Donna's Promo Talk - Promotional Marketing that Creates Excitement and Gets Results

New Year's Greetings

In the spirit of the holidays I've been concentrating on getting some rest and relaxation and spending time with family. So I just wanted to take a break from my regular routine to wish you, your families and friends a very Happy New Year. Whether you are planning on partying 'till the wee hours of the morning tonight or just staying home to quietly ring in 2008, I hope you all have a safe and joyful celebration. Whichever way you choose to begin the New Year it is a time to reflect back on what you have achieved during 2007 and look forward to what you'd like to accomplish in the 2008.

So, I would like to take this opportunity to thank the readers who have found Donna's Promo Talk this year and hope you have enjoyed reading about the interactive marketing promotions I have written about. I started this blog at the end of February this past year and I wasn't sure what I was getting in to. Now I'm celebrating the fact that my readership has slowly grown over the year and I thank all of those that have helped me along the way to make this possible. I didn't realize when I became a blogger that I would meet so many great people, both in person and virtually. I guess that's why they call it social media.

It has been a very interesting year as far as the world of advertising and marketing has gone and I'm sure that we'll continue to see many changes in the upcoming year as well. However, I still believe that we should not lose sight of the basic principals of marketing that really haven't changed. The challenge we face now is integrating these basic principals with the new technologies and communication vehicles that are available to us today.

So, I hope you continue to visit me here at Donna's Promo Talk in 2008. I'm not sure exactly how this blog will evolve, but I do have some exciting things in mind, so stay tuned.  Once again, have a safe, happy, successful New Year. I'll see you in 2008!

All the best,

Donna

OfficeMax's Elf Yourself Site Hopes to Reach 100M

This pretty much wraps up my posts regarding 2007 interactive holiday promotions. The most popular post I wrote appears to be the post on the OfficeMax Elf Yourself Holiday Promotion which has gotten quite a bit of traffic just on my blog. After I wrote the post I was contacted by Beth at EVB, the San Francisco based digital content marketing agency behind Elf Yourself and Scrooge Yourself, who collaborated with partner agency Toy NY.

Beth informed me that Elf Yourself has now become the most viral campaign on record. It's been spreading rapidly since it was launched on November 20th and the numbers continue to climb.They're hoping it will reach 100M before they take the site down. Here are some statistics Beth shared with me that cover a three week period, up to Dec. 13th:

Elf Yourself 2007 Statistics (three weeks-11/20/07 to 12/13/07)
- Over 74 million people have visited site
- Over 50 million people have created "elves"
- 40 elves are being created per second
- Users have spent a combined 950 years on website
- Top 10 "Movers & Shakers" site on Alexa rankings
- Featured on CNN American Morning & ABC World News

Compare this year's promotion to last year when it first launched:

Elf Yourself 2006 Statistics (five weeks - 12/1/06 to 1/7/07)
- Over 36 million visits to site
- Over 11 million elves created (41,000 per hour at its peak)
- Over 79,000 MySpace hits
- Users spent a combined equivalent of 600 years on the site
- Fastest mover on the Alexa rankings, reaching 267 most visited site
- #2 on Entertainment Weekly "Must List"
- Over 100 User created videos on YouTube
- Over 2 million Google search results

So if you're one of the very few who haven't "Elfed Themselves" or haven't seen someone who has, you better get over to the site now before it's gone for another year. Those that I've shared my elf with thought it was hilarious and either elfed themselves or passed it on. So the question now is, what will they do to top this next year?

Absolut, Beam Pair Up to Help Spread Holiday Cheer

Well I hope everyone had a nice, relaxing Christmas day. It was a very enjoyable day around our house which consisted of playing video games (my daughters got Guitar Hero 3 from Santa) watching a movie on DVD, partaking in some old-fashioned family conversation and of course consuming some good food and wine.

'Tis the season to share some holiday cheer together, so as we start to wind down 2007 and finalize our plans to celebrate the New Year there's probably a party or two next on our schedule. My overview of holiday promotions wouldn't be complete without including something from our alcohol beverage marketers. So, here's an interactive holiday season online campaign that's designed to help party hosts "Make it Memorable" as well as guide guests on what to bring to the party.

