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SXSW is a Hotbed of Digital Innovation & Food Product Flavor Experiences

  

At this year’s SXSW 2012 event, brand names vied for exposure in a space teeming with messages and activity, with everything of course being shared in existing and new social media platforms. For more about what’s hot in the digital world and being launched and experienced by the 20,000 visitors to SXSW, be sure to watch the following videos with Launch Expert Julie Hall of Schneider Associates and our on-site correspondent, Lynne Viera, president and CEO of Rival Marketing.

 

No SXSW conference is without free food and sampling, and this year was no different. Some of the brands displaying innovation and creativity include Chevrolet, Nikon, Miller Lite, Monster Energy, and Doritos. Doritos JACKED, the newest tortilla chips from Doritos, were being sampled at a Doritos sponsored concert that also featured a chance to win special prizes. Doritos also displayed a nearly six-story tall pop-up vending machine with giant oversized quarters, to help promote the new extra large chips flavored as Smoky Chipotle BBQ or Enchilada Supreme. Doritos also recently launched a Doritos branded taco shell which is being served at Taco Bell. For additional commentary on food brand promotions at SXSW, check out the post from Dom Celentano, The Foodpreneur, on About.com.

 

SXSW also launched its first Tex-Mex Taco Table that featured participating restaurants Taco Deli, Habanero Mexican Café, and Matt's Famous El Rancho. What better place than Austin, Texas to promote foods and restaurants with Hispanic flavor profiles and influences?  This year, FedEx delivered food and free coffee from their food truck, along with providing a power up from their human chargers (see photo). Even world champion eater Kobayashi showed up to scarf what we think was a record number of grilled cheese sandwiches. The Today Show also had a food truck, as many brands find it is easier to get the attention of attendees outside the convention by offering free food or other services.

 

(Fedex Human Chargers)

(Today Show food truck)

Beer company Miller Lite gave its consumers a chance to enter the “SXSW 2012 Instant Win Game” for a $200 gift card or more.  Attendees can also "Tweet a Beer" to someone, buying a Miller via PayPal which is redeemable at some bars. They also sponsored giveaways and downloads on Pandora, Spotify, and other music apps.   Another beverage brand, Monster Energy, offered free breakfast and morning beverages during its events.

On the non-food front, Chevrolet developed an innovative promotion by providing taxi cab rides to Austin, Texas venues. Dubbed “Catch a Chevy,” the shuttle service showed off a full line of cars including Cruze sedans, Volts, Camaros, Corvettes and Mailbu Ecos featuring their updated OnStar service.  People test drove the vehicles from the convention center or hailed a car to take them to their next destination. 

Nikon put its new Nikon D4 and D-800 HD SLR cameras in the hands of fans.  SXSW attendees sampled the devices by snapping pictures of featured musicians.

The annual SXSW event began in 1987 in Austin, Texas, at the Austin Convention Center, and has become one of the best chances brands have to get in front of a core audience of influencers and trendsetters.

 

If you would like help planning your next launch, contact us at launch@schneiderpr.com or on Twitter @SchneiderPR.

 

Axe Introduces New Fragrance for Women

Axe, the body spray and grooming brand by Unilever, famous for its ads that turn average young men into heroic “girl-magnets,” recently launched the newest addition to its line of body sprays: Anarchy, a scent marketed towards men and women.

The campaign, by Bartle Bogle Hegarty, focuses on the idea of chaos and commotion, using dramatic online and print advertisements to stir up attention. The online promotion kicked-off with a teaser commercial, also seen in movie theaters, which featured the "Anarchy" concept without revealing the new product for women.

Social media, specifically the Axe Facebook page, played a key role in unleashing the “anarchist” scent. Up until the launch, Facebook users were greeted with a countdown to the fragrance release using the text “Anarchy is coming.” Free samples were distributed before the product hit stores for Facebook users who answered all of the questions correctly on an Axe quiz.

Axe also launched an original graphic novel in partnership with Aspen Comics, appropriately titled “Anarchy,” via YouTube and Facebook.  The graphic novel, “Anarchy Girl,.” Was created with fan feedback in real time, with Axe consumers voting on the comic’s plotline, characters and other aspects online through Axe’s social media channels. Some lucky fans also had comic versions of themselves featured in the novel after “liking” specific Axe Facebook posts or contributing their ideas.

To elaborate on their “Are you ready for unexpected attraction at every turn?” marketing campaign, Axe produced their usual suggestive commercial: a female police officer chasing a male robber through the city, only to meet with an incredible force of attraction at the end of the ad.

