Fun marketing' hit-squad to target bored teens
An innovative 'fun marketing' campaign has been launched in the USA by Panasonic to help relieve youngsters' boredom during the summer holiday season. The 'Save Your Summer' tour shows off the latest Panasonic entertainment equipment and gives the kids hands-on experience of the toys and gadgets they'll be begging for at Christmas.
Through its summer campaign, designed and created by New York-based Renegade Marketing Group, Panasonic says it wants restore fun to the lives of the fun-deprived this year. The Save Your Summer tour, which partners Panasonic with retailers and radio stations across the USA, features a 'Panasonic Rescue Vehicle', which is an ambulance re-fitted for fun experiences with the company's latest entertainment systems.
Making memories Complete with game stations, plasma televisions and other electronics, the vehicle boasts a collection of entertainment options, and encourages the inquisitive to come along for a free Karaoke session, and to burn a DVD of their performance on the spot.
"You can't just say that you're fun. You have to prove it," said Gene Kelsey, general manager of brand strategy for Panasonic Consumer Electronics Co. "Capturing that moment of fun with you and your friends and putting that DVD into your hand is the moment of truth."
Teenage pressures "Summers aren't always what they're cracked up to be, " explained Drew Neisser, Renegade Marketing Group's president and CEO. "With the pressure to find jobs, internships, and volunteer opportunities, there's a growing desire among teens to reclaim the summer as a time for fun."
Those who visit the tour will also be able to win prizes that include a 53" HDTV and US$2,500. Local radio stations, which will be providing live remote broadcasts from the various tour sites, are also to run extra Panasonic promotions leading up to the event.
Campaign support The tour is also supported online with a tongue-in-cheek micro-site that provides humorous advice on summer jobs. Videos, which combine vintage B-movie footage with quirky voice-overs, also provide a humorous look at the perils of the working world. Designed as a viral extension of the campaign, each video can be e-mailed to friends.
"Going viral is not only a great way to reach teens; it's an important step in gaining their approval," said Neisser. "Credibility is everything."
In addition to the videos and tour information, the site also hosts a daily instant-win game and profiles a range of extremely imaginative (and even outrageous) occupations.
For additional information: · Visit Panasonic at http://www.panasonic.com · Visit Renegade Marketing at http://www.renegademarketing.com