Carat, Hill Holliday, MediaVest and OMD are Silver Winners
Today, Jack Myers Media Business Report presents the Silver winners for the 4th Annual Myers Media Innovation and Creativity Agency Awards. Next Tuesday, the Agency Grand Award winner will be
announced followed later next week by finalists for Myers Media Innovation and Creativity Media Company Awards.
Myers Media Innovation and Creativity Awards: Silver Agency Winners
Company: Carat Entry Title: Phillips Electronics Sense & Sensibility Other Companies Involved: Carat USA, Carat Fusion, Carat Brand Experience, DDB Individuals Who Deserve Recognition: Martha Cleary-CUSA, Bob Connelly-CUSA, Bill Hewson-CI, Megan Horne-CUSA, Christine Keaveny-CUSA, Michael Nicholas-CUSA, Robin Reiner-CUSA, Victor Ruvolo-CUSA, Brandi Stevens-CI, Jeff Stover-CUSA and Geoff Thatcher-CBE
Company: Hill Holliday Entry Title: CVS Pharmacy Other Companies Involved: CVS/pharmacy; ABC; Renegade 86; DreamWorks Individuals Who Deserve Recognition: Stacey Shepatin-Hill Holliday, Jennifer Akins-Hill Holliday, Guy Rancourt-Hill Holliday, Jamie Piro-ABC, Basak Ayter-ABC and Heidi Devlin-CVS/Pharmacy
Company: MediaVest Entry Title: Febreze Noticeables Other Companies Involved: Nick at Nite Individuals Who Deserve Recognition: Brent Poer-MediaVest, Carly Feinstein-MediaVest, Kathleen Dundas-MediaVest, Young Kim-MediaVest, Kim Rosenblum-Nick@Nite, Tom Hill-Nick@Nite and Penny Mailander-Nick@Nite
Company: OMD Entry Title: State Farm Other Companies Involved: State Farm, DDB, TribalDDB,
AOL, Point Roll, CBS, Viacom, CSTV, Inside Express Individuals Who Deserve Recognition: Mark Gibson, Ed Gold, Shari Staiano, Christine Lockwood, Katy Lichtenstein and Kyung Kim
Company: OMD Entry Title: Visa CSI 3-Dimensions of Murder Other Companies Involved: Ubisoft Individuals Who Deserve Recognition: Dario Paciti and Dino Mytides
Myers Media Innovation and Creativity Awards: Silver Agency Winners-Individual Submissions
Company: Carat Title: Philips Electronics, Sense & Simplicity
Description of goals and strategies of program:
The need to simplify the way consumers' experience technology was something Philips recognized and wanted to address. A research study conducted across the globe reported that people want the benefits of technology without the hassles. The world is complicated enough; consumers want simplicity.
Philips' research showed that they had a unique opportunity to answer the need for simplicity while strengthening the brand in the minds of consumers. Philips promised to make technology easier to experience and consumer-centric, while remaining advanced.
At the heart of the latest Philips advertising campaign is the belief that it makes sense for technology to be advanced and simple at the same time. Philips launched their global tagline "Sense and Simplicity" during the second half of 2004.
Goal: During 2005 Philips continued to increase their "Sense and Simplicity" brand spending in the U.S. While they managed to increase brand awareness, the client remained challenged with owning "simplicity." Carat was tasked with revamping the media approach for Philips, extending the sense and simplicity messaging through communication executions to establish Philips as the authority on simplicity.
Insight: Through analysis of broadcast insights (involvement), DVR behavior and consumer data suggesting immunization to interruption-based advertising, Carat confirmed that Philips' brand positioning and messaging was clearly in conflict with traditional media deployments. While Philips communicated "we make things better through simplicity," traditional media contradicted this by interrupting or "complicating" the consumer experience.
Additionally, Philips' own proprietary research reported that the combination of advertising, public relations and media is more powerful than the individual disciplines working alone. As a result, the "Philips Loop" team was formed, ultimately giving way to the concept of "Adverplicity" - strategic ad placement that drives press.
Strategy: The resulting strategy was to bring alignment to what Philips "said" and "did." The Carat team set out the deliver Philips' message through simplified experiences, bringing the brand to life and delivering the brand benefit. All executions would deliver on the theory of "Adverplicity" and the impact of each tactic would be strengthened with custom creative designed specifically for each media concept.