Beam Global Spirits & Wine and The Absolut Spirits Co. have partnered to create www.4Cocktails.com that offers both holiday entertainment tips and gift ideas. It features Cathy Riva, host of the “Party Girl” program on cable’s Discovery Home Network, who shares entertaining tips that will "wow" guests and bring "joy to the world" – or at least to the party! Tips are included on a web page they've titled "Cocktailtainment", which reminds me a little of the word "Retailtainment" Wal-Mart coined a few years back.

Riva is also featured in periodic online chat segments to help solve such consumer party problems like what to do when a host runs out of food or drinks. Visitors can also engage in live online chats with other cocktail experts who share their expertise such as Jacques Bezuidenhout, a bartender from the San Francisco area with more than 16 years of experience from around the world. Plus at the peak holiday times (like now) visitors can get live help by calling a special phone line, 1-877-4Cocktails.

“With more than two-thirds of adults 21 and older attending up to five parties during the holiday season, it is no surprise that there is some anxiety associated with the holiday,” Beam U.S. Marketing Vice President Victor Rutstein said in a statement. “4Cocktails is a smart approach to educating consumers about holiday entertaining.”

The Web site also offers a searchable directory of drinks recipes highlighting brands owned by Beam and Absolut such as Jim Beam Bourbon, Absolut Vodka, Cruzan Rum, Plymouth Gin, Starbucks Liqueurs and DeKuyper Cordials. Currently the seasonal holiday drink featured is Maker's Mark Holiday Egg Nog. There is also an online drink calculator that helps to estimate the liquor needs for the size party a host is planning.

So cheers, salute, salud, slainte. Happy New Year and as they all say, remember to be safe and drink responsibility. 

Top Artists Join Voicemail Campaign to Send Holiday Messages to Troops

It's Christmas Eve and I have had the pleasure of waking up in my home this morning to freshly fallen snow. And it's still snowing! It sure gets you in the Christmas spirit. As the famous 1984 Band Aid recording of  "Do They Know it's Christmas?" says "there won't be any snow in Africa this Christmas" and there won't be snow in Iraq either. So on this Christmas Eve I thought I'd write about this unique voicemail campaign launched earlier this month just in time for the holiday season.

The Voices from America campaign allows anyone to leave a voicemail in support of American troops overseas. The campaign is being supported by a number of popular music artists such as The Back Street Boys , Five for Fighting , Hinder, Jordin Sparks, Mario, Switchfoot’s Jon Foreman and Teddy Geiger (our Rochester hometown boy). These artists have partnered with Mozes, along with Armed Forces Entertainment, to leave voice messages for the troops. You can learn more about Mozes and this campaign on their Blog as well as other mobile marketing  programs they're working on.

“Our brave service men and women sacrifice so much. It's important that we all remember what they do for us especially around the holidays. We wanted to be a part of 'Voices from America' to show our appreciation for our troops," said Hinder’s Mike Rodden.

Anyone can call the “Voices from America” number (1-888-312-2612) to hear artists’ messages and leave a holiday message of their own. All messages will be displayed on the “Voices from America” widget, accessible on the website as well as on the artists’ MySpace pages. Troops serving overseas will have access to all messages through the support of Armed Forces Entertainment.

“When servicemen and women are away from their families, they need as much support as we can give -- especially during the holidays,” said U.S. Air Force Colonel and Armed Forces Entertainment Chief Edward Shock. “The support of the entertainment community, along with companies like Mozes, is crucial. Sending your voice and good thoughts is a powerful way to say thank you for all of the sacrifices our troops are making.”

So please visit the Voices from America website; listen to all of the messages from the artists and leave your message of support.  Messages for the troops can be left up until January 1st, so please pass the information on this campaign on. You can place the widget on your blog or website as well. Let's show our troops our support and let them know we're thinking of them this holiday season.

I wish you a a very, merry Christmas and hope you enjoy your time with your loved ones this season.

Land O'Frost and Fox Partner on Holiday Miracle Contest

There's only four more days till Christmas, so I'll be winding down my posts on the top holiday promotions of the season. We've seen several good viral marketing campaigns and other interactive promotions that have utilized the Internet extremely well. Plus the online retailers are still sending out email blasts to entice us to buy that last minute gift.

