If you've ever had a teen with a burgeoning pimple, you know how effective Proactiv's direct-response television advertising can be. But now, Stuart Elliot reports, while mainstream consumer product companies such as Procter & Gamble toy with direct response, Proactiv's parent, Guthy-Renker Corp., is experimenting with traditional advertising. The campaign, which includes TV, magazine ads, billboards, signs and online, takes an image approach to compete against blue-chip brands in the skin care category. An upbeat theme -- "Be Proactiv" -- is voiced by celebrities such as Mandy Moore, Avril Lavigne, Katy Perry, Jenna Fischer and Julianne Hough. …

Bank of America is airing two-minute commercials trumpeting its influence during the different historical eras depicted in the History Channel's "Story of Us" series running through May 31. A segment about the Revolutionary War, writes Burt Helm, contains a two-minute mini-documentary about the Massachusetts Bank (later acquired by BofA) providing capital to early Americans, for example. After the historical footage, each BofA spot shows how the bank is serving Americans today. "We understand consumers are skeptical and distrustful of banks," says Meredith Verdone, Bank of America's svp of advertising. "We're trying to show that whether it's …

After 21 years of possession, FedEx has decided to punt on the Orange Bowl, Barry Jackson and Susan Miller Degnan report. It has informed ESPN that it will not renew its naming rights deal under the terms the network is seeking, and ESPN is considering other potential partners. "This was a difficult decision but one that allows us to focus and redirect our marketing efforts toward our other sports properties and marketing initiatives," FedEx spokeswoman Carla Boyd emailed the reporters. "Sports marketing is a proven way to build the FedEx brand with customers and engage in the communities …

"Strong brands are clear about what they represent," writes Allen Adamson, managing director of the New York office of Landor Associates. That applies as well to products whose attributes are a bit more difficult to convey than automobiles or soft drinks. Adamson was impressed by a recent campaign by Cisco, starring Oscar-nominated actress Ellen Page in slice-of-life stories with the citizens of Lunenberg, Nova Scotia. The campaign makes it clear how the Cisco brand connects people with the things that make life better, safer and healthier. One "welcome to the human network" spot shows, for example, how Cisco's …

J.C. Penney is adding mobile and interactive features to its e-commerce site, which it is also redesigning, in an effort to accelerate online sales that have been slowing down in recent years, Rachel Dodes reports. New features will include product reviews and targeted promotions to shoppers' smart phones. "This is the next generation of how to make things better, and how to be a better competitor," says CEO Myron E. Ullman III, who has led efforts to unify online and store pricing and shorten product cycles. "A lot of what we're spending on right now isn't that visible to …