• by Amy Corr , Staff Writer @MediaPostOTL, April 6, 2005

The return of Mr. Six. Match.com shows an extreme way to say, "I'm sorry." Tourism ads. Let's launch!

Oh the things we do for love. Match.com kicked off its latest TV campaign with a 60-second spot on "Desperate Housewives." There are three executions in all using the company's new slogan ­ "Love is complicated. Match is simple." Hanft Raboy & Partners created the campaign, which was shot at the Rose Bowl. The ads aim to show a real world understanding of what love is all about - it's not always hunky dory. The spot shows a man painting his chest. We see him at a football game and one automatically assumes that he's painted on his team name. Next, the man feverishly runs down the bleachers and on to the football field. Clad only in boxers, the camera pans in on his chest that reads, "Forgive me Andrea." The spot ends with three women watching the game one of them being Andrea, with a friend commenting, "how romantic."

Hooray! Baseball season is upon us. The San Francisco GIANTS have launched an outdoor campaign, but don't expect to see too much Barry Bonds. Ads featuring the slugger have been cut back - Bonds had knee surgery and may not play at all this season. The outdoor campaign consists of bus shelters and wallscape ads, featuring Bonds, Moises Alou, Jason Schmidt, and J.T. Snow, all photographed to appear as giant figures. The bus shelter and the wallscape ads are located throughout San Francisco. Radio and print ads launched last month on local stations and in the San Francisco Chronicle. The campaign was created by kirshenbaum bond san francisco and launched on March 21.

Boone/Oakley debuted its first work for the Charlotte Regional Visitors Authority last month. The creative focuses on the city's social life, cuisine, and sports. A trade version of the campaign consists of three consecutive half-page teasers with nothing but a finger-to-lips photo and the headline, "Shhhhhharlotte," followed by a fourth half page that describes Charlotte's meeting facilities and attractions. Consumer ads are running in Atlanta, AAA Carolinas, Georgia Living, North Carolina Living, Our State, Roam Magazine, and South Carolina People & Places. Trade ads appear in Association Management, Black Meetings & Tourism, Convene, Executive Update, Forum, Meeting Professional, and Plan Your Meetings.

Keeping with tourism campaigns, the Beverly Hills Conference and Visitors Bureau asks vacationers, "What if Beverly Hills weren't a place, but a persona?" The company launched its first ever "character" brand campaign, created by M&C Saatchi Los Angeles. Debuting in April, the campaign hopes to entice Beverly Hills visitors to extend their stay, to linger a little longer, and discover what the city has to offer. Ads will run in national and local magazines focusing on California drive markets and key national targets. Instead of a celebrity push, the agency used an imaginary character to embody traits of the city.

In another tourism campaign, The Wisconsin Department of Tourism launched a marketing campaign last month featuring the slogan "Wisconsin--Life's So Good" replacing the "Stay Just A Little Bit Longer" theme introduced in March 2000. The campaign is slated to run in Chicago and Minneapolis-St. Paul as well as in Wisconsin. The campaign includes TV, radio, print, and online advertising and was developed by Boelter + Lincoln Marketing Communications of Milwaukee and Madison.

Theme Park season is soon to begin and Six Flags has launched a national campaign bringing back Mr. Six, its elderly spokesman. The spots reveal where Mr. Six spent the winter and show him working to get the company's theme parks ready for a new season. "Retirement Home" opens with a shot outside Shady Oaks retirement home. As the curtains are opened, viewers see Mr. Six begin preparations for this year's first visit to Six Flags. He dons a tuxedo and heads to Six Flags where we find him oiling front gate turnstiles, buffing a roller coaster, washing windows, trimming hedges, and blowing leaves. As the lights come on throughout the park, Mr. Six's signature music, "We Like to Party" begins to play.

On the heels of a successful TV and radio campaign, Mohegan Sun has launched a series of print and outdoor ads. The branding campaign continues to showcase Mohegan Sun as a getaway from life's daily routines by offering guests activities such as concerts, shopping, spa treatments, and entertainment. The ads were created by Kirshenbaum Bond + Partners and show Mohegan Sun through the eyes of its guests. The print ads, entitled "Dining," "Shopping," "Gaming," and "Spa," appear in April magazines throughout the Northeast including Boston Magazine, New York Magazine, and New England Travel & Life. The billboard ads launched April 1 on major interstate highways in Connecticut, Massachusetts, and New York.

Verizon Communications is launching a campaign this month to highlight Verizon DSL's specific advantages over its competitors such as Adelphia, Comcast, Cox, Road Runner, Optimum Online, and Brighthouse. TV and radio spots will run in nine major markets, including Boston, Seattle, Tampa, Pittsburgh, Baltimore, New York, Dallas, Philadelphia, and Washington D.C. Using a "Double the speed" theme, the campaign touts an offer that allows customers to get Verizon DSL at double the speed for the same monthly price. To deliver on this promise, Verizon has doubled its download speeds, giving consumers even more value for their money. The new campaign includes 30 and 60-second TV spots with variations for each market to target the local cable provider. Draft New York created the campaign; ID Media and Zenith bought the media.

Popeyes Chicken & Biscuits has enlisted comedian Bruce Bruce to star in its latest campaign, "Stand Up for Flavor." The comic has integrated his love for Popeyes into his standup routine and writings as seen in the ads. In "Aunt Mabel," Bruce Bruce says that it's hard to be good and naked at the same time. Popeyes Blackened Chicken Strips naked - good. Aunt Mabel naked - not good. The spot ends with the tag line: "love that chicken from Popeyes." Other ads follow a similar format. The campaign broke in March will run on spot TV throughout the year. Cramer-Krasselt created the campaign.

TrueCredit, a provider of consumer credit management services, has launched a series of TV spots featuring true stories from actual customers. The campaign demonstrates how TrueCredit services and educational resources helped customers deal with identity theft, homeownership, and debt management topics. Broadcast nationally, the ads are airing on CNN, MSNBC, ESPN, A&E, Bravo, and the History Channel. In one ad, a customer states: "When I first pulled my credit, my credit score was a 524. Now, I pull my credit four times a year... Because, you know, after messing up my credit and spending two years to repair it, it's very exciting for me to log on, buy a report, and then check out my score and see how much it's improved." TargetCom created the campaign.

In Web Site launches this week:

CABLEready has launched the Independent Producers Initiative Weblog. The site is designed to serve as a central gathering point for independents to band together and have their voices heard by the larger TV programming community. Updated daily, the blog includes summaries and links to articles of interest to independent producers, and allows readers to add their own comments. The blog also includes a wide range of links to industry sites, trade magazines, and TV networks.

Avenue A | Razorfish has redesigned the Apple VacationsWeb site. The redesigned site expanded the company's abilities to book special vacation packages. In addition, Avenue A | Razorfish and Apple Vacations partnered to enhance the integration of AppleVacations.com with current systems to support pricing, availability, and booking processes.