Vizio's Super Bowl spot will feature entertainer Beyonce Knowles-Carter, who is making her debut as the company's spokesperson. The LCD HDTV company's game-day presence will also include the exclusive HD Sponsorship of the CBS Super Bowl Pre-Game Show entitled "The Super Bowl Today Presented by Vizio." The 60-second spot will air in the fourth quarter of the game. Created by Venables, Bell & Partners of San Francisco, the spot was directed by three-time Academy Award nominee for cinematography, Wally Pfister, who is best known for his work on "The Dark Knight" and "Batman Begins." Further creative details of the spot are not being released. The partnership with Beyonce and the Super Bowl spot shows Vizio's commitment to not taking "its foot off the throttle," says Laynie Newsome, Vizio co-founder and vice president of sales and marketing. "Beyonce is in an elite class of entertainers who are globally known and respected for their talent on stage and in front of the camera," Newsome tells Marketing Daily. "We believe both Vizio and Beyonce are closely aligned as American success stories who have redefined the rules in our respective industries." The partnership with Knowles is for three years, according to a Vizio spokesperson. This is not Vizio's first celebrity endorser. The company also worked with NFL MVP San Diego Charger running back LaDainian Tomlinson. Irvine, Calif.-based Vizio will also have opening and closing billboards as well as two additional 30-second spots that will air during the CBS pre-game show. There will be Vizio branding on the set and broadcast desk as well as Vizio HDTVs incorporated into the set design and providing background visuals. This is the second year that Vizio has had a presence during the Super Bowl broadcast. The Super Bowl is a challenging event for advertisers because it is very difficult to make an impression among all of the flash and dazzle ads, says Tim Calkins, clinical professor of marketing at Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management. "There will be more than 60 different ads on the Super Bowl this year," Calkins tells Marketing Daily. "How do you stand out? Celebrities can certainly help an advertiser cut through the clutter." The challenge is that the celebrity can't overshadow the brand, Calkins adds. "If viewers only remember the celebrity, it does very little to help the brand," he says. "The best advertising has great linkage; the spot is closely connected to the product and to the product benefit. The challenge for Vizio is to highlight Beyonce without getting lost in the process."
Volvo, a car brand that Ford will spin off to Chinese automaker Geely next year, is launching an ad campaign for its C70 and C30 cars. The effort, via Boston-based Arnold Worldwide, posits the cars as vehicles for open-minded folks who don't mind switching partners now and then. Media for the campaign was by Euro RSCG 4D for online advertising and MPG/Media Contacts for media planning and buying. The first ad launched in January, and the second will hit the waves in February on cable and in cinema. National print support for the C30 will begin appearing in April publications. The ads, under Volvo's new brand campaign -- "There's more to life than a Volvo. That's why you drive one" -- posits Volvo as a vehicle for those who live a rich, varied life. This campaign features music from Swedish artists Petter and Miss Li. The ads are also distinctly European in flavor and setting. One of the two TV spots has a pair of C30 Volvos driving through a European town center, one in Orange Flame and driven by a younger driver who is listening to rock and the other driven by a young metro-sexual professional type who is listening to classical music. A hipster notices the young guy's car, and both cars finally end up at a stop light side by side. The two drivers look at each other, nod imperceptibly and take off in different directions. The ad for the C70 is a risqué play on how switching partners is a bit like switching the convertible's roof configuration. Two identical, burgundy-hued, versions of the car are parked next to each other. A handsome guy gets out of one and heads into a shop, leaving the two cars parked, with a beautiful woman in the passenger seat of each. The girls eye each other then spontaneously retract the roofs and begin tossing shirts, hats and sunglasses to each other, basically switching their appearances, and finally closing the roofs again. The guy returns, gets into the wrong car and drives off with the wrong girl, who, when last we see her, seems thrilled with the switch. A second guy comes out of a coffee place and pauses, possibly noticing that the girl in his Volvo is now a blonde. Volvo, which sells 10 variations of its S, V, C and XC cars, wagons and crossovers in the U.S., sold 5,638 vehicles, a 13.8% improvement over December 2008. Year-to-date, Volvo sales are down 16% versus 2008, which wouldn't be so bad if Volvo hadn't seen 2008 sales plummet. "They had already taken a huge hit in 2008, so 2009 didn't look too bad," says Todd Turner, president of L.A.-based auto firm Car Concepts. "The biggest issue they have is packaging value back into the product. People are not perceiving value with Volvo right now." Turner says Volvo has at least partly abandoned its brand equity. "They had this incredible brand identity around safety that they have somewhat squandered," he says. "They keep trying to explain to people they could be other things too, that safety doesn't have to be boring. Safety is a price of entry now for automakers, but safety is also the number-one item on peoples' shopping list, still." He argues that Volvo needs clear, concise, simple, honest messaging on that brand promise and on value. "That's what the brand is supposed to be. If they stuck with those things, they would continue to draw new people." The company last year introduced a technology in its XC crossover that automatically applies brakes at low speeds to prevent back-end collisions when traffic is gnarly. "That's the kind of technology that they should be focused on, that shows they are still pushing the envelope, that they are still on the cutting edge of safety research," says Turner.
