Octagon First Call

I am in Memphis today with the St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. The Hospital is the official beneficiary of today’s college football Autozone Liberty Bowl between the Kentucky Wildcats and the East Carolina Pirates. As part of the St. Jude partnership, First Call helped procure country music sensation Sara Evans to perform at last night’s gala at the Peabody Hotel and during halftime of today’s ESPN telecast.

She is a long time supporter of St. Jude and she will be recording a PSA this afternoon just after her pre-game rehearsal (which is taking place in five minutes).

With roughly four million people watching today’s bowl game, the awareness St. Jude will receive will surely help their brand recall as well as future fundraising efforts.

OK, so this isn’t the typical post, but felt it was worth sharing that Michael Jacobson, who leads First Call’s Hollywood office, got engaged to long time girlfriend Mollie over the holiday.

Bravo’s Top Design fan favorite, Andrea Schroder, has been hard at work creating a Winter Wonderland for Staples.  The talented interior designer was enlisted to design the office supply store’s first ever holiday window for their Bryant Park store.  And, she did it all from Staples office supplies!

Andrea Schroder surrounded by her Staples Winter Wonderland

In addition to her beautiful window display, she also took time to visit with children from the local Boys and Girls Club.  Schroder taught them how to make simple, beautiful and economical holiday décor out of office supplies.  Her ideas and step-by-step instructions for the inexpensive holiday decorations can be found at her website and will be distributed to Staples Rewards members.  Andrea is also participating in a Satellite Media Tour this morning to promote the unveiling of the holiday window that is scheduled for early afternoon.  Be sure to check it out if you are in the NYC area. 

Kudos to the Staples PR firm, Weber Shandwick, for a beautifully crafted PR program.  They put a fun and relevant spin on a cherished holiday tradition (window displays), obtained media coverage and made it appropriate for the tough economic times.  Not to mention that all of the office supplies used in the window will go to a good cause- as they are being donated to the Boys and Girls Club after the display is taken down for the season.

Recently, First Call has been called on to provide expert insight into the world of sports and entertainment. In AdAge, you can find First Call’s Managing Director’s (David Schwab) thoughts on the potential advantages of having Chicago host the 2016 Olympic Games.  As he says, time zones can have a large affect on audience metrics.  If Chicago wins the bid, expect increased audience excitement due to live coverage of events.

Schwab can also be found in the Sports Business Journal  commenting on the benefits of using Facebook as a communication and marketing tool in the industry. He and other industry professionals share what they have learned from using the popular social networking platform.

Finally, Schwab is featured in PR Week’s PR Toolbox. With the tough economic times, everyone is looking to get the most bang for their buck. Schwab gives tips and tricks to help companies ensure that they use celebrities effectively in campaigns.

Sprite has LeBron. Pepsi has Tony Romo. And now, Dr Pepper has… Tom Taylor?

It isn’t unusual to see a professional athlete endorsing a soft drink, but Tom Taylor is not your standard basketball or football star. The newest face of Dr Pepper (and Diet Dr Pepper) is a professional gamer. That’s right, he is the biggest name in Major League Gaming-an industry that is growing by leaps and bounds.  With a typical three day MLG tournament drawing 12,000 to 15,000 fans and 2.5 million registered users on MLG’s GameBattles site, the gaming industry has established a large (and loyal) fan base. 

Tom Taylor (or Tsquared as he is known as in the industry) will appear on the label of 20 ounce Dr Pepper and Diet Dr Pepper bottles nationwide. The bottles featuring Taylor represent the first time that Dr. Pepper has placed a pro athlete on the label for national distribution. The deal is encompassed in Dr Pepper’s MLG sponsorship and there will also be an under-the-cap promotion to win points in tournaments and prizes. 

Just as Taylor is not a typical “athlete”, he is also not a typical “celebrity”. He is an influencer. As we have talked about before, influencers have to unique ability to influence the public because they are relatable. Taylor, for example, is a pro athlete in a ‘sport’ that many people enjoy themselves. He provides an expertise in the field, yet is still wholly relatable to average video game players.

This is a smart deal by Dr Pepper for several reasons. They aligned themselves with a league that captures the core demographics of their target audience. They engaged an influencer on the rise (and more affordable than most traditional celebrities) with a strong core following. And they invested in the league that he plays in… building a relationship with the league’s fans.

First Call understands the value of a celebrity. As celebrity consultants, we work to integrate celebrities into campaigns with various objectives. An increase in the publicity surrounding a campaign is one of the many benefits of incorporating a celebrity into the mix.

The current issue of PR Week features an article with First Call’s David Schwab. In “Putting the campaign’s best face forward”  Schwab shares practical advice on how to best use a celebrity in a PR campaign. An interview in which Schwab gives three pieces of advice to keep in mind when choosing a celebrity for a cause-related campaign can also be viewed on PR Week’s homepage.

Below is the second half of this month’s Talent Email. Be sure to also check out our feature in PR Week.

Dancing in September
Reality television’s reigning dance queen and rising country singer Julianne Hough is partnering with Wrigley, one of the world’s leading makers of chewing gum. Hough joins R&B music sensations Chris Brown and Ne-Yo to deliver their fresh new takes on Wrigley’s Doublemint, Juicy Fruit and Big Red commercial jingles. Hough’s DWTS partner, comedic radio personality Adam Corolla, is trading in his dancing shoes for tacos and burritos. Corolla is teaming up with Taco Bell to promote their all-new Big Bell Box Meal, which is said to satisfy all hunger needs at a low price. Taco Bell is also continuing its music promotion program called “Feed the Beat,” where the chain rewards successful indie rock bands such as Myriad with meals after their late night concerts.  All My Children actress and upcoming DWTS competitor Susan Lucci is starring in an infomercial for Malibu Pilates, a Pilates machine made by Gunthy Renker.  

