Backyard Baseball Campaign Features Cal Ripken, Jr.
Humongous Entertainment has signed Cal Ripken, Jr. as spokesperson for the release of Backyard Baseball 2001T, the latest addition to the popular sports CD-ROM series for kids.
Cal Ripken, Jr.’s image will appear on all of Humongous Entertainment’s marketing efforts for Backyard Baseball 2001, including point-of-sale displays and materials, shelf talkers, packaging, and online and print advertising. In addition, when consumers purchase specially marked boxes of Backyard Baseball 2001, they can enter to win fun prizes, including a trip for four to the World Series; a vacation package to one of Cal Ripken, Jr.’s famous baseball camps; and 200 third-place winners will receive a Cal Ripken, Jr. autographed baseball card.
“HealthTalk Book Review” Displayed At Borders
“HealthTalk Book Review” Displayed At Borders
Borders Books and Music, Ann Arbor, MI, is featuring a monthly “HealthTalk Book Review” in an endcap display at participating Borders stores. The book review, written by syndicated radio health experts, Barbara and Shannon Hoffmann, is based on a natural health/alternative therapy book.
The display program is currently in place in Borders’ Wichita, KS, Kansas City, MO and Chicago, IL stores where it has proven successful.
Discussions are in progress to expand the program to other targeted cities, and eventually Borders stores nationwide.
Intel Features Pentium III On Inline Aisle System
The Intel Pentium III Processor Inline Aisle System was designed for Office Depot and Sears.
This countertop is a stand alone fixture positioned on shelving to surround and highlight a Pentium III processor-based computer. The display, which has a metal infrastructure, also contains updateable graphic inserts. Office Depot and Sears have placed these inline merchandising systems in over 95% of their retail locations, creating a “store-within-a-store” environment.
The display was created by Frank Mayer & Associates, Inc., based in Grafton, WI.
Warner Video Displays Family Halloween Titles
Warner Home Video is offering retailers Halloween-themed merchandisers that showcase its new and classic titles for Halloween sales. This year’s slate features four new video releases: “Scooby-Doo’s Creepiest Capers,” “Scarecrown,” “Casper Saves Halloween” and “Bugs Bunny’s Halloween Hijinks,” as well as re-released family favorites such as “Gremlins” and “Beetlejuice.”
With Halloween being among the top consumer spending holidays, WHV is urging retailers to create an in-store Halloween video section offering both custom haunted house merchandisers in various sizes and Halloween-themed posters.
Additionally, WHV is offering consumers a “Buy 3, Get 1 Free” mail-in offer in every Halloween video. Most of the videos in the Halloween promotion will feature a Scooby-Doo and the Alien Invaders trick-or-treat bag on-pack.
Universal’s Halloween Displays Promote Videos
Universal Studios has announced a “Universal Is Halloween” program, which will be supported with heart-stopping displays, sweepstakes promotions, a CD ROM onpack bonus and a web site.
A first for the home video industry, 43 titles will be packaged with an in-pack collectible Halloween Decoder Card that enables consumers to become instant winners for thousands of prizes online. Consumers log on to Universal’s web site and check their Decoder Card to reveal what prize has been won. In addition to the prize winning potential of the Decoder Card, consumers can also download a coupon worth $1 off the purchase of another Halloween title.
Universal’s “Halloween Headquarters” merchandiser features classic and contemporary Halloween titles.
Hallmark Crown Stores Host Multi-Faceted Promotion
Hallmark recently partnered with Crayola and the Yahooligans web site for kids, to invite moms and kids into approximately 4,800 Hallmark Gold Crown stores to participate in supervised arts and crafts activities, take advantage of special product promotions and enter a birthday card design contest.
A “Creative Kids Day” allowed Mom to shop in Hallmark Gold Crown stores while kids were kept occupied with arts and crafts. Moms purchasing any three Hallmark cards received a free Creative Kids Pack containing Crayola and Hallmark products. Using the Creative Kids Pack, children ages 5-14 were invited to create and enter their original birthday card designs into a national kids contest. Twelve young winners received a prize package and will have their cards published and sold by Hallmark this summer.