 A limited edition release, the question is will the body spray make women forgo their normal stand-by and make Axe Anarchy body spray their new choice? Barret Roberts, Senior Brand Manager at Axe, told the New York Times, “We’ve been hearing for some time that females have been asking for and looking for their very own scent of Axe.”

 At SA, we believe this is not anarchy, just smart marketing.

 

Casio Gets Funky with TRYX

Casio launched its newest camera with a stylin’ event in New York City featuring hip-hop acts The Roots and Nicki Minaj. The new product from Casio is TRYX, a point-and-shoot skinny cam with HD video capabilities. But the real revolution is in the camera’s frame. As opposed to most cameras, the TRYX’s frame can flip out and act as a handle, a tripod or a hanger, allowing for greater flexibility and creativity. The TRYX also boasts a wide-angle lens to capture group shots, and an HDR-ART special effects feature, which stylizes photos in artistic ways.

In developing the TRYX camera, Casio targeted young, socially-networked college students and mid-30s adults. Casio listened to what this younger audience wanted in a camera: easy photo sharing, fun special effects for a photo-booth feel, and flexibility.

 "Photography is a large part of how young people express themselves today, and they want the ability to share their photographs with friends over social networking sites," said Toshi Iguchi, Casio U.S. digital imaging products general manager, when speaking with the Official CES Daily. "They have the ability to immediately identify the benefits of our new camera, and that's why we've targeted them in this launch."

Casio teamed up with Best Buy for an exclusive nationwide launch, and for a special launch concert. The New York City event, TRYX: OUT NYC 2011, featured a Nicki Minaj lookalike contest and a concert with the hip-hop diva and The Roots. The top ten finalists in the Minaj lookalike contest won a TRYX camera and a gift certificate to Best Buy, with the winner receiving a back stage pass to meet the real Nicki. Users who signed up for a free account with Casio’s photo-sharing community, Imaging Square, were automatically entered to win an all-expenses paid trip for two to the NYC event. Casio also created two, limited edition pink TRYX cameras for Minaj, which she used, signed and auctioned off to help victims of Japan’s recent earthquake.

The event and giveaways were promoted via Casio’s Facebook and Twitter accounts,while event and product videos were featured on the company’s TRYX-focused YouTube channel.  

TRYX faces a challenging market for personal, portable technology devices, plus competition from improving cell phone cameras. Who knows, this product just might be funky enough to replicate the success Polaroid had with their i-Zone sticker camera.

Personalize Your Water with MiO and Transform Plain H20 into a Flavorful Beverage

Personalization is a popular trend among consumers, so what could be better than instantly mixing your own drink just the way you like it? Last month, Kraft launched its new caffeine free, artificially sweetened water-enhancer, Mio, in six different flavors.

MiO in Italian means “mine.” In an interview with Packaging Digest, Bridget MacConnell, senior manager, corporate affairs at Kraft Foods, explained “[that’s] what makes MiO so special—it lets me make my drink my way." MiO senior brand manager Lisa Laibe talked with the Chicago Tribune about the idea of personalization. "Consumers are really looking to have their personal tastes reflect in all things they're doing and using. It's particularly important for millennials, which Kraft pegs as those age 18 to 39.”

Found in supermarkets and sold in a convenient, portable pod container, MiO allows you to add a touch of Berry Pomegranate, Strawberry Watermelon, Fruit Punch, Mango Peach, Sweet Tea or Peach Tea to water for a new way to experience your favorite flavor. Each bottle contains about 24 servings at a price of around $3.99.

To launch MiO, Kraft hired a familiar face from YouTube to be the spokesman for the campaign: Brian Gallivan, more commonly known as “Sassy Gay Friend.” Gallivan stars in a number of viral videos encouraging young women to “FTS: Flip it, tip it and sip it.”

Aside from the YouTube promotion, MiO is advertising  on television, online and on Facebook. Free samples were sent out to 100,000 Facebook users in the weeks leading up to the launch as a giveaway promotion. Most of the consumer feedback was positive, and some fans even suggested new and creative ways to use MiO, like mixing it in ice cream, yogurt or soda.

With recent health news surfacing on the dangers of food colorings, MiO faces a challenge in connecting with health conscious consumers. Is MiO a beverage innovation, or a product launch with no real market? One thing is clear, MiO will be an interesting launch to watch in 2011.