Blue Jean Baby
William Rast, a denim brand created by Justin Timberlake and business partner Trace Ayala, is using scripted trailers as a unique way to promote the brand, starring none other than Timberlake himself.  The video can be found on http://www.williamrast.com/williamrast/index.html.  Olympic gold medal winner Nastia Liukin is starring in a series of print ads for Vanilla Star’s “Smart Girls Rock” campaign.  The ads for the jean brand will appear in national magazines, buses, kiosks and billboards in NYC and Los Angeles.  Levi’s has enlisted a list of celebs to promote their “Unbuttoned” campaign, including next-generation artists Estelle, Nikka Costa  and Wale.  Each artist has their own subsite, where users can download free content.  BMX rider Jamie Bestwick and celebrity blogger Perez Hilton are also participating in the promotion.  Levi’s will continue to unbutton new artists over the next year.  

Model Behavior
Clothier Hurley International has chosen model Bar Refaeli to star in an advertising campaign for their Young Contemporary collection.  She will be modeling next spring’s lineup of sporting bikinis, sheer T’s and denim shorts.  Yaya DaCosta, runner-up in Season 3 of America’s Next Top Model, is featured in a television commercial table dancing her way into a pair of high heels lined with Dr. Scholl’s massaging gel insoles.  No stranger to the beauty industry, model Gisele Bundchen will be the next spokesperson for Max Factor cosmetics, just in time to celebrate its 100th birthday.  Former model turned actress Brooke Shields has teamed up with VW in advertisements for the upcoming Routan minivan, the “only minivan in America with German engineering.”

If you would like to be added to our Talent Email distribution list please email caitlin.krembs@octagon.com.

Had another crazy weekend, this time in NYC.  Two non-profits, two days, two events, and a lot of celebs.

Saturday was a Ronald McDonald House Charities (RMHC) fundraiser, hosted by the Ronald McDonald House of Long Island, at the Meadowbrook Polo Club. The honorary guest was ESPN commentator Trey Wingo, who led a Pretty Woman-worthy divot stomp during the break of the polo match (which supposedly counted John Walsh, host of America’s Most Wanted, among its competitors).  With almost 200 guests on their feet, Trey made sure to warn them “to not stomp on the steaming divots.”  After a few pictures with Ronald, RMHC Board Members and other McDonald’s executives, Trey was on his way.   He did a great job to increase the profile of the event, and kept the male guests pretty happy with frequent college football score updates.

One missed train and a few hours later, I’m riding through Central Park on a golf cart for the final walk-through for the Susan G. Komen New York City Race for the Cure.  With dozens of volunteers and almost 25,000 participants, the walk-through was crucial to ensuring that we could manage the event effectively the next morning.  I was most impressed by the on-site event management team (props to NYC-based LeadDog Marketing Group), who could only start setting up for the event after 9pm because of New York City Department of Parks & Recreation rules. 

Stephen Colbert tries to surprise Cynthia Nixon at the Start Line

I arrived at the Starting Line at 6:30am to find the Park abuzz with the CBS 2 news crew, volunteers and policemen standing ready.  We were expecting a slew of celebrities, including Cynthia Nixon (Official Grand Marshall of the Race), Deanna Favre, Emmy Rossum, Judy Sheindlin (a.k.a. Judge Judy), Petra Nemcova, Stephen Colbert and Miss USA 2008 Crystle Stewart.  I was Cynthia Nixon’s handler for the event and throughout the morning, she participated in the Survivor Ceremony, the Race, the Awards Ceremony and the Survivor Photo.  Each of these were located in different parts of the Park, and getting through thousands of people on six-seater golf carts (with people screaming “Miranda”) or running after it (I really should use my gym membership) was not an easy task.  Regardless of the Sex and the City references, Cynthia did a wonderful job connecting to the audience.  She spoke to survivors, sufferers, care givers, mothers, daughters, partners, fans and New Yorkers, inspiring them to care, be aware and have fun.  Some of my other favorite pics, including the Survivor Photo on the steps of the Bethesda Fountain, are below.

Cynthia poses among hundreds of survivors at the Bethesda Fountain

Deanna Favre gets ready to run the Race

Emmy Rossum and Cynthia Nixon stop for a quick pose

Celebrities were asked to be part of the events this weekend because they could help bring increased awareness, prestige and media coverage, which is needed to compete with everything else that NYC has to offer.  If done right, these three things can happen, but it is imperative that brands and event organizers recognize the amount of work involved and go the extra mile to carve out special roles for the celebrities in attendance. 

I also learned a few things this weekend, of which I will share.  Print out extra copies of contact lists, itineraries, scripts, etc.  Always have a mini-medicine cabinet and various office supplies with you.  The Long Island Railroad only runs once an hour on the weekends.  If you hire car service, have the driver’s cell phone number on speed dial.  Anticipate everyone being at least 15 minutes late, and plan ahead accordingly.  And last but not least, make friends with whoever has the microphone.

As many of you have probably heard, seven time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong has made the decision to return to racing for the 2009 Tour. Brandweek’s article about his return and the impact that it will have on his marketing deals features insight from First Call’s Managing Director David Schwab.