National advertising and special in-store signage and point-of-purchase displays alerted moms and kids to the promotion, which was developed by SJI, a promotion marketing company based in St. Louis, MO.
American Greetings Introduces Two New Religious Card Lines
American Greetings has introduced two new card lines, “Everyday Blessings” and “What Would Jesus Do?” This and other new religious card lines are indicators of a social trend to return to religion. American Greetings identified the trend, “The Search for Spiritual Meaning,” as part of its annual All New American Way communication research.
Among the other trends identified by the Company are informal lifestyles, changing family dynamics, and an increased interest in expressing individuality and personal style.
Upper Deck Introduces PowerDeck Floor Merchandiser
Upper Deck is featuring this PowerDeck floor merchandiser, which merchandises PowerDeck products on a self-contained merchandising unit.
The display attracts attention to the product through header and panel graphics. It dispenses literature that describes the product and shows both pegged and boxed product. The display rotates to provide easy access to the product. It is easy to assemble and refill. Display materials used include silk screened graphics on styrene panels. Welded wire was used for the main structure with a powder coated finish.
The display was created by R/P Creative Sales, Burbank, CA.
eGames Unveils Store-In-A-Store Program
eGames, Inc., a leading developer of Family Friendly software games has unveiled its “Store-In-A-Store” category management program. The new merchandising program features a variety of top selling, value-priced PC software titles, as well as PlayStation titles and Game Boy titles.
The eGames Store-In-A-Store displays will enable consumers to easily locate and purchase popular titles from leading software publishers at value prices.
“Given consumers’ growing concerns with objectionable content, along with the high prices of software at retail, consumers are looking for alternatives that meet their budgetary and lifestyle needs,” said Jerry Klein, CEO of eGames, Inc. “We are providing the computer or console owner the opportunity to purchase quality software in a safe Family Friendly environment.”
The Company is targeting placement of the program into 25,000 storefronts worldwide by the end of 2001.
RCA Digital Entertainment Centers Launched At RadioShack
Consumers shopping for digital home entertainment products now have a one-stop shopping experience at the RCA Digital Entertainment Center, the store-within-a-store display that offers a broad array of RCA audio and video products in more than 5,000 RadioShack stores throughout the country.
The RCA Digital Entertainment Center at Radio Shack is the culmination of a year-long effort by RCA parent Thomson Multimedia and RadioShack Corp. to create a consumer friendly, hands-on shopping environment for new digital entertainment products. The eye-catching Digital Entertainment Center includes more than 100 RCA products ranging from digital audio and video products to television sets and satellite receivers.
“RadioShack and RCA have teamed up to provide consumers with a unique shopping experience that showcases a full array of RCA digital home entertainment products in one display,” said Leonard Roberts, CEO of RadioShack. “We are striving to create an atmosphere where consumers can enjoy today’s digital products and at the same time have their questions answered by our sales personnel.”
The RCA Digital Entertainment Center build-out in thousands of RadioShack stores required a massive amount of materials including 51,000 2’ x 9’ shelving modules, 1,500 tons of metal shelves and stanchions, 80 miles of plastic extrusions and 84,000 square feet of fabric.
To support the in-store effort, singer/songwriter Jewel and performing artist Lyle Lovett will star in a specially-produced private concert. The concert will be replayed exclusively in RadioShack stores throughout the country on the RCA Digital Entertainment Center.
The display was created by Trans World Marketing, based in East Rutherford, NJ.
The Outernet Store Provides On-Site Customized CDs
AD&P, a Minneapolis, MN-based conglomerate has created “The Outernet,” a totally new form of retail chain that will provide CDs that can be customized on-site to contain music, games and other forms of digital audio-visual entertainment and educational software.