 

 

Less Is More and More is More with New KFC Double Down

After KFC’s high profile Grilled Chicken became created a stir in 2009 with its couponing issues and subsequent sales success, marketers wondered what KFC would do next to captivate consumers’ imaginations. The answer? The Double Down sandwich.

KFC has gone “bun-less” with its latest non-traditional sandwich, which seemed more like a test market experiment or urban myth based on the early buzz it received (note the advertising touting “it’s real”). With this new sandwich, KFC answers the call for more meat, by offering “so much premium chicken that [they] didn’t have room for a bun.” Now two chicken filets (grilled or fried) hold together two pieces of bacon, and two melted slices of Monterey and pepper jack cheeses smothered in Colonel's Sauce. For those calorie conscious consumers, the Double Down comes in at 540 calories (equivalent to some large cheeseburgers) and the grilled version is 460; but both sandwiches are low carb of course.

KFC announced the Double Down in an April press release and began offering the item in restaurants on April 12^th. The Double Down was initially test marketed in Omaha, Nebraska and Providence, Rhode Island. Consumer curiosity and demand drove people to travel for miles to sample it. Online buzz in conjunction with late night talk show mentions helped the Double Down generate more interest than any other test market item in KFC history. Originally the Double Down was a limited time offer ending on May 23, 2010 – but KFC reversed course on May 19, 2010, stating the item would remain available as long as consumer demand is high.

To fuel interest after its national launch, KFC enlistedfemale students on college campuses to hand out coupons while wearing fitted sweatpants that had "Double Down" in large letters across their rear ends. Some questioned this marketing strategy, but KFC’s Manager of Public Relations, Rick Maynard, pointed out that KFC had only, "taken a page out of the book of some apparel companies and sororities who have promoted in this way for years." KFC Marketing Chief John Cywinski added, “It's an effective way to catch the attention of young men” — KFC's key customers and the biggest fans of Double Down. Additionally, KFC is giving the “unneeded” sandwich buns plus cash donations to food banks across the country, starting with the Dare to Care Food Bank in KFC’s hometown of Louisville, Kentucky. Billboards, print ads, and comical TV commercials boosted awareness and trial.

The chain cited its popularity in overall sales, aided by consumer-posted videos of people eating the Double Down, leading to YouTube buzz and celebrity ties, including Stephen Colbert’s televised feasting.  So far the campaign has worked: A KFC spokesperson reported 10 million Double Downs were sold for a total of about $50 million in revenue through mid-July.

Will this bun-less meat creation revolutionize fast food? Will we see a two-patty bun-less burger someday? Who knows? But this 2010 introduction from KFC certainly created a buzz with its innovative approach to creating and marketing a chicken sandwich.

If you would like help planning your next product launch, contact us at launch@schneiderpr.com or on Twitter, @SchneiderPR.

 

 

A New Dimension of Entertainment

 

A New Dimension of Entertainment

With the introduction of groundbreaking 3D technology promoted with highly creative experiential marketing, one brand of TVs is changing the way the world experiences both entertainment and marketing. Even before James Cameron’s movie, Avatar, forever raised the public’s expectations on the entertainment value of 3D visual media, manufacturers were feverishly working to replicate the 3D experience in the home. So who was the first-to-market? Entertainment technophiles know it was Samsung, a brand that has recently been relentless in developing and releasing new technologies before its competitors.

To introduce this innovative and mesmerizing new product line in early March, Samsung hosted a global launch event in Times Square. Avatar producer James Cameron made an appearance to promote the technology, and DreamWorks’ CEO Jeffery Katzenberg announced the next phase of the strategic alliance between the two companies, including putting the Shrek film series on 3D Bl u-ray. The Times Square event featured a performance by the Black Eyed Peas, which was filmed in 3D and made available exclusively to Samsung customers.  

In addition to the Times Square launch, Samsung also engineered two high profile experiential events to demonstrate category leadership. They created a stunning viral video of 3D projection mapping (over 1 million Youtube views) that debuted in Amsterdam and showed animation that was so realistic, it looked like the historic building on which the video was being projected was crashing to the ground. Samsung also planned and executed a tremendous experiential event in Buenos 
Aries where 1,256 3D TVs showed amazing three dimensional footage and attracted throngs of people to see displays in different spots across the city.