Description, including what aspects make it worthy of recognition, why it is innovative, how it was developed, presented, approved, and implemented, as well as obstacles confronted during the development, approval and implementation process:
Integrated Solution: The Carat campaign capitalized on the simplicity of the Philips brand (making life better) and message (simplicity). The platform, grounded in consumer and brand insights, acted as the core theme and ensured that "where" Philips communicated reinforced "what" Philips was saying. Executions would never be complicated and would deliver a "simplified" consumer experience.
Groundbreaking Tactical Executions: Using traditional media in non-traditional ways, Carat executions broke convention, demonstrating simplicity and creating meaningful impact by providing a benefit. In many cases media drove the creative messaging and the execution represented an industry first.
Experiential - Philips Next Simplicity Event: The Philips' "Next Simplicity Event" celebrated the company's brand promise by providing a forum for Philips to share its products and vision for the future with consumers. Carat brought simplicity to life by transforming Pier 94 in New York City into an event critics called "inspiring."
National Print - Table of Contents Sponsorship: In most magazines, the table of contents is buried behind numerous ads, which interrupts the reader's experience. Carat turned the system on its head by moving the table of contents to the first page in Time, Fortune, People and Business 2.0. A flap on the inside front cover stated, "Simplicity means not letting complexity stand in your way. It starts with the Table of Contents on the first page."
National Print - Gourmet Summer Reading Outsert: Philips was the sole sponsor of a 89-page supplement which provided consumers with a summer reading experience near advertising free. The polly-bagged "outsert" featured 15 articles about eating in more interesting ways and carried only six pages of advertising. This program had event and podcast extensions centered on Ruth Reichl and other authors.
National Print - Card-Free Magazine Promotion: Subscription cards also interrupt the reader experience. Carat developed a promotion with Hearst whereby Philips paid to eliminate the cards from issues of Redbook, O At Home, Weekend and House Beautiful. Each magazine ran a two-page Philips advertisement with the line "Simplicity is not having subscription cards fall out of your magazine."
Interactive - Simplicity Sponsorship: Carat developed partnerships with several websites including: Web MD, Wall Street Journal, New York Times and ESPN. Philips sponsored the first-ever free access to The New York Times' online subscription-based "TimeSelect." For one week, every visitor to NYTimes.com received free access to TimesSelect columns, blog and video that are normally only available to TimesSelect subscribers. The sponsorship also included a New York-focused branding initiative in print entitled "Simplify New York City," to simplify consumers' navigation around New York City.
Cable TV - College Football Sponsorship: Carat created a partnership with TBS to air coverage of the Oklahoma State Cowboys at Texas Longhorns game, providing viewers with an all-access pass and limited commercial interruptions. This new experience provided viewers with a 'simpler' way to watch a game that had more football action and game commentary in place of advertising.
Obstacles: The Carat teams found that unconventional attention-grabbing techniques are difficult to place. One idea was to replace the four-minute of screen time where cinemas usually run advertisements with a single 15-second Philips spot. The ad would have read, "We could have fun a four-minute commercial. Instead, we choose simplicity. Sometimes, simplicity means getting you to your movie quicker." Ultimately, the program did not come to fruition as Screenvision thought the big-screen ad was poking fun at movie advertising.
The execution of unconventional techniques requires greater collaboration between media, creative and client which lends to some hurdles in process, communications, etc. For Philips, the media executions often lead the creative messaging, turning conventional advertising process on its head. All involved parties sometimes needed to put their predisposed ways of working aside and engage in a collaborative process from idea generation through execution.
Company: Hill Holliday Title: CVS/pharmacy Miracle Workers
Description of goals and strategies of program:
"I truly believe we cannot win without
making an emotional connection to our customers." - Tom Ryan CEO CVS/pharmacy.
That was our challenge. And in today's healthcare environment, where there is more information than ever for customers to process, retail pharmacies have the opportunity to play a major role in
consumer's healthcare needs. That need though, requires a stronger relationship between a customer and a pharmacist.