Targeted at the Echo Generation (0-25), the first 20 Outernet locations will open this summer in New York and Minneapolis. Each entertainment complex (more than 10,000 square feet) will be fully automated and unmanned. Every location will house in excess of 150 wide, interactive media screens, and over 50 CD and DVD burners where customers can “outload” their selections, in less than two minutes.
Majors Prints Books In Minutes
J.A. Majors Company, and Sprout, Inc., the first distributor to bring Books-On-Demand into bookstores, have completed installation of the Sprout book production system in the Majors Scientific Bookstore in Houston, TX. This technology provides immediate digital printing of hard to find or limited availability titles. A customer selects a title from the digital inventory, the book is downloaded, printed and bound in the bookstore within 15 to 20 minutes.
“Customer service is the focus at Majors,” said Kris Naylor, V.P. Retail Operations. “The Sprout System combines the latest digital technology with production innovation to provide customers the books they want without waiting for a special order.”
El Pollo Loco & Hollywood Entertainment Join For “Dinner And A Movie” Event
El Pollo Loco, Irvine, CA and Hollywood Video have joined forces for the “Dinner And A Movie” event, whereby El Pollo Loco customers will receive a certificate for a free five day video rental from Hollywood Video every time they purchase an 8 or 12 piece meal. “Families today are increasingly looking to spend more time together,” said Margaret Jenkins, V.P., Marketing, for El Pollo Loco. “By pairing the food families love with entertainment they enjoy, we are making it easier for them to do just that.”
El Pollo Loco restaurants will feature a customized counter card identifying the Hollywood Video locations closest to each restaurant. The event is being communicated through a wide mix of media and p.o.p. vehicles including banners, translites, and drive-thru signage.
Blockbuster And InMotion Pictures Provide Rentable DVD At Airports
Blockbuster and InMotion Pictures, which rents portable DVD players and movies within airports across the U.S., have signed an agreement to provide rentable DVD players and movies to travelers. InMotion Pictures will now feature the Blockbuster name on its locations.
“This alliance with InMotion Pictures builds on the company’s mission to provide entertainment to consumers however they want to receive it,” said Nigel Travis, President, Stores Division for Blockbuster. “We realize that consumers associate our name with the comfort of watching the movie of their choice at home, and we are delighted to associate our brand with a service that can enable them to do that while they are on the road.”
Wolf Camera Opens ‘Vision’ Location
Wolf Camera, the Atlanta, GA-based photo chain, has opened its first ever photography theme superstore in New York City. The 4,200 sq. ft. “Vision” location incorporates many elements of photography into the decor. Lenses are used as lighting fixtures, colored filters are blended into counter tops, and theatrical lighting creates a warm and welcome environment.
The store offers a complete array of traditional photography and digital imaging products and services. An in-store gallery features various rotating artists’ work on display and for sale; a children’s play area is complete with a giant Canon camera and Kodak film slide, and a computer kiosk connects customers to GoStreamIt.com, where they can record video messages and send them via email in seconds.
Borders Plans E-Listening Stations
Borders Books and Music Stores has introduced E-Listening stations, interactive kiosks that enable customers to access and preview virtually any music title in the store’s inventory, simply by scanning the product barcode.
The kiosks, similar in appearance to existing CD preview stations, are equipped with headphones, but do not rely on manually maintained CD players. Instead, weekly updates to the inventory are stored on a database and can be accessed by scanning a specific CD’s barcode at the station. Customers will be able to hear approximately 750 music titles from start to finish. For the remaining inventory, a 45-second preview of up to 12 tracks per CD will be available. In addition, Borders will be testing hand-held, portable, wireless headphones and scanning wands, which allow customers to move about the store sampling music on the go.
Chapters Features Cyber Cafes In Stores
Info Touch Technologies, Burnaby, B.C., has successfully completed a rollout of customized cyber cafes at Chapters stores in Canada. Info Touch has deployed custom Surfnet software that will be used on each terminal in the bookstores’ cyber cafes.