Here's an old-fashioned promotion from a consumer packaged good company that combines entertainment marketing with one of this year's hottest trends, consumer-generated content. 

Land O’Frost, the country's third-largest brand of packaged lunch meats, has partnered with 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment for a holiday contest promotion to promote their Miracle on 34th Street: Special Edition DVD. Consumers can submit an essay on the Land O' Frost website of their most memorable "holiday miracle experience" for a chance to win a trip for four to New York City or one of 500 copies of the DVD.

Land O'Frost has been promoting the contest on 6 million of their packages and placing special codes inside them. They direct consumers to their website where they can submit the code to print out an Official Entry Form. However, in reading the Official Rules, consumers can just type or neatly hand-write their essay on a standard 8.5” x 11” piece of white paper, along with all their contact information, and mail it to an address provided. I like the overall promotion, however I'm a bit disappointed that Land O'Frost isn't using all the assets of Web 2.0 and provide a way for the consumers to submit their essays online. Hand-written essays (up to 250 word) have got to be tough on the judges.

All essays must be received by Jan. 8th and will be judged based on a clear and creative description of a “Holiday Miracle” experience that involves the entrant, on how the experience has affected the entrant and of what lessons the entrant learned from the experience. Each essay will be scored and the top 501 will receive the prizes.

The specially-marked packages and the website also promote a $3 rebate offer for the Miracle on 34th Street: Special Edition DVD as well as other Fox holiday DVDs such as Ice Age: The Meltdown and Home Alone: Family Fun Edition, A Very Merry Muppet Christmas Special Edition, Christmas Carol The Movie, and Jingle All the Way. A nice gift that will enable families to watch a movie together on Christmas day.

A print ad promoting the contest and rebate offer ran in Family Circle as well as 10,000 P-O-P displays were provided. By Land O'Frost tying in with such a well-know classic movie its bound to help promote their brand.

American Express Holiday Online Promotions Make Gifting Easy

As we're finalizing our Christmas gift shopping this Holiday season, we may want to consider giving gift cards. According to the American Pulse™ Survey conducted by BIGresearch 52.1% out of 4,069 respondents say they would rather receive a gift card or cash. One reason may be that consumers don't like gifts that were chosen for them (45.4% of those who received clothing as a gift in the past didn’t like or didn’t wear it). Another possible reason is that 46.3% of those who participate in gift giving/receiving during the holidays say they hate to return gifts because it is a hassle.

American Express is capitalizing on this trend with an online promotion enabling shoppers to receive a free Gadget Lover's Card worth $25 from American Express Incentive Services when they purchase five American Express Gift Cards. Shoppers can take advantage of this online promotion by visiting the website, purchasing any five American Express Gift Cards in one order and then submitting a rebate form. 

The Gadget Lover's Card can be redeemed for three months after the date of issue at U.S. locations of participating electronic retailers, including f.y.e., Sam Goody, The Sharper Image and Suncoast.

"With consumer electronics in such high demand, American Express is looking to make the holiday shopping experience simpler and more rewarding," said Stefan Happ, VP and General Manager, American Express Gift Cards. "With our Gadget Lover's Card, we are offering American Express Gift Card customers something extra to use when shopping for the hottest new gadgets this year."

Besides purchasing the gift cards online they are also available at participating retailers such as CVS and Albertsons as well as through a new partnership with Bank of America, however the promotion is only good with online orders.

American Express is also making it easy for their Cardmembers to give rather than receive through their GivingExpress program which connects them to more than one million charitable organizations. Cardmembers can make a donation in another person's name and then notify the person via email of the contribution through the GivingExpress program website (or find their own unique way to present the gift). Plus the Cardmember then earns double Membership Rewards.

American Express earlier this holiday shopping season brought back it's popular interactive My WishList cyber-storefront which was open Nov. 27 - Dec. 13. My WishList's storefront offered all Cardmembers the opportunity to buy limited quantities of some of the season's most wished-for items and experiences at unbelievable savings. From the luxury lover, to the gadget geek, to the adventure seeker, it provided must-have gifts for everyone plus it also featured dream experiences like a VIP shopping spree in 10022-Shoe, Saks Fifth Avenue's enormous New York shoe department, and a trip around the world with Continental Airlines.