So our goal was this…
Position CVS as the pharmacy leader, differentiating them from their competitors (Walgreens, Target, Wal-Mart, Brooks) by highlighting what connects CVS customers to their pharmacists… a
trusted relationship. Customers are looking for pharmacists who will take the time to advise them and answer their questions. Pharmacists are motivated by their desire to make a difference in their customers' lives.
Our strategy was simple…
Demonstrate (this was key!!) that CVS/pharmacy is committed to making meaningful connections with every customer to help them live longer, healthier and happier lives.
Show the difference a pharmacist and a company like CVS can make in someone's life.
And don't just do it once… one-offs don't demonstrate commitment. Partner with a show that could help demonstrate how dedicated CVS/pharmacy is to its customers.
Description, including what aspects make it worthy of recognition, why it is innovative, how it was developed, presented, approved, and implemented, as well as obstacles confronted during the development, approval and implementation process:
Working with ABC/DreamWorks and Renegade 86, we developed a customized branded integration in Miracle Workers, a new reality program airing in primetime that paired an elite team of doctors dedicated to performing medical miracles with patients who needed it
most. Viewers watched the impossible as one patient regained his sight, another overcame Tourette's Syndrome and another had a seemingly inoperable brain tumor removed. It was the perfect environment to showcase the essential role CVS pharmacists play in a patient's recovery as well as to elevate CVS' role within healthcare.
We didn't just tell people what kind of company CVS/pharmacy is - we showed them… in an environment that demonstrates the clear benefit that CVS pharmacists can provide to its customers.
We negotiated a full-surround campaign… in-program, on the Miracle Workers website and in press releases. In each episode, a $25,000 CVS/pharmacy gift card was presented to a patient to help cover post-surgical pharmaceutical needs, costs that were
not covered under the patients' insurance. In two episodes, a CVS/pharmacist met the patient in-store and personally delivered the gift card again reinforcing the relationship between pharmacist and customer.
Documentary spots featuring actual CVS pharmacists aired during breaks. These spots let customers see the honest,
sincere, passionate and dedicated people who make up CVS/pharmacy.
And on the website, custom created banners reinforced the message that CVS pharmacists are dedicated to helping their customers.
The Sell Through…
We crafted a recommendation that argued that the cumulative impact of the product integration, the television creative and web creative would have more affect on changing people's perception of the brand than just running the creative in commercial breaks. Shifting money into Prime
out of less expensive dayparts meant we were losing GRP's. But GRP's could not be sole measurement of success for this program. Miracle Workers was the opportunity where CVS could exclusively develop that much needed emotional connection with its customers.
It wasn't easy and it wasn't fast.
It took almost 12 months from concept to execution. We first saw the Miracle Workers program idea back in development in March 2005. It didn't air until one year later.
There was no prime in the media plan, but that didn't stop us.
It was a risk on an unproven property. We didn't know what night it was going to be scheduled or what it would be up against.
There were endless negotiations, countless presentations, numerous pharmacist casting auditions, and multiple overnight program shoots.
But the real reason for the success of this program was in the implementation. Just negotiating a deal and leaving it in the
hands of the producers to execute is not in the best interest of the client. Hill Holliday's involvement through production to insure the brand voice was appropriately represented was key to the ultimate connection CVS/pharmacy made with viewers.
We worked closely with producers to ensure CVS was providing what was most needed for each patient.
We attended the program shoots to make sure that the pharmacists, doctors, and nurses, who were presenting the
gift to the patient in each episode, accurately represented the brand.
Company: MediaVest USA Title: Febreze Noticeables
Description of goals and strategies of program:
We needed a way to reach Febreze consumers in a "fresh" way to promote the Febreze line of air and fabric refreshers in addition to the newest product innovation, Febreze Noticeables. The brand
wanted to take a step beyond the :30 spot and create an emotional connection to Febreze through everyday family TV moments.
Description, including what aspects make it worthy of recognition, why it is innovative, how it was developed,
presented, approved, and implemented, as well as obstacles confronted during the development, approval and implementation process:
The Febreze house is an "animal House." We took that idea very literally.
The classic family sitcom may be an endangered species on broadcast television so MediaVest and Febreze decided to create one of our own. The result emulated the classic, three-camera structure and
overall viewing experience of traditional family sitcom, but with a twist-it focused on a family of dogs.
