Fox's 'Idol' Gets New 'Start'

FOX's American Idol

Fox's early marketing efforts for the ninth season of "American Idol," the top broadcast-rated show, are focusing on its reality show roots rather than its usual high-glam appeal.

Fox's new theme this year -- "They All Start Somewhere" -- will be pushed through its January 12th season opener.

Much of this will be seen in early promos of young talent working as waitresses, signing in subways, or washing dishes. Previous year's themes included "Come Together" and "Share your Voice." The year before that: "Dream Big."

"In the past, we wanted to be big, fun, and glossy," says Joe Earley, executive vice president of marketing and communications for Fox. "[This year] we went for more reality, real moments and real people."

For much on-air promotional material, Fox used handheld cameras to observe early auditions of young, prospective talent in more real-life settings, as well as to follow last-year's winners on tour.

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"Idol" marketing started with one spot during the World Series in late October. Then just before Thanksgiving, Fox took the campaign to a level it calls "The Journey," featuring the talent and their stories. It ran for two weeks.

After that, Fox moved to the 'What's New' part of the campaign -- showing off new talent, new guest judges, and finally the big news that everyone seems to know -- Ellen DeGeneres will be a new judge. Fox did not push DeGeneres early on in promos, since that would have overshadowed the network's broader message of focusing on the real-life aspects of the contestants.

In addition, DeGeneres' late start in coming to the programming was an issue. This means she won't be seen in the early rounds of the auditions. (That's where the guest judges come in.) DeGeneres will show up during "Hollywood Week," which comes after three to four weeks of episodes.

Soon Fox will move to the part of the campaign portraying "American Idol" as a big event. "We did a special promo shoot," says Earley, who would not go into details. During the Bowl Championship Series around New Year's Day, Fox will start up promos featuring those bad, corny, and funny early round auditions.

Fox will also do a number of 'split' 15-second promo spots where viewers are left guessing whether a singer that is introduced to the judges will be good or bad. The first 15-second spot is the intro, the set-up. Then a regularly scheduled commercial will run, followed by another 15-second "Idol" spot -- a 'reveal' performance, showing off good or bad singing.

Other media plans: Digital outdoor boards will start soon in 13 markets. Other outdoor media materials will hit in January in malls, buses, and other places. Weekly magazines targeting females will begin before the show's debut on January 12th.

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