Cardmembers were able to sign up for e-mail alerts that notified them when their My WishList items were available and also were able to pre-register their card info for quicker clicking. New to the site this year was a "tell a friend" viral marketing component that passed on the My WishList invite karaoke-style. Cardmembers also could send a holiday rock star greeting simply by choosing a song, styling the singer and dedicating it to the person receiving the e-card.

Past My WishList promotions have been overwhelming successes; last year, My WishList experienced over 7 million visits to the site. "Our merchants are thrilled with past response from Cardmembers to My WishList, noting significant spikes in sales after the promotion," said Penni Berns, VP, Network and Merchant Marketing, American Express. "It is these strong relationships with the world's top merchants that allow us to offer new and amazing wishes each year."

Well American Express sure seems like the closest thing to being an online Santa this year. Maybe next year I'll get luckier with the My WishList promotion. However this year I am going to take advantage of that Gadget Lover's Card. I still have a few more people on my list I need to check off today!

Coca-Cola Promotes its My Coke Rewards Program to Donate 100,000 Gifts to Toys For Tots

Toys for Tots got some added help this holiday season from it's partnership with the the theatrical movie release of Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emporium which I wrote about in this post about a week ago. They've also got the big brand, Coca-Cola behind them who is also donating to Toys for Tots this holiday season with 100,000 gifts and is asking consumers to help make that number grow even larger.

All through December consumers can donate points from their My Coke Rewards program which they obtain from bottle caps and on packaging of more than 60 Coca-Cola products. Toys for Tots will redeem the points as the donations accumulate for gifts such as soccer balls and Etch-A-Sketchs, both needing 235 points each, and backpacks at 270 points. Coca-Cola is also donating an additional $150,000 to Toys for Tots. 

“Both Toys for Tots and Coca-Cola have been uplifting and magical parts of the holiday season for decades. This year we’re joining together and asking people to help us make the holidays brighter for kids,” said Hendrik Steckhan, president and general manager, Sparkling Beverages, Coca-Cola North America. “When families and friends enjoy Coca-Cola as part of their holiday celebrations, we encourage them to take a minute to go online and use their My Coke Rewards points to support Toys for Tots.”

Coca-Cola also commissioned artist Nathan Sawaya to create two original pieces of art made from thousands of bottle caps. I just featured Sawaya in the post on Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emporium which he created a 48-foot by 17-foot billboard of Legos that was placed above a storefront on the Sunset Strip. Now for this promotion, Sawaya has incorporated 43,100 bottle caps to create an oversized replica of the iconic Toys for Tots train and a mosaic depicting the famous Coca-Cola Polar Bear. These sculptures are Sawaya’s first bottle cap creations.

Joined by members of the U.S. Marine Corps, Sawaya unveiled his sculptures at the World of Coca-Cola in Atlanta on November 29th. The Toys for Tots train measures 18-feet long by four-feet tall and the Polar Bear mosaic measures eight-feet long by six-feet tall. The sculptures will remain on display through the end of the year when they will then move the train to the Marine Corps Reserve Toys for Tots Foundation in Quantico, Virginia.

“The goal of the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve Toys for Tots Program is to deliver a message of hope to underprivileged children during the holiday season,” said Bill Grein, vice president of Marines Toys for Tots Foundation. “Through support from partners like Coca-Cola that understand the value of giving, we are able to fulfill the dreams of thousands of children each year.”

Coca-Cola introduced The My Coke Rewards interactive loyalty marketing program last year which allows members to redeem their points online for exclusive rewards and to participate in various sweepstakes promotions. Right now members can redeem points for a chance to win a VIP Times Square Experience to ring in 2009 and watch the ball drop from an exclusive viewing area. Two other sweepstakes offer the chance to win the concert experience of your choice or a VIP tour of Fox Studios in Los Angeles. Members can now download holiday screensavers and ecards for 0 points as a holiday gift.

As of today the My Coke Rewards Holiday website says they have 6,452,727 points donated to the Toys For Tots Program. That equates to over 27,000 toys, so they need many more points donated to reach their 100,000 goal. So pass the word. Good luck Coke!

Get Munked with Alvin and The Chipmunks!