The show fit in with Nick@Nite programming, but gave a wink to the audience that this was definitely something different. Without a doubt, At the Poocharellis cut through the clutter.
Real, live dogs were cast in the roles of each of the family members. The Poocharelli family was
showcased in every day situations: mom feels underappreciated, relatives and friends visit, the kid loose their homework and there's always a neighbor to bother.
The Poocharelli living room was the primary set, with a clear nod to its position as the "place to be."
Eight original episodes were executed. Four episodes involved Febreze products being integrated into the "A" storyline with the other four having only Febreze product placed into the set.
MediaVest worked with Nick@Nite to produce and deliver At the Poocharellis as original programming.
The series had a set day and time (Tuesdays/Sundays at 9:57pm) as well being listed on their schedule.
Themes revolved around everyday family messes, everyday family reunions, and how Febreze eliminated the former to enhance the latter.
Content ran in-program, with
Febreze commercial adjacency.
Original airings 1x / week in Prime Time (9:57pm on Tuesdays), with additional airings running during the weekends
"At the Poocharellis" was listed as an actual program in the TV Guide channel scroll and the interactive guide listing utilized by digital cable subscribers
A Sunday Supplement in Parade Magazine ran with a tune-in Poocharellis message at launch
A microsite hosted by Nick@Nite was created
Consumers could watch actual episodes online, as well as:
One-on-one interview with the "stars", exclusive outtakes/bloopers, "behind the scenes" and "making of"
footage, video puzzle games, screen savers and bios of each character, even a "press conference" held with the Poocharellis
Participation was enhanced with a consumer sweepstakes
Tune-in cross-promotion leveraged throughout the Nick sites and Febreze.com with banner ads
Relationship with Nick@Nite was leveraged to provide key PR placements to generate consumer buzz around the
breakthrough marketing idea Hollywood Insider, Squawkbox, WSJ, and the NY Times
Febreze sponsorship and product participation in Animal Fair's "Paw for Style" fashion show in NY & LA generated interest and excitement among entertainment and marketing trade media
On-pack tune-in stickers were affixed to 1MM Febreze Fabric Refresher bottles at the top national retailers (including Target and Wal-Mart)
Viewers saw this not as a commercial but entertainment that was relevant to their lives. The New York Times
noted the evolution, citing that At The Poocharellis represented "Going beyond product placement to create the entertainment itself."
Company: OMD Title: State Farm - Now What
Description of goals and strategies of program:
Young adults are on the cutting edge of digital marketing and demand content when, where and how they want it. This
insight underscored the key challenge for State
Farm - how to communicate in their environment in a manner they embrace, engaging them with messaging about the importance of insurance without alienating them.
To puncture the indifference of young adults and change their perception, OMD, DDB and Tribal DDB created a non State Farm branded campaign that brought humorous insurance moments to life, leaving
consumers to question "Now What?" and encouraged them to log onto nowwhat.com. At Nowwhat.com young adults discovered State Farm was behind the edgy advertising.
Description, including what aspects make it worthy of recognition, why it is innovative, how it was developed,
presented, approved, and implemented, as well as obstacles confronted during the development, approval and implementation process:
OMD was challenged to help change young adults' perception that State Farm is not relevant to them to "State Farm is an insurance company for me," drive consumers to nowwhat.com and increase
renters and auto insurance quotes. To do this, we implemented three strategies including the creation of Now What Moments virally, utilizing our unique CBS/Viacom Partnership and making online video 3D.
Knowing that instant messenger is the primary means of communication among young adults, OMD Digital and AOL created a custom delivery system that empowered visitors of NowWhat.com to virally send branded disasters to their friends via AOL Instant Messenger. Such "disasters"
made it appear as if their friend's computer caught on fire, became crushed by boulders, smashed by rocks, infested by roaches or sprayed with graffiti. This provided State Farm with precise targeting, giving Now What message instant legitimacy and provided a personal invitation to visit the nowwhat.com site.
OMD Broadcast and Digital had five Viacom and CBS digital properties (VH1, MTV, CSTV, CBS, and iFILM) partner together
to jointly submit a digital program. At the center, a video contest allowed users to submit videos of their "Now What moments" to win prizes.
