Out to Launch
Wednesday, January 11, 2006
New Year's resolutions! SKYY Vodka has "Cocktail Moments." Let's launch!
  • New Year's resolutions! SKYY Vodka has "Cocktail Moments." Let's launch!

    OK. The New Year is upon us. Time to lose weight and quit smoking, right? Here's two campaigns created to get people motivated. Five stories of how people quit smoking for their loved ones are airing on Comcast On Demand as part of Pennsylvania's "Quit for Love" anti-tobacco campaign, sponsored by the Pennsylvania Department of Health and Comcast Cable. One story recounts how a man decided to quit smoking for good when his then three-year-old son asked him the equivalent of, "Daddy, can I smoke like you someday?" The stories will air for eight weeks in Philadelphia, Pittsburgh and Harrisburg area households that subscribe to Comcast Digital Cable.

    Bally Total Fitness' "Meet Your Potential"  takes a realistic look at fitness goals and challenges faced by average people, while highlighting the company's pledge to "make it personal" by offering personalized nutrition and exercise programs. The campaign was produced in testimonial fashion and features eight people describing real situations that encouraged them to get fit, including a couple who both claim they put on baby weight with the birth of their first child and a 40-year-old woman who intentionally bought her bridesmaid dress a size too small as a motivator to lose weight. Each spot shows someone participating in the Bally Total Fitness 30-Day Program and taking steps toward living a healthier lifestyle. Physical changes are apparent in the ads, but the spots also highlight the emotional changes that came with losing weight. The campaign was created in-house and launched last week. Seven different spots will roll out nationally over the next several weeks and extend to radio, print and online.

    The New Orleans Saints recorded a PSA from their temporary home in San Antonio, Texas urging Americans to take steps to prepare for possible emergencies. Jim Haslett, Saints head coach, quarterback Aaron Brooks and wide receivers Joe Horn and Donte Stallworth discuss the devastation of Hurricane Katrina as a launching point to talk about emergency preparedness. Through a series of questions directed at the viewers, the Saints identify some important steps individuals and families can take to be prepared. The PSA drives viewers to the Homeland Security's Ready campaign Web site to learn more about these steps.BBDO New York developed thecampaign pro bono.

    SKYY Vodka has launched its latest outdoor, print, and online creative for its ongoing "Cocktail Moments" campaign. Outdoor ads are launching this month in Los Angeles, Chicago, Miami and San Francisco. Print ads are debuting in the February issues of Rolling Stone, In Style, Interview and Flaunt. Creative will also run online on ESPN.com, Match.com and Yahoo.com starting in mid-January. David LaChapelle photographed the ad, entitled "The Antagonist #54." Lambesis created the campaign.

    I know I said last week there would be no more holiday ads highlighted... but this time I really mean it. Guinness teamed up with ESPN's "Pardon The Interruption" throughout December, via national ads on ESPN, ESPN2, ESPN News and ESPN Classic. The ads directed viewers to stores to purchase promotional packs of Guinness Draught, which then directed consumers to ESPN.COM (keyword: Guinness). This circle seems too big. Can we cut out a step? Once online, users rank a series of sports dynasties. Those who ranked the dynasties the same way as "PTI" hosts Tony Kornheiser and Mike Wilbon were entered for a chance to win one of four weekly grand prize trips to WashingtonD.C. to meet the "PTI" cast, have dinner at ESPN Zone and have their photographs displayed on the "PTI" set. Colangelo created the campaign.

    This week's Web site launches are for those over the moon with motherhood and cars.

    Car Crazy Central has launched a car enthusiast Web site. It features full-screen automotive television, radio, daily industry news, and a community area with a classifieds section and a list of car events. The Car Crazy News section provides daily updated video news segments ranging from the latest automotive manufacturing and industry stories to collector and enthusiast updates. I went directly to the humor section to watch short films and cartoons. Visitors can also download screensavers, wallpapers, instant messaging icons, and automotive e-cards.

    Sisterhood Six is a blog edited by six women in all stages of motherhood, including authors and medical professionals. The moms use the site as an environment to talk about infant feeding and other parenting issues in real time. This might explain the blog's sponsor: Avent, creator of various infant-feeding products. However, Sisterhood Six insists that the sponsor doesn't have editorial control over the posted content.