Not only can you Elf and Scrooge Yourself this holiday season, now you can also Munk Yourself!

Another Holiday movie hits the theaters today, ALVIN AND THE CHIPMUNKS, which 20th Century Fox is promoting through this promotional microsite, munkyourself.com. Visitors can Get Munked in three easy steps which include creating their own chipmunk character, recording a custom message (which gets chipmunkatized) and then sending it to friends.

The Chipmunks welcome you to the site by singing "Funky Town" in the classic chipmunk voices which is very cute, but the Munk Yourself process is a bit of a let down. After Elfing myself, which included putting a photo of my face on an elf, having just a chipmunk avatar that only lets you change the hair and outfit doesn't come close. However, I have always been a huge fan of Alvin and the Chipmunks going all the way back to when I was a five year old playing their 45 record over and over. They were stars of the Ed Sullivan Show, so yes, I still enjoyed this nonetheless.

The microsite does give you code of the Munk Yourself that  you create and let's you post it on your blog or web page, so here's my Munk...

The official movie website does offer a few more interactive options which include the normal downloads, photos and movie trailers. It also let visitors play six different online games including Alvin's Harmonica and Simon Sings, plus some kid's activity sheets such as the Maze Mess that can be downloaded and printed. Mobile users can have part of the Chipmunk's famous Christmas Song as their ringtone or can choose instead Dave yelling "ALLLLVIN!!!!" There are wallpapers to download for the phone as well.

Alvin and the Chipmunks have their own MySpace page where members can listen to their songs which include their latest hit "How We Roll" as well as a new version of their "Christmas Song". MySpace offers you this banner ad to help promote the soundtrack

20th Century Fox has partnered up with Fender who is running an online sweepstakes for a chance to win a Custom Chipmunk Fender Strat, the guitar of choice for the new, hip Alvin. It's a full-size (for humans that is) hot-rod Fender Stratocaster electric guitar that features images of Alvin, Simon and Theo. To enter online visitors first just need to create a Fender Profile. 

Another partner, Garlic Jim’s Famous Gourmet Pizza, has been designated as Alvin and the Chipmunks favorite pizza. They, together with 20th Century Fox, also have sponsored an online sweepstakes for a chance to win a free private screening of Alvin and the Chipmunks movie and a Garlic Jim’s pizza party to one lucky winner and up to 100 of their friends. Garlic Jim’s was hosting the sweepstakes all during November on their website and the random drawing occurred on December 6th which determined the grand prize winner along with 25 runners-up which won an Alvin and the Chipmunks soundtrack.

Garlic Jim’s is also running Alvin and the Chipmunk specials throughout November and December that include a free $35 Alvin and the Chipmunks Collectible eMusic Gift Card with purchase.

“We are thrilled to be chosen as the Chipmunks’ favorite pizza in this upcoming movie,” says Dwayne Northrop, CEO, Garlic Jim’s. “Our franchisees will be promoting both the movie and our specials actively and know we’ll gain many more Garlic Jim’s fans through the process!”

Other partners include Samsung and Newspaper Association of America. Also on December 9th the Mall of America hosted an event who's goal was to break the world record for the Largest Christmas Carol that included Jess McCartney, the singer/actor who plays the voice of Theodore in the movie. I don't know if they broke the record, so if anyone has an update, please let us know.

So the movie sure looks cute, but who knows yet if it's going to be a hit at the box office or not. All of the promotions and the entertainment marketing tie-ins that have been developed around it are sure hoping it will draw an audience this holiday season. What I'm wondering is, since Alvin is still singing about wanting a hula-hoop, how come we don't have a hula-hoop product tie-in, or at least offer them as sweepstakes prizes? You would think it would be a natural, huh?

Register for PROMOLive's Interactive Marketing Online Conference Tommorrow

I'm going to take a short break today from writing about interactive holiday promotions to tell you about a free Interactive Marketing Online Conference that's taking place tomorrow, December 13th. PROMO Live, in association with Penton Marketing Media Group, publishers of PROMO Magazine, are sponsoring for the first time ever this virtual conference.

