new offices allow the agency to offer more in-house services. Scott-Levin, a healthcare marketing agency in Newtown, released the results of a drug and diagnosis audit of physicians. The study found that patients have been visiting doctors more for heavily advertised conditions such as allergies and migraines. A Scott-Levin direct- to-consumer advertising audit found that the pharmaceutical industry spent more that $830 million on DTC advertising from January through August. Connecticut Darien-based marketing communications and advertising agency Wiggin & Wiggin was selected by Cotton Inc. to create a campaign predicting color and texture trends in the home fashion industry. The effort's theme is, "Personal Places." Logo design firm Silverman Group in New Haven was honored for four of its creations by the publisher of the book Logo 2000. Silverman was honored for work for Starter, Electrical Contactors, Pettit Construction, and the Bridgeport Bluefish baseball team. Seven clients of Newtown-based Goodwick Associates were named to the Connecticut Technology Council's "Fast 50," a list of the fastest-growing technology firms based in the state. Those companies are: Triple Point Technology, Photronics, Information Management Associates, Trident International, Ivans and Memry Corp.

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