When Pope Benedict XVI visits St. Joseph's Seminary in Yonkers, N.Y., on Saturday for a prayer service and youth rally, priests, nuns and seminarians will mingle with 20,000 young people hoping to plant a seed for vocations. There will be flashy videos, with stirring sound tracks starring fearless priests. Goody bags will include glossy post cards of the pontiff emblazoned with the word "Willkommen!"--and the Web address nypriest.com, the seminary's recruiting site. Officials of the archdiocese do not apologize for embracing Madison Avenue marketing to counter a sharp decline in vocations. An increasingly materialistic culture, reluctance among the young …

Acknowledging that consumers' attitudes toward Ford have "gone past skepticism to apathy," group VP-marketing and communications Jim Farley says that Ford is out to change that perception with its "Drive One" marketing blitz. The goal is to make believers--and buyers--out of Americans who aren't putting Ford on their lists. According to a CNBC web survey of 609 respondents conducted after the first "Drive One" commercial ran on "American Idol" last week, 45% said they already liked Ford, Farley says. Another 20% said the commercial didn't change their minds about Ford, but another 20% said it did and 15% said …

Nissan will build small cars for Chrysler to sell and Chrysler will make pickups for Nissan under a deal announced by both companies yesterday. The arrangement draws on each automaker's expertise and perhaps sets up a much deeper relationship down the road. Executives from both companies worked to downplay speculation that the deal is anything more than a simple transaction to make cars and trucks for each other, but analysts see the moves as a step toward adding Chrysler to the Renault-Nissan alliance. Carlos Ghosn, CEO of both Renault and Nissan, has long said he wants a North American …

Aging boomer males under pressure in a tightening job market are turning to anti-aging lotions, potions and serums to look younger. Crease-fighters now account for 20% of the estimated $46 million in male skin care sales-up from nearly zero a few years ago. Both high-end and mass-market personal care companies are pumping out new products. Last year, there were 53 new anti-aging skin care products for men, according to Datamonitor's Productscan Online. That was four times the launches in 2005. Nivea, Neutrogena and L'Oréal Paris have all added male-focused wrinkle fighters to their lineups. And this week, Zirh …

The Beijing Olympics were intended to be a coming-out party for Lenovo, the once state-run computer giant that emerged as a symbol of China's global ambitions when it purchased the PC division of IBM in 2005. But the intensity of protests over China's human rights policies has raised questions about whether the $100-million-plus it has invested in sponsoring the Games and related marketing will provide the massive brand boost it's counting on. Lenovo--the world's fourth-largest PC maker--is one of three companies that paid millions of extra dollars for the rights to sponsor the torch relay, along with Coca-Cola and Samsung …

Youths are among the few categories of shoppers who seem comfortable spending freely these days. J.C. Penney, Macy's, Bloomingdale's, Saks Fifth Avenue and Kohl's are all adopting approaches--from celebrity-designed fashions to mobile marketing to better fitting rooms--to try to lure young shoppers without turning off their parents. Penney, for example, is stressing its brands' names--not its company name--much as Oldsmobile did years ago, when it began introducing trendier cars. Last month, it announced an exclusive new apparel line, Fabulosity, designed by reality TV star and former model Kimora Lee Simmons. In July, it will launch another brand, Decree, that …

Generic drug maker Nastech Pharmaceutical has been forced to cut its budget and lay off more than half its staff in the months since Procter & Gamble withdrew from a lucrative partnership with the company. For almost three years now, a mystery company has foiled Nastech's hopes of bringing its first product to market. The product--Calcitonin--would provide patients who have postmenopausal osteoporosis with an alternative to Miacalcin, a nasal spray treatment with nearly $145 million in sales last year. The FDA agreed to review Calcitonin for approval in February 2004. But an unnamed pharmaceutical company, represented by an attorney …

The in-store programs found "most influential" by consumers in a recent study of cereal promotions by TNS Sorenson were, in order, in-store samples, package ads, coupon dispensers, in-store fliers and end-aisle displays. Those deemed least influential were ceiling ads, in-store audio and floor ads. Most of the newer media--including cart ads, in-store TVs, video displays, and entryway ads--ranked in the lower half of the 19 media considered. The study gives high marks to on-pack advertising because of the billboard-like nature of cereal boxes. But many of the results are similar to what TNS has found in other categories, says …