Chapters, the largest book retailer in Canada, has installed over 500 e-commerce kiosks in its 70 superstores. The e-commerce kiosks provide in-store shoppers with access to a central database of millions of titles. If the product is available in the store, the kiosk will provide details of the item’s location in the store. If the product is not currently available in the store, shoppers can order titles at the kiosks and have their selections shipped to their home, work or as a gift to friends or family members.
Barnes & Noble.com Goes On Tour
Barnes & Noble.com is going on tour with an 80-foot interactive technology center to visit more than 40 cities throughout the U.S. The tour will benefit First Book, a nonprofit literacy program dedicated to providing underprivileged children with their first new books. Steve Riggio, Vice Chairman, Barnes & Noble.com, said “Barnes & Noble.com is dedicated to educating consumers to be more comfortable with today’s newest technology whether reading from a handheld PC or shopping online.”
Conducted by M3 Marketing, the tour features a truck outfitted with state-of-the-art computers, supplied by IBM. The tour will offer thousands of people the opportunity to step into the truck’s living room setting to experience first hand the impact of technology on reading today and in the future.
Sony PlayStation 2 Plans North America Launch
Sony Computer Entertainment has announced plans for the North America release of the PlayStation 2 computer entertainment system. PlayStation 2 is designed to bring together games, music and movies, and serve as a network platform in the broadband era. “The PlayStation 2 will define computer entertainment the same way that the PlayStation changed the face of the videogame industry,” said Andrew House, V.P., Marketing.
Marketing efforts for PlayStation 2 will include TV, cinema, print and outdoor advertising, consumer sampling and trial opportunities. With a grassroots approach, Sony will create massive trial and awareness through participation at key events including Rockfest, the WARPED tour, Gravity Games and Vans Triple Crown series. A 68-foot “Thrills on Wheels,” truck will be making appearances across the country at major sports and entertainment events featuring PlayStation 2 and PlayStation kiosks.
New Nike Techlab Div. Debuts Sport Audio Player
Nike has created a new sports gear division called nike techlab. Clare Hamill, V.P., Nike Equipment, said “Techlab will pioneer products that fuse sports and technology for today’s digital athlete.”
The first of five new products is the Personal Sport Audio (PSA) Play 120, which combines the best of digital audio technology with extended memory features.
m@x RACKS Presents BluSCREEN Displays
m@x RACKS, New York City, recently debuted BluSCREEN interactive DVD wall displays at Loews Cineplex Entertainment movie theatres around the country. The displays feature advertisers’ video clips that consumers can choose from.
BluSCREEN Advertisers currently include Motorola, Sephora, and American Express.
Sylvie Anapol, President m@x RACKS, said, “We’ve been developing ways for advertisers to reach consumers at moments of leisure, when they are more likely to be receptive.”
Disney & Compaq Announce Sponsorship of SPACE Attraction
The Walt Disney Co. and Compaq Computer Corp. have formed a broad 10-year corporate alliance highlighted by Compaq’s sponsorship of the new Mission: SPACE attraction at Epcot, located at Walt Disney World Resort in Florida. Compaq is a major provider of servers, PCs and services to Walt Disney Co. Both companies hope to expand this relationship through the new alliance.
Compaq will provide its knowledge of computer systems and technology, along with funding, for Mission: SPACE. This “thrill ride of the future” will use new proprietary ride systems to provide guests with a deep space adventure that simulates challenges faced by real astronauts, as well as the experience of lifting off, leaving Earth’s atmosphere and soaring millions of miles through the solar system on a space ship.
FX Schmid Demo Display
DISPLAY PRODUCER: Hunter Display
14 Hewlett Avenue, E. Patchogue, New York, 11772
This display, for FX Schmid USA, Inc., is designed to create a secure environment to demo games before purchasing. A floating effect was created to attract greater attention. The display is made of powder coated sheet metal, with silk screened label graphics.
