spirits

Skyy Hooks Up With 'Sex And The City 2'

Skyy Vodka Sex and the City 2/Patricia Field

Looking to build on the success of its promotional program surrounding the first "Sex And The City" movie, Skyy Vodka is hooking up with Warner Bros.' New Line Cinema again for the second movie in the franchise, set to hit U.S. screens on May 28.

The new program features most of the elements of the first, including global, co-branded advertising (print, broadcast, outdoor, digital and social media channels); on- and off-premise promotions featuring signature Skyy cocktails inspired by the film; sweepstakes to win tickets to the "star-studded" premieres of "Sex and the City 2"; and a series of charity screenings (100% of ticket sales to go to women's charities) in major cities just prior to the movie's national release, where fans will enjoy Skyy cocktails as well as an advance viewing.

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"This year, we are doing much of the same, but making [the promotions] bigger and better," says Andrea Conzonato, CMO for Gruppo Campari's Skyy Spirits subsidiary. "We also wanted to play up more of what we call 'cocktail couture,' which is the blend of "Sex and the City" fashion with sophisticated cocktailing."

That objective inspired the brand to sign "Sex and the City" costume designer Patricia Field as its celebrity spokesperson across several promotional activities. Field has designed a movie-themed, limited-edition version of the brand's signature cobalt-blue bottle for Skyy (the brand's first-ever change to its design), which will be on retail shelves just prior to the movie's debut. She has also designed several cocktail accessories that will be available at bars and restaurants across the country during the on-premise promotions. In addition, one sweeps prize will be a New York City shopping spree with Field.

Field's involvement "adds a relevant face to our marketing efforts, and should help us garner even greater results" than those seen in the first promotion, Conzonato notes.

The first co-promotion program, implemented during April through June 2008 (the first movie also debuted during Memorial Day weekend), was Skyy's most successful to date in terms of account sell-in and volume lift during a specific promotional period, reports Conzonato.

"The cocktail program was sold into thousands of bars and restaurants throughout the country, effectively opening the door for our new All Natural Skyy Infusions line of products, which had been released at about the same time," she says. "Awareness for unflavored Skyy also increased as we heavily promoted our relationship with 'Sex and the City' through an extensive, above-the-line advertising campaign."

"Even we were surprised with the reaction we got from consumers" during that first promotion, Conzonato adds. "Of course, we knew that this entertainment vehicle had a huge following, but you can never be sure how that will exactly translate into consumer reaction to on- and off-premise co-branded programming. All of our promotional efforts around the film greatly exceeded expectations, making the decision to move forward on 'Sex and the City 2' that much easier."

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