OMD negotiated in-show integration with VH1's Web Junk to feature the winner. "Web Junk," a show completely dedicated to highlighting the best viral videos on the web, was the ideal place to feature the winner as it's a strong show with our target and provided an ideal incentive for
young adults to participate in our contest. This was also a first for Viacom as it allowed users to submit videos with their cell phones, a near 100% penetration among our target audience.
In addition, OMD leveraged two special opportunities with Viacom, unavailable to other advertisers. First, Now What was the inaugural sponsor of CBS's broadband channel, Innertube, and each week CBS
posted clips on the channel featuring Now What moments from their library of web-only and television shows (Big Brother, Love Monkey, Animate This, etc), engaging the target on their terms and providing them with unique behind the scenes content.
Second, by leveraging our corporate deal with MTV, we were able to create a strong online share of voice for State Farm and a strong branding association with the MTV VMA's in the eyes of the target.
Finally, to create standout video executions, OMD Digital and Tribal collaborated with Point Roll, a rich media vendor, to develop the internet technology necessary to make rich media interact with video. Rather than view a video in its flat, 2D native form, this new technology allowed
objects to appear as if moving in a third dimension-from the video towards the user. Those materials moving on the screen-lacrosse balls, etc actually appeared as if they were moving outward, until they smashed into and cracked the surface of the users' computer screen, creating an unexpected "Now What" moment.
Company: OMD Title: Visa CSI 3-Dimensions of Murder
Description of goals and strategies of program:
The FTC received more than 685,000 complaints of consumer fraud and identity theft during 2005 and over 25% related to credit card fraud. Visa prides itself on outstanding consumer protection and we went beyond product placement to create a deep, relevant and seamless
integration into the CSI PC video game to illustrate Visa's fraud protection services in the only medium that inhibits multi-tasking. We scripted the game so that players could experience Visa's security as part of the game's action and as the most important clue in solving the crime. There is a minimum of ten minutes of player interaction with the Visa brand per game and
330,000 hours of relevant brand exposure.
Description, including what aspects make it worthy of recognition, why it is innovative, how it was developed,
presented, approved, and implemented, as well as obstacles confronted during the development, approval and implementation process:
Visa aligned with the videogame based on the hit TV show "CSI: Crime Scene
Investigation" - the highest-rated TV crime franchise in history-where players are placed at the scene of a crime and are
responsible for solving the case. The crime solving nature of the game is a natural fit with Visa's fraud protection messaging and opens the door to a unique, immersive experience that only videogames can deliver.
The unique puzzle-solving game attracts an important audience for Visa card usage and fans of the game are loyal to the
show-a staggering 90% tune in to watch CSI on a regular basis, providing a relevant extension of Visa's TV primetime media strategy.
The case: A rich, young hotel heiress' posh apartment is found covered in blood. No body is found at the scene so it's up to
CSI to determine what happened. Suspects include the heiress' fiancé, her boy on-the-side, and her younger sister.
Throughout the course of the investigation, it's revealed that the victim faked her own death to escape an abusive relationship. She used her sister's Visa card to fund her getaway, but the almost perfect plan
fell apart when Visa's continuous fraud monitoring service flagged suspicious activity on the account.
Players don't just interact with Visa branding, they learn about Visa's secure product offerings. For example, the sister explains that Visa cards come with fraud protection, which helps prevent her
card from being used, by anyone but herself and wonders if it could be related to her sister's disappearance. This discovery becomes the most important clue in solving the mystery.
The integration of Visa within the script was designed to give the player a one-on-one experience with the brand and clearly showcases the security benefits of owning a Visa card. In fact, the level of accuracy and relevance to the Visa brand is so spot-on that the original storyline of the game
was changed to be 100% reflective of Visa's actual security features. The linear design of the game ensures complete player interaction of more than 10 minutes with Visa.
Going beyond traditional network ad buy, this new dimension of integration into the storyline takes Visa inside the game and makes it a part of the user's entertainment value. Videogames drive players to
repeat the experience over and over before mastering and completing the game, affording Visa the advantage of extended exposure.
Visa is also visible in the game's environments through billboards, stickers and magazine ads. This not only provides
Visa with additional impressions but also adds a degree of realism to the game.
