• by Kate Kaye , February 17, 2003

It all started with a mom. Five years later, Baby Einstein is planning to extend its fall campaign through a second multi-million dollar buy across various media, including online streaming audio and video.

Even Oprah marveled during a recent show that she can’t go to a baby shower these days without seeing a gift made by Baby Einstein, creators of developmental media for infants. It’s that mom-to-mom, friend-to-mom promotion that Baby Einstein is aiming to extend through its first-ever print campaign that launched in the fall. The spring follow-up, set to run in eight major parenting magazines including American Baby, Child, Parenting and Scholastic Parent & Child from April through June, will be accompanied by online ads placed on parenting sites. The campaign will target mothers with children up to 4 years of age.

“So many new moms use the Internet as a source for information when they’re pregnant or have a new baby at home,” comments Francie Brudner, director of marketing for Baby Einstein.

According to Brudner, nine out of ten videos sold for babies are produced by Baby Einstein. The company creates media products like CD-Roms, DVDs and books that incorporate music, art, poetry, language, science and nature to mimic real-life interaction between babies and caregivers. The goal is not to replace parents’ engagement with their wee ones, but to facilitate and reinforce it.

San Diego-based agency, VitroRobertson, will create the campaign, including the streaming ads that will feature video clips. Although Brudner declined to provide details on the streaming advertising component, she did reveal that the video ads will be “more accessible” than what’s currently on the site. Baby Einstein site visitors can download Apple QuickTime clips from video titles like Baby Bach, Baby Newton and Baby Shakespeare in which hand puppets wiggle about, towheaded girls suck on bright yellow citrus fruits and silly sounds buzz and whirr. Windows Media Player and RealNetworks’ Real Player streaming audio clips are available on the site as well.

Baby Einstein will also employ email marketing in the campaign using its proprietary database of names, which according to Brudner, hasn’t been too hard to come by. “So many consumers are fans; we get thousands of emails each week,” she adds.

The spring campaign’s three full-page and one half-page print ads and online ads will feature images and copy used in the fall campaign and will highlight the company’s product line and new packaging. Taglines will include “It’s not about raising a super baby. It’s about raising a super happy baby” and "The world is a really interesting place. You and your baby should see it together."