Comcast campaign combines regional spots, video on demand, experiential marketing

Comcast Cable marshaled its emerging video-on-demand (VOD) platform as part of an integrated, election-themed product launch campaign for Proctor & Gamble’s Old Spice Red Zone Body Wash.

Comcast Spotlight, the advertising sales division of Comcast Cable, combined VOD with regionalized 30-second spots, grassroots marketing and a web promotion that drew 2 million hits on Election Day alone.

“We had multiple touch points to reach that elusive 18-34 year old crowd,” said campaign mastermind Nancy Newman, Chicago-based integrated marketing manager for Comcast Spotlight.

A video crew from TeamWorks Media shot football tailgate parties at 17 college campuses across the country where young men campaigned for the “Red Zone Presidency.”

“It’s huge, touching people one-on-one with the brand experience,” said TeamWorks spokesperson Julie Meyer. “More and more companies are trying to tie in experiential marketing to their ad campaigns.”

TeamWorks footage generated 30-second spots which have been regionally targeted during Comcast college football broadcasts.

“Regional distribution makes the campaign more powerful and more relevant to the city where you are,” Newman said. “You couldn’t do these regionalized promotions except through cable; that’s our competitive edge over satellite. We have the pipeline directly to the home. You may get a totally different spot than your neighbor. It’s like direct marketing on television.”

Comcast is also airing six more elaborate, long-form VOD spots culled from the same footage. “This has been one of our first forays into long-form advertising,” Newman said.

“It’s been a great opportunity to focus on this format, which I think will be the next big thing. With TIVO, a lot of advertisers and marketers are nervous that the 30-second spot may go away. With this campaign we’ve had the opportunity to take marketing to a new level.”

VOD is not yet available to all Comcast subscribers. In the Chicago area, most suburban subscribers can access the service, but it has not yet been deployed throughout the city.

As campaign spots aired, the field of candidates on each campus narrowed from three to one. Then on Nov. 2, 59,000 unique visitors logged onto oldspice.com to cast their vote for “Red Zone President.”

The video-on-demand spots are also accessible through the Old Spice web site, which was customized by TeamWorks in collaboration with P& G.

– by Ed M. Koziarski, edk@homesickblues.com