• by Amy Corr , Staff Writer @MediaPostOTL, June 29, 2005

Follow-up to Paris Hilton ad features a young man and a cow. Yoda speaks to straphangers. Beer ads. Let's launch!

MasterCard International has launched a U.S. print campaign that spotlights a group of MasterCard Corporate Payment Solutions designed to help companies achieve greater cost savings. This campaign uses the tag line: "Helping you find profits in new places," and one ad features the headline, "Bean Counter. Number Cruncher. Penny-Pincher. Tightwad. What They Really Mean Is Thanks." The body of the ad offers information about MasterCard's commercial cards and its Web-based reporting and expense management solution. Another ad spotlighting MasterCard's corporate purchasing card features the headline, "Imagine How It'll Feel Eliminating All That Process From Your Purchasing Process." A third ad touting MasterCard's corporate card and travel and entertainment solutions launches later this summer. The print ads appear in current issues of The Economist, Fortune, and Purchasing magazine. Executions of the campaign will also appear in BusinessWeek, CFO, Fortune, Treasury & Risk Management and other publications throughout the year. Online ads are running on CFO.com, Google, WashingtonPost.com, and WSJ.com.

The Redhook Ale Brewery debuted a new line of packaging graphics, a custom longneck bottle, and a "Defy Ordinary" brand campaign this month. The bottle's shoulder features four raised Redhook logos, and the top label features an updated Redhook logo and one of 16 "beer drinker verbs," including imbibe, tilt, tip, reach, grasp, and quench. The brand campaign utilizes tap handles, posters, table tents, coasters, and lighted signs along with standard print, radio, outdoor, and point-of-sale components. The campaign certainly defies the ordinary by using black and white photos that feature full-color images of the Redhook product as the hero at Woodstock, during a game of tug-of-war, and helping an elephant gather its balance. Sedgwick Rd. created the campaign.

Keeping with beer ads, McGarrah/Jessee has developed a series of branding ads for Shiner Beer, a Texas-based brew produced by the Spoetzl Brewery. The print ads feature actual brewery employees, from a maintenance supervisor to a quality control officer, along with atypical trivia on the town's history. The first ad features Spoetzl's Brewmaster and a brewery employee. The copy reads, "Shiner's first hospital was above a bar. Pretty much says it all." The campaign launched mid-June in major Texas markets and will expand to New Mexico, Oregon, and Minnesota. The agency is also working on radio spots, scheduled to break later this summer, to support the print effort. Both print and radio will run throughout 2005 in various markets.

Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith is opening July 9 in Asia and straphangers in Japan will be treated to an original 15-second trailer, not seen in theaters, via subway windows. The ad was specially created for Submedia's underground advertising system. Submedia turns static images outside a train's window into motion pictures; think of it as a modern-day flipbook. This is the first movie trailer ever used by Submedia. The ad launched Monday and runs through July 14th. Submedia systems are also located in Chicago, New York, Atlanta Hong Kong, Tokyo, and Bucharest, to name a few.

Not to be outdone by sister company Carl's Jr., Hardee's launched a campaign this week that's more cold than hot. The ad supports the chain's hand-scooped ice cream shakes and malts. "Cow Shake" features a young guy pushing against a large cow in rhythm to the song, "Get Busy," by Sean Paul. I guess they couldn't get permission to use "Milkshake," by Kelis, or is that too obvious? As viewers hear "shake that thing," the man attempts to move the cow, but succeeds in only moving its udder. The spot ends with the line "Milk ... Shakes." The ad was created by Mendelsohn|Zien.

Tyco's latest ads, an offshoot of an ongoing campaign launched last November highlight various products made by the company. A health care spot introduces Tyco's health care segment, and focuses on the Monoject Magellan Needle. Another spot supports Tyco's fire and security segment, and focuses on Scott breathing equipment and how many firefighters the products protect. The ads are running on CNBC, CNN, Headline, News, Fox News, ESPN, ESPN2, ESPN News, The Golf Channel, History Channel, National Geographic, and BBC America. Hill, Holiday created the campaign.

Greased Lightning has launched a campaign that shows just how far people will go (especially those Brits) to keep their houses clean. Developed by Steele+, the two spots play off of the brand's key characteristic - strong cleaning power - and use the theme "Strong Cleaning May Cause Strong Reactions." "Le Baguette" features two elderly British women who argue whether a countertop is new or has just been cleaned by Greased Lightning. The spot concludes with one of the women using a baguette as a weapon. In "The Circus Is Back in Town," a husband comes home to find his wife wiping down the stove with Greased Lightning. Turned on by the gleaming stovetop, the husband tells his wife, "The circus is back in town!" The ads are running on E!, the Food Network, HGTV, and Style.

The Advertising Council, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights Education Fund (LCCREF), and the National Fair Housing Alliance (NFHA) launched a series of radio and print public service announcements (PSA) to increase recognition and reporting of housing discrimination. Housing discrimination can occur when people are looking to rent or purchase a property, or are applying for loans, appraisals, or insurance. Createdpro bono by Merkley + Partners, the PSAs target those most likely to encounter housing discrimination (African Americans, Arab Americans, Latinos, Asians, the disabled, and families with children). The ads aim to raise awareness of The Federal Fair Housing Act and encourage victims and witnesses to report acts of discrimination. The PSAs feature the tag line, "Fair Housing. It's not an option. It's the law."

On to the Web site launches.

Draft Digital New York has relaunched the Jose CuervoWeb site. The site showcases Jose Cuervo's individual brands and features product profiles, tasting notes, and recipes. The Web site has sections devoted to the "Origins of Tequila," the "Cuervo Family History" and "Cuervo Tequila Production." There's also a searchable drink recipe database and "Cuervo Zona Fiesta," a section that offers party tips, Mexican food recipes, seasonal drink recipes, and an area where consumers can submit their own drink and food ideas. Be sure to check out the "Virtual Blender" where users can blend Cuervo Tequila with fruit, old socks, pickles, and lemon juice.

The Greater Baltimore Cultural Alliance and Ripple Effects Interactive have teamed up to launch BaltimoreFunGuide.com, an online events calendar promoting activities in Baltimore. Visitors can search by specific date ranges, activity type - including performing arts, history, nature, sports, and outdoors - or neighborhood. Users can also sign up to join the weekly Baltimore Fun Savers e-mail list, which offers discounts to events.

Chase Bank U.S.A., a division of JPMorgan Chase & Co., has launched a Web site supporting the launch of its consumer credit card with blink. The site is part of the blink summer market-by-market rollout and will continue to evolve as awareness increases. The site was developed by T3 Labs, in partnership with mcgarrybowen.