Journal News Display
DISPLAY PRODUCER: Meridian Display & Merchandising
162 York Avenue East, St. Paul, MN 55117
The Journal News, a Gannet affiliated newspaper, worked with Meridian Display's New York Office to create this versatile semi-permanent display. The goal was to obtain additional floor or counter space for special promotions events and to gain distribution in non-traditional venues. A unique feature of this display is the easily removable “tote box” with carry handles. The tote may be removed from the display each morning to be replaced by a re-stocked tote, so that the base portion of the display can remain in position for the duration of the promotion. For added strength, the tote is manufactured in E-Flute, and the base sits in a black mylar-coated tray with plastic casters. The header card tabs in at the top of the display for ease of replacement.
'Resizable' Corrugated Displays
DISPLAY PRODUCER: Alpak Manufacturing Corp.
181 Boyd Street, P.O. Box 339, Montgomery, NY 12549
Alpak introduced a new state-of-the-art cutting table which offers the ability to “resize” instantly any of the more than 30 existing stock corrugated displays available in Alpak's Stock Display Program. Any display may be altered to exact specifications (for example: a wider tray, or a smaller cell or a custom die-cut header to match product art, etc.). This allows the ability to offer multiple samples of the same prototype without tooling investments. A digital image is also available over the Internet so that the Resizable Program can have images of the new design emailed for “work-in-progress” assessment.
Sprint Internet Kiosks
DISPLAY PRODUCER: Max Image
P.O. Box 382574, Memphis, TN 38183
InfoXpress is an internet kiosk designed in a Sprint PCS phone. The slim and portable touchscreen phone can hang anywhere to provide quality graphics, sales information, customized internet content and more. InfoXpress is designed for easy access and real time information, the choice for a changing competitive market.
E*Trade Internet Essentials Display
DISPLAY PRODUCER: Meridian Display & Merchandising
162 York Avenue East, St. Paul, MN 55117
The E*Trade Internet Essentials display was created for McCracken Brooks Communications. The display is pre-packed and contains 36 E*Trade Start Up Kits which include start up software and a $100 gift account application. The base and shelf of the display were flexo printed with a UV coating and the header card is four color litho laminate. The display packout and distribution took place within a 3 week period.
IBM Poster/Literature Display
DISPLAY PRODUCER: Clearr Corporation
3750 Williston Road, Minnetonka, MN 55345
This freestanding, Illuminated TriAd® 3-message poster/literature display was produced for IBM and is a multi-purpose display. It has a double-legged pedestal so it may be used in independent configurations. A literature holder integrated into the pedestal increases the function of this unit and a spotlight illuminates and brings attention to the three rotating messages. TriAd® presents 2 posters with an eye-catching "wave" transition. It features easy, tool-free graphic changes, an attractive frame and smooth, quiet operation. It is available in a wide range of sizes from countertop through murals. TriAd® displays may be placed either horizontally or vertically and may be customized to meet all display needs.
Ameritech Direct Marketing Promotion
DISPLAY PRODUCER: Flair Communications Agency, Inc.
214 West Erie Street, Chicago, IL 60610
The tremendous growth in the wireless phone industry has led to increased competition. Ameritech found that sales of cellular products and services increase during the holiday season. Additionally, cellular phones make perfect gifts for the holidays. A complete direct response media plan coupled with targeted messages was developed to deliver mass awareness. A walking miniature Snowman introduced the holiday direct response campaign to the 88 company owned stores and the 525 authorized dealers in more than 1,000 locations. Consumers were exposed to consistent messages with a strong call-to-action through broadcast advertising, consumer direct mail, Internet and in-store displays.
Northern State Power's Mascot Display
DISPLAY PRODUCER: Fabulous Fotoforms
3720 Williston Road, Minnetonka, MN 55345
Fotoforms produced a “Life-Size” version of Northern States Power's venerable mascot, "Reddy Electric", for their corporation lobby. Reddy's “bolts of electricity” body is made from laser-cut acrylic, and is internally illuminated.
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