Coca-Cola is giving its Facebook fans an advance look at its twin Super Bowl commercials, and also using the social media platform to put its "Open Happiness" theme into action by enabling users to trigger charitable donations and pass "virtual gifts" on to friends. Starting now, each virtual Coca-Cola gift and commercial sneak-peek triggers a $1 donation by Coca-Cola to Boys & Girls Clubs of America. Gift recipients receive a special Coke bottle image that is displayed on their Facebook page and newsfeed to feed the viral gift-giving dynamic. Those who send virtual gifts in the days leading up to the game are getting a 20-second sneak preview of one of the two Coke Super Bowl ads. On game day, they will receive the full versions of both ads prior to the game's evening kick-off. After the game, all gift-givers will receive the full versions of both spots. The videos also will be available on file-sharing sites, including YouTube and Hulu. The new commercials, created by Wieden + Kennedy (Portland, Ore.), convey the "Open Happiness" campaign's message of sharing a Coke as one of life's "little pleasures." One ("Sleepwalker") shows a man sleepwalking across an African plain, subconsciously driven on a quest for a Coke. The other ("Hard Times") features the greedy Mr. Burns character from "The Simpsons" falling on hard times and having a Scrooge-like epiphany as he watches other characters enjoy Coke in a neighborhood park. During the game, Coke will also use two animated billboards to encourage viewers to visit LivePositively.com to learn how to help the brand benefit Boys & Girls Clubs and support the Red Cross's work in aiding Haitian earthquake victims. The overall global "Open Happiness" campaign is showcasing the brand's "long-term commitment to supporting local communities." Recent print and digital advertising efforts have invited people to volunteer their time, donate money through LivePositively.com, or donate points to charitable organizations through My Coke Rewards. Television ads aired on "American Idol" and other top shows have focused on themes such as education and sustainability. Another recent effort in the campaign -- Coke's first video created solely for viral distribution purposes (featuring college students' reactions to a "happiness machine" that dispenses free Coke and other goodies) -- pulled more than 645,000 views in the first week after its posting on YouTube on Jan. 12.
Consumers may have downloaded upwards of three billion Apps for their smartphones, but there is a limit to what they will pay. According to a survey of 400 smartphone users conducted by Asknet, nearly half of the respondents (45%) said they had never bought an application or software for their smartphones (34% said they hadn't done so because it "wasn't worth the time or the effort"). Of those who did purchase apps, 87% said they spent less than $50 in a year on them, while only 4% said they spent more than $100. Of those who bought apps for their phones, 61% bought music, while 41% bought games, 35% bought ringtones, 33% bought news, 29% bought GPS/location-based software and 27% bought business applications within the past year. However, when asked what they would like to buy more of, 63% said music, while 51% said business applications, 48% said GPS/location services and 37% said games. Meanwhile, more than a third of the survey respondents (38%) said they were frustrated with the cost of certain applications. At the same time, 29% said they were uncomfortable entering their credit card details to purchase them. "The mobile area is still developing. Pricing is still an issue and the consumer is still in the process of pronouncing himself," Aston Fallen, president of Asknet, tells Marketing Daily. "The payment element is and will remain an issue." Not all app purchasing follows the same process, of course. Apple's App Store, for instance, uses a similar interface to its iTunes software, which may account for Apple's enormous success in selling apps, while other companies have struggled to gain the same foothold. "There's an element of trust that goes along with that product," Fallen says. "The target market is more secure in that environment. Part of what is preventing others' level of success of Apple is that [lack of] familiarity."