This full schedule provides best practices and thought leadership in 5 cutting-edge areas of interactive marketing --- consumer generated, mobile, games and contests, web, and email. Here's the agenda:

10:30 - A keynote presentation kicks off the conference with Karla Lacey, Director of Integrated Marketing Communications, Strategy & Planning, Cisco Systems. Karla's talk is entitled: The Customer Grows Up - Marketing in the Interactive World

11:00 - The Do's and Dont's in Developing, Launching & Marketing Online Games, Contests and Sweeps -  Sponsored by Bossdev

12:00 - CtoC Marketing (consumer generated marketing)

1:00 - Email for Brand Marketers - Sponsored by Campaigner

2:00 - Interactive Bonding ---- are you 365?

3:00 - Mobile-izing Your Brand

Each session is 45 minutes and you can click on each link above to read more details on each and to register. One registration allows you to attend all or just one session for free and also lets you come back any time through March of 2008 to view them.

So don't miss out. If you can't spare the day tomorrow, at least register and sit in on one session and come back later, maybe over the holidays when things slow down, and listen to some of the other sessions. Also, if you do attend, please feel free to comment here at let me know what you think. The organizers of the event are looking for feedback and would like to do more of these in the future, so let us know how you liked it, or didn't like it.

And don't forget...if want or need advice on developing and launching online games, contests and sweeps, please remember to contact me. That is by the way what I specialize in as well.

KFC Launches Two Consumer-Generated Holiday Contests

In the QSR arena this holiday season we have KFC sponsoring two consumer-generated content contests off of their Festive Feast website. The homepage greets visitors with an interactive holiday home scene that includes a countdown to Christmas. Each day visitors who click on the highlighted window of the home can find different treats in the form of downloadable coupons, wallpapers and ringtones. 

Visitors can then choose to enter the Festive Fanatics Contest which is seeking "holiday decorating dudes and divas" who have the most festively decorated home. Visitors are encouraged to send in photos and videos of their decorated home through an online entry form then either e-mail their photos to the KFC PR team or upload their video through a link to YouTube. All the photo entries can be viewed at a KFC Festive Fanatics Flickr page. Here's a photo submitted by the Liquori Family that commentators think is a little too "Festive".   

The Festive Fanatics Contest runs through Dec. 14. Entries will be judged on creativity, use of lights and props and appropriateness to KFC’s image. The 12 entries with the highest scores will become the semi-finalists which then be posted on the KFC website from Dec. 17 to 20 for online voting.

Then visitors will be able to vote on their favorite video or photo from 12 finalists starting Dec. 20.  The entry that earns the most votes will be the one grand prize winner who will receive KFC gift checks totaling $1,825 in value plus reimbursement of both their December electricity and credit card bills not to exceed a combined total of $3,000. Eleven semi-finalists will also each receive $155 in KFC gift checks.

Next is the Holiday of a Lifetime Photo Contest which KFC has partnered with Lifetime Entertainment. This contest encourages consumers to share pictures of their favorite family gatherings and to rate other's reunion photos. The enter here link redirects visitors to Lifetime's website where they enter and upload their photo. Visitors can also view all the photo entries and rate them on a scale of 1 to 10. Once rated they can see the average rating for each photo and how many votes it received.

Around Dec. 15th a panel of judges will select one grand prize winner that will be based on photographic quality, composition and adherence to the theme. The winner will receive a "KFC Holiday of a Lifetime Reunion Gift Package" containing $3,000 to purchase airline tickets to attend holiday family gatherings, $2,000 to spend on holiday decorations and clothes, $1,000 to purchase a digital camera, $500 towards the purchase of a fine china dining set, $500 to purchase four fine china photo frames and a $500 gift check for KFC products.

Twenty second prize winners will also receive a $100 gift check from KFC and a $100 gift card from American Express to be used to purchase holiday decorations.

Visitors to the website can also download the Smilebox application that includes a free KFC Peace and Joy scrapbook template that enables them to create personalized photo and video e-cards that they can print, share by email or post to their MySpace, Facebook or blog.

A survey by KFC found that nearly 65 percent of Americans feel the holidays are more stressful than tax season. So these interactive promotions are KFC's way of promoting their stress-free Festive Feast meal that enable families to "cross dinner off their to-do list" this holiday season. Thanks KFC.

Now please enjoy this video submitted by AgentJack13 as a Festive Fanatics entry that's gotten some great comments.