Commentary

Out to Launch

Among this week's campaign highlights: Grey Goose Vodka goes golfing, Kelly Osbourne and Doritos, HomeBanc Mortgage, and a Snapple-a-Day website.

Grey Goose Vodka , the third-best-selling vodka import, recently began running commercials on the Golf Channel. The five :15 spots were created by DeVito/Verdi in New York, and show a bartender telling the camera that Grey Goose is "rated the best-tasting vodka in the world." As part of their deal with the Golf Channel, Grey Goose also has their own talk golf talk show, called the Grey Goose 19th hole, and sponsor the European tour and the British Open - both airing on the Golf Channel.

Watchmaker Patek Philippe recently launched a new international campaign for Twenty~4, their ladies' watch collection. The U.S. print ads are soon to follow, and will debut in April issues of Vogue, Vanity Fair and Gourmet magazines. The campaign bears the tagline "Who will you be in the next 24 hours?" The print campaign features six photographs that will be used over a two-year timeframe The images are an unfolding story of a woman at various moments in her day. London ad agency Leagas Delaney produced the campaign and Lowe Worldwide in New York managed the U.S. media campaign.

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Kelly Osbourne will appear in two new Doritos ads, beginning on March 17th. The 18-year-old Osbourne will appear with her band members to re-launch small bags of Doritos and introduce the New Extreme Chilli Heatwave flavor and the new and improved Tangy Cheese and Cool Original flavors. Osbourne and her band members will be seen sitting in a flat listening to their forthcoming single "Come Dig Me Out" while munching on the snacks. The ads will be the latest in the Doritos "Friendchips" campaign, which features a group of friends enjoying the snacks.

The National Park Foundation, along with partners American Airlines, Discovery Channel, Ford Motor Company, Kodak and TIME magazine, have launched a sweepstakes on their website. Called The Dream Adventure Sweepstakes, five winners will receive a trip to one of five National Parks - either Yosemite, Great Smoky Mountains, Rocky Mountain National Park, Olympic National Park, or The National Capital Parks. The Sweepstakes began on March 1, and the winners will be announced during National Park Week (April 21-25), on the Travel Channel.

Speaking of sweepstakes, CMT has launched a national sweepstakes where the grand prize winner will receive a Nashville home personally decorated by country music stars. In CMT's new series CMT Ultimate Country Home, more than a half-a-million dollars in total prizes will be given away, including a 2003 Kia Sorento, and Hoover WindTunnel V2 Bagless Upright Vacuum Cleaners. Sweepstakes entry forms are available at the websites of CMT, Lowe's Home Improvement Warehouse, and in the May issue of Better Homes and Gardens magazine. CMT Ultimate Country Home will first air on April 7, and country stars such as Jo Dee Messina, Deana Carter, Trace Adkins, and Lonestar will participate in the home decorating process.

HomeBanc Mortgage Corporation launched a radio and outdoor advertising campaign to let everyone know that they are hiring 400 new employees. The outdoor creative uses images of classified newspaper "help wanted" ads with the content indicating the kind of people HomeBanc is looking to hire. Key words and phrases in the mock classified ads include service oriented, dedication, team players and loyalty. The radio campaign will stress the same points. The campaign includes a total of 46 billboards in Georgia, Florida and North Carolina, with the first 12 billboards having appeared around metro Atlanta the week of March 3. The OOH campaign will last 8 weeks and the radio campaign will run the first three weeks of March.

The Hartford Financial Services Group has debuted two new television spots designed to distinguish the company as a financially strong investment and insurance company. The 30-second spots were created by Arnold Worldwide and will appear on CNN, CNBC, and Arts & Entertainment stations. The first ad, entitled Batting Cage, shows three men ranging in age from their early 30s to 50s trying to hit one out of the park. The ad ponders the question; "Will retirement come at the players like a fastball or a slow pitch?" In their second ad called Big Night Out, a young girl is in front of the bathroom mirror mimicking her mother putting on jewelry for an important night out. The question posed here is; "Will the jewelry end up with the daughter one day or will the family's assets drain away?" The spots showcase The Hartford's mutual funds, and 401(k) products that can help clients with asset protection, estate planning and retirement planning.

In February, Snapple introduced a new meal replacement beverage, called Snapple-a-Day. Now, the website has launched. Designed by iDeutsch, SnappleADay.com educates consumers on the heath benefits of their products, along with side by side comparisons of similar meal replacement products. Snapple is available in three flavors - Strawberry Banana, Peach and Tropical Blend. The website touts Snapple-a-Day's nutritional value, and also includes a weight loss tip section, and an area to sign up for the latest products and promotional updates.

Sports Camp FederationSports Camp Federation, an online resource linking up children and parents to sports camps, coaches, and camp directors, is launching a promotional program for companies to reach over 200,000 children (ages 10-16) through 3,000 affiliated Summer Sports Camps throughout the U.S. Companies can promote their products in a sports-oriented environment, through the distribution of samples and offers(such as having your company logo on towels, hats, and water bottles), through in-camp banners/sign ups, or even having your logo appear on paper cups, coolers and duffle bags.

The Macromedia Flash Advertising Alliance (MFAA) has launched a website where media people and creative people can discuss what's happening in the online advertising world with their peers. MFAA.org acts as on open forum where technology companies, agencies, and online publishers can discuss the future of rich media, what it should look like in the future, and the types of guidelines that should be adopted. Participating agencies include Grey Interactive, J. Walter Thompson, and Lot21.

Conducive Corporation has launched adMarketPlace.net, adMarketPlace.net, a search listing auction site that delivers graphic ad units. Similar to what Overture does with search engine text links, companies can bid on priority placements on top ranked search engines. Ads are served in a rotational environment, and priority is determined by a company's CPC price and their clickthrough rate, meaning a company's search engine ranking can increase without having to pay more.

Perseus Development Corporation, a company specializing in web-based survey research, is offering human resources executives a free online survey so they can obtain job satisfaction feedback from their employees. For a limited time, companies can assess employee satisfaction regarding job security, wages, bonuses, training, vacation policy, health plans, pensions, supervisors, and fellow employees. Human resources professionals can obtain the survey at www.perseus.com.

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