Ford's Lincoln division is on the 52nd Grammy Awards this Sunday evening to promote the MKZ, MKT and MKS cars with a series of commercials that have a music video feel. The ads include one whose soundtrack is a contemporary riff on David Bowie's "Space Oddity." The song, "Major Tom," by the band Shiny Toy Guns, is the soundtrack for the current Lincoln MKZ ads. And the company has, in fact, used a remake of "Space Oddity" in ads -- part of a two-year-old effort to get younger buyers hip to Lincoln and vice versa. On the product side, Lincoln has pretty much revamped its entire lineup with vehicles intended to revitalize a brand that for years had developed a somewhat schizophrenic personality: on the one hand, big SUVs like Navigator had an urban hip-hop chic, while big cars like Town Car had a senior-citizens rep (and owner demographic). The new TV spots feature tunes like a remake of "Burnin' for You" (for the MKS EcoBoost spot), and "Under the Milky Way" (for the MKT). The ads direct viewers to www.lincoln.com/music, which has a full concert performance by Shiny Toy Guns, as well as behind-the-scenes footage featuring the band and singer Sia, whose stylings grace the current Lincoln MKT commercial. The Web site also hosts a promotion wherein visitors, starting Feb. 1, can choose among four bands for the song to back the next Lincoln ads. Lincoln says the "Major Tom" ad for Lincoln MKZ has gotten more than 447,000 views on YouTube and was voted the most popular ad song of the year for 2009 by Adtunes. Lincoln was also official sponsor of the first Essence Black Women in Music event this week in Hollywood. At the event, honoring multi-Grammy winner Mary J. Blige, Lincoln had two 2010 Lincoln MKS vehicles on display, a custom advertorial in Essence honoring the top Grammy picks, and a presence in the event's recap story both inside the magazine and at www.essence.com. Lincoln also sponsored last year's 2009 Essence Music Festival in New Orleans. The company says Lincoln is succeeding in bringing in younger buyers many from other makes, and that between 2005 and 2009, Lincoln's share of the luxury segment increased 30%.
This year, the Girl Scouts are not only knocking on our doors to sell their cookies -- they're on YouTube. Or at least their national organization, Girl Scouts of the USA (GSUSA), is. The video's purpose is not to "sell" cookies per se (nor are the famous treats sold through online channels, although the GirlScoutCookies.org site helps people locate/connect with scouts in their area to buy cookies). Instead, it's to convey how the cookie proceeds are used to support worthy causes, and most important, how being a Girl Scout helps girls develop critical business and leadership skills. Themed "What Can a Cookie Do?," the video starts by asking: "What is the largest business program -- led not by him, but by her -- that raises millions of dollars for communities and that produces more female business owners than most universities? Tip: It's not on Wall Street ... in fact, it's probably on your street." The video explains that each cookie purchase can help a girl contribute to helping a wide variety of possible community or even international causes ... and that every cookie season helps another generation of girls learn skills critical to their future, including setting goals, making decisions, managing money, and developing people skills and business ethics. The bottom-line message: "Every cookie has a mission: to help girls do great things." The video, created for GSUSA by Andre Basso, has no voiceover. Instead, it delivers its stirring copy messages via creative use of type and simple graphic icons (not a single photo of a real Girl Scout). This video effort is in some respects a precursor to an organizational rebranding campaign that will kick off this spring, reports GSUSA brand manager Ashlene Nand. Laurel Richie, who joined the organization as SVP/CMO in March 2008, is overseeing the rollout of the rebranding strategy, she explains. "Girl Scouts of the USA is an iconic American brand with huge awareness, but we want to create greater understanding that being a Girl Scout isn't just about camping, or selling cookies -- it's about how opportunities like this build leadership in girls," says Nand. "Essentially, we're trying to brand 'leadership.'" Indeed, in the case of the cookie program, Girl Scouts learn not only from selling the cookies face-to-face, but from participating in decisions about how proceeds are spent. As a nonprofit, GSUSA traditionally has eschewed paid advertising in favor of partnering with corporations/media for ad funding and media exposure, Nand says. For instance, for cookie season, it produces print, radio and TV PSA creative that can be used by its local councils (councils make their own marketing plan decisions, however). PSA's, public relations and partnerships with local councils are likewise likely to be key in the upcoming organizational rebranding, but GSUSA will also look to leverage digital channels and their grassroots, viral power in creative ways, says Nand. The cookie video, which has generated nearly 12,000 views since its posting on Jan. 18, seems to be providing a head start.