These buzz generating events are backed by a multi-million dollar “dedicated to wonder” integrated marketing campaign that incorporated ads, social media and cinema advertising at highly-anticipated 3D movies, such as Pixar’s Toy Story 3. To enable consumer trial of the product, Samsung is implementing a national in-store merchandising program that features 5,000 3D kiosks. They are also promoting a “starter kit” to encourage early adopters, which includes two sets of 3D active glasses to watch DreamWorks’ Monsters vs. Aliens or Shrek.

Samsung’s high profile, high budget, memorable product launch is exactly the kind of marketing you would expect from a brand that is forging ahead of the competition. Is it possible for Samsung to achieve category dominance? Only time will tell. (Click here for more about Samsung’s 3D TV product)

If you would like help planning your next launch, contact us at launch@schneiderpr.com or on Twitter @SchneiderPR.

Update: March 17, 2010

The Madness-of-March Marketing Ensues

It’s one of the biggest sporting events of the year — with more eligible teams than there are countries in the Olympics, more minutes played than the World Series, and more beer and chips consumed than the Super Bowl.  March Madness has become a huge marketing event for manufacturers looking to launch new products. The men’s college basketball tournament ranks behind only the NFL playoffs and Super Bowl in TV ad spending on postseason sports, according to New York-based TNS Media Intelligence.  The 63-game event consists of 64 teams, millions of fans and hours and hours of television coverage, with accompanying Facebook fan pages and Twitter feeds. For three weeks in March, the NCAA tournament gets the undivided focus of sports fans everywhere, a rarity in this day and age when there are so many diversions and competition for attention. 

 

 

With a down economy, one might expect marketers to stay on the bench. But given the opportunity to reach a huge, young, well-educated, mostly male audience (that is also slightly above average in income), product promos and advertising campaigns abound.  Four years ago, Coca Cola chose March Madness to launch My Coke Rewards, a multi-year, online driven, mega-rewards program across all Coca-Cola brands, the largest program ever launched for the Coca-Cola franchise.  This year, Infiniti, the luxury car brand, is using the tournament to launch its new M line of sports sedans after launching the G line during the Super Bowl. Infiniti is sponsoring a pre-game Tip-Off show, and Madness enthusiasts who fill out a tournament bracket online have the option of entering their picks into a contest to win a sleek, new Infiniti M sports car.

 

Kraft Foods will be conducting sampling for two of its newest products – Ritz Munchables pretzel crisps and Planters Flavor Grove almonds and cashews. In addition, Wheat Thins will get brand exposure on the trays used at concession stands. A Ritz Munchables commercial with a basketball theme will also begin airing this week. And you can add Dove to the list of companies cashing in on March Madness – since they will be promoting their new Men+Care line with an advertising buy during the tournament. Of course, where would this March Madness marketing blitz be without a kickass iPhone app introduced by CBS and AT&T. The apps will run on the 3G network so fans can get live streaming coverage as well as Westwood One radio broadcasts.

 

 

Interestingly, the Urology Institute in Springfield, Oregon has taken March Madness to a new level by reminding all men that the tournament is an excellent time to consider their, ahem, maleness. They have launched their "Snip City" campaign, figuring there couldn’t be a better time to schedule a vasectomy, and of course, miss work. The Snip City promotional copy states: “You get a recovery kit - and most importantly - a doctor's note stating you need to sit on the couch and watch basketball!” Is this March madness or brazenly brilliant marketing? You be the judge.   

Schneider Associates Promotes Key Management

On the anniversary of Schneider Associates’ 29th year in business, Vice Presidents Julie Hall and Phil Pennellatore were promoted to executive vice president positions and Lynda McKinney became vice president of the firm’s Consumer Practice, according to SA President Joan Schneider.

“These new appointments underscore the growth of the agency and name the next generation of leadership,” said Schneider.

In Pennellatore’s nine years at Schneider Associates in the Corporate Communications Practice and throughout his 16 years in public relations, he has counseled clients in the areas of public affairs, media relations, community relations, crisis management and corporate communications. His team generates increased awareness for commercial, residential and mixed-use projects as well as leading-edge companies.

During Julie Hall’s seven years at Schneider Associates and throughout her nearly 20-year career as a PR and marketing strategist, she has specialized in developing brand relationships in the consumer packaged goods, toy, juvenile product and food and beverage industries.

Lynda McKinney brings 20 years of award-winning marketing strategy and PR management to her new role as vice president of SA’ s Consumer Practice. She has managed businesses ranging from small start-ups to Fortune 500 companies.

For more information about Schneider Associates, go to www.schneiderpr.com.