Credit card direct mail volume increased from the previous quarter in fourth-quarter 2009 for the first time in three years, according to Mintel Comperemedia. With a 47% increase in direct mail compared to the third quarter of 2009, credit card issuers are showing increased confidence in the economy and a willingness to extend more consumer credit. Many top credit card issuers increased direct mail volume during the fourth quarter, but the biggest bumps compared to the same period of 2008 came from Chase (up 87%) and U.S. Bank (up 64%). Despite the increase, last year's total direct mail volume still pales in comparison with recent years. Credit card offers sent in 2009 fell 66% behind the number sent in 2008. Pre-recession (2004-2007) card mailings topped seven billion annually while last year's mailings didn't even reach two billion. "Credit card direct mail volume leveled out mid-last year and finally, in the last quarter of 2009, we saw the long-awaited increase in card offers for consumers," says Andrew Davidson, SVP of Chicago-based Mintel Comperemedia, in a statement. "More direct marketing is an excellent sign for the economy, because it shows issuers gaining confidence and taking a more positive outlook towards gaining new cardholders and reducing delinquencies." Next month is significant for credit card companies, as another wave of CARD Act regulations goes into effect on Feb. 22. In anticipation of tighter restrictions on credit practices, many companies are trying to rebalance their portfolios. "In this post-recessionary environment, card issuers need to offset potential lost revenue from CARD Act regulations," Davidson adds. "We see more cards being promoted with annual fees and high purchase APRs." According to Mintel Comperemedia, more than a third of credit card offers sent in 2009 (36%) featured an annual fee, compared to just one in five (20%) in 2008. Purchase rates are also on the rise, despite the steadily low prime rate. On variable-rate card offers sent during the fourth quarter of 2009, the mean go-to APR for purchases was 13.95%, an increase from the average of 11.80% observed during the fourth quarter of 2008.
For those in the skincare, fragrance and cosmetics business, it's hard to put a pretty face on 2009 results. NPD Group reports that overall, the total U.S. prestige beauty industry slid 6% in dollar sales from 2008, while sales of mass beauty products were flat. The Port Washington, N.Y.-based trade group says there was evidence of some recovery, as well as signs of growth at many price points. Among the bright spots: Smaller-size women's fragrances, innovations in foundation and concealer, and anti-aging products. More evidence of that recovery showed up in the quarterly results of both Estée Lauder and Procter & Gamble, which both beat industry expectations. Lauder says its sales for the second quarter gained 11% to $2.26 billion -- a gain of 6% once currency translation was factored out. And net earnings jumped to $256.2 million, compared with $158 million last year, in part because it eliminated less efficient marketing in each product category and in every region. The company says it plans to ramp up its spending "well above first-half levels, behind more effective advertising, merchandising and sampling." "Our strong top-line growth indicates consumers have responded positively," CEO Fabrizio Freda says in a statement. "While certain businesses have shown signs of improvement, and the economic challenges and some external uncertainties have abated, we remain mindful that they have not completely disappeared. We continue to examine our business to more closely align our cost structure with expected sales growth and plan to make targeted incremental investments ... to grow our brands." Sales of its skincare products, a category it calls a strategic priority and which got increased ad investment, showed double-digit growth around the world, and high single-digit gains in the Americas. Its new Advanced Night Repair Synchronized Recovery Complex, as well as the Re-Nutriv line of products, performed well. Makeup also gained, fueled by makeup artist brands, which generated double-digit growth internationally. Fragrance sales, however, declined., largely due to lower sales of designer fragrances, such as DKNY Delicious Night, Hilfiger Men from Tommy Hilfiger, as well as some Sean John and Estée Lauder fragrances. Haircare sales also declined, due in part to the weak salon retail environment in the U.S. P&G says its beauty business also fared well in the second quarter, with sales climbing 7% to $5.2 billion. It increased marketing spending in the category, and it says it saw gains in its female skin care and personal cleansing products, while sales declined in its salon professional and prestige divisions.
As it turns out, most of what I needed to know about succeeding with social media in the 2010s I first learned from AM radio back in the 1970s. The AM radio I'm talking about is not the Rush-Limbaugh/Talk-Radio/Light-Rock-Less Talk radio of today, but the personality-driven radio of decades past. It wasn't easy for radio stations in those days. They had to deal with increased competition, the changing tastes of the consumer, a highly fragmented audience, a crappy economy, the emergence of competitive platforms (FM/car stereos) and increased production costs. Sound familiar? The key to being successful in social media is to find and engage an audience with fresh, relevant content, stimulate conversation and react quickly to feedback. If you think about it, AM radio's been doing that for the last 40 years. And how did AM radio thrive during that era? In a nutshell, here are a few of the things the aspiring social media maven of today could learn from the kings of AM radio: