Kraft Hockeyville 2006 debuts March 29
Canada is abuzz with hockey fever and new CBC series Kraft Hockeyville is out to capture the town that exemplifies just that. The seven-part, hour-long show will debut on Wednesday, March 29 at 8 p.m. live from Kingston, Ont. Host Cameron Bancroft will be joined by special guests musician Colin James, actor Jason Priestley and hockey godfather Don Cherry. At the end of the series run, the winning Canuck community will win a $50,000 from the Home Depot for upgrades to the town’s hockey arena, plus $10,000 in hockey equipment from CCM/Reebok. The winning community will also play host to a live exhibition game between two Canadian NHL teams.
Kraft Canada president Dino Bianco says the program has already hit its goal for Kraft, establishing the company as an innovative marketer and allowing them to connect with consumers across multiple touch points including web and in-store. Kraft has even had to re-order in-store displays due to wide retail support and has had inquiries from expat Canuck communities for as far afield as California and even Taiwan. The food giant, which developed the promo via its consumer promotions group, is tracking results via store display audits, web and PR hits. Other Hockeyville partners include Home Depot and the NHL. Media deals were handled by Starcom Mediavest (for Kraft) and Initiative Media (for The Home Depot).
Tetris blocks run amok in GTA sampling program
Richmond, BC-based Nintendo of Canada has unleashed oversized Tetriminos (Tetris blocks) all over Toronto as part of a promo push for its next generation Tetris DS game which launched yesterday. Tetris ‘construction workers’ touting the puzzle game are encouraging pedestrians to play the real-life version with the super-sized Tetriminos through the week at various venues including the intersection of Yonge and Bloor, the Ryerson University campus, Union Station and more. The street team effort, created by Toronto-based brand experience agency Inventa, reached 18,000 folks last week. Promo launch plans for Tetris DS include print, OOH, web, web, cinema and radio executions. Media buys were done by Starcom Worldwide, with creative by Leo Burnett Chicago.
David Le, marketing manager for Nintendo says: ‘People have been running up to our Inventa event staff, asking to try the game. They have even been asking if they can pose in Tetris-like Tetrimino shapes with the blocks and get their picture taken.’ The sampling program ends March 24.
Retail begins its big spring push: Top TV ads – Eloda analysis for March 10-16, 2006
Retail pushed past entertainment last week to the number one spot in the race for the category with the largest variety of TV ads on the Canadian English market for March 10-16. The top category came in at 17%, with entertainment hurrying along at 13%. Check out others topping the charts, and which brands had the most new spots. This info was gathered through Montreal-based ELODA’s online TV ad tracking, auditing and viewing services. All data supplied is based on the ELODA recording grid.
http://www.eloda.com
Hyundai dealers leap up the charts: Top radio ads – Media Monitors for March 6-12, 2006
Telus Mobility hangs on to the top spot for yet another week, followed closely by retail giant Sears Canada in the race for brands with the most spots on rotation in the Toronto market. Leaping up the hill to the number three spot were Toronto-area Hyundai dealers, moving from the number 15 spot the previous week. Check out others topping the radio charts by category and brand in the Toronto market for the week of March 6-12, 2006.
http://www.mediamonitors.com
New desktop app helps simplify data analysis
Global Market Insite (GMI) has launched Research Analyzer (researchanalyzer.com), a desktop-based data analysis, reporting and publishing tool to help researchers churn through mounds of market research data faster and in a more organized and uncluttered work environment. Research data can be imported from a variety of sources; reports can be published and distributed at the click of a mouse to a wide audience quickly using various standard publishing channels such as HTML, Excel, PowerPoint, PDF, and XML.
Features include a standard Windows user interface for easy navigation and drag and drop functionality; cross-table analysis with an ultra-fast analysis engine that allows analysis of one million or more respondents simultaneously and an unlimited number of questions per interview; top line reporting; a graph creation wizard; and customizable style sheets. With the Super Dig feature, users select a target group and questions to analyze, and then generates a list of the answers that correlate the most and the least with the target group.
Research Analyzer will be available in early April from Seattle-based GMI (gmi-mr.com), a global company providing integrated solutions to market research firms and corporate market research departments. It has Canadian offices in Vancouver and Toronto.
Discovery Health gets in the know with Dr. Know
Discovery Health is about to debunk some medical myths with new series Dr. Know. The half-hour show stars Dr. Paul Trotman, a New Zealander whose main mission is to debunk, deflate and demystify medical myths. Dr. Know will air as a marathon on Sunday, April 16 from 2-5 p.m. before it settles into its regular spot on Tuesdays at 4 p.m. and 12 a.m., beginning the week of April 24.
OLN goes on a road trip in search of Cool Fuel
Aussie Shaun Murphy goes on a 26,000-kilometre journey across the U.S. in vehicles powered by alternative fuels. Who knew cow manure and corn whisky could prove so useful? Celebs Daryl Hannah, Ed Begley Jr, and Jack Johnson get in on the action, too. Cool Fuel Roadtrip, a half-hour, 13-parter premieres Tuesday, April 18 at 8 p.m. on OLN.
YTV unleashes animated Adrenalini
Sunday, May 7 at 12:30 p.m. is the launch date for new animated series The Amazing Adrenalini Brothers, a 26-ep half-hour show. The program follows the adventures of three daredevil brothers on a traveling stunt show. The Amazing Adrenalini Brothers repeats Saturdays at 3:30 p.m. and Sundays at 7:30 a.m.
One to Watch: Vision TV gets a vision; rebrands as S-VOX to reflect growing umbrella brand
Toronto-based VisionTV group has taken on a new identity as a result of its growth over the last five years. The net’s group of brands — which include digi-channel One: the Body, Mind & Spirit, the two-month-young The Christian Channel, plus new venture VisionTV International (a global sales distribution arm) in addition to VisionTV — will now operate under S-VOX. Suzanna Mandryk, VP, communications and marketing says the new name means ‘spiritual voice of the people,’ conveying the brand’s commitment to spirituality. To further drive growth and to tap into other demo groups, the net is also scheduled to launch a podcast (name to be disclosed) in mid-April.
Two new HD channels added to Bell ExpressVu roster
Sunday, March 12 saw the launch of two new HD channels on Bell ExpressVu. Treasure HD showcases ‘cool people and cool stuff,’ says John Panekkar, COO of Toronto-based specialty broadcaster High Fidelity HDTV. The channel, available on channel 809, follows enthusiasts who collect items from the eclectic to the commercial. Programs include Magnificent Obsessions, a half-hour series of folks passionate about eclectic collections – from spheres to slot machines. As well, the hour-long, mystery-themed series, Extreme Treasures seeks to prove the authenticity of various objets d’art. OasisHD (on channel 810) explores the natural beauty of the world via landscape- and nature-based programs. And while OasisHD is commercial free, Panekkar says sponsorship of programs or segments is possible.
He adds: ‘Both channels target males and females 25-54, but will likely skew older. These are upper-income, early adopter types. The response so far has been great.’
Viceland.com goes daily, makes new content
Youth rag Vice‘s Web site at viceland.com now offers new, exclusive content updated daily. A worldwide Vice staff blog, slated to launch in the next week, will be updated daily. The site’s popular ‘Dos and Don’t’s’ feature will also be uploaded with new content each day. This is all part of a strategy to get folks online and interacting with the brand, says Erik Lavoie, associate publisher. New, exclusive content on the site is a means to extend Vice beyond its print property, while earning viceland.com its own identity. Lavoie says Vice is open to speaking with brands around sponsorship opportunities on the site. ‘As long as the overlay makes sense for the brand,’ he says. Viceland.com‘s Canada page gets 53,000 uniques and 180,000 page views per month according to the company’s stats.
They put ads where?: Webshots.com slips Big Love into photo piles
Look again at the pile of photos you just received from San Francisco-based Webshots.com. Sure they’re all yours? The Web photofinishing site is promoting HBO’s new show, Big Love, by slipping in run-of-the-mill shots of the characters (played by Bill Paxton and Chloe Sevigny, among others) among your pile of pics. Folks assume they received someone else’s photos until they notice the promotional flyer for the show at the end of the pile. Big Love, a program about a man with three wives, aired its premiere episode last Sunday on the Movie Network.
Nielsen Media Research Spend Trend: Spring travel
Dailies have travel spend all wrapped up
Daily newspapers overwhelming control this category with ad spending totaling 61.1% to 64.1% over the past four years. TV is a distant second with a high of 22.4% of the pie in 2004 and its four-year low of 20.2% coming last year.
Second season of Til Debt Do Us Part seeks cash-strapped folks and brands for integration
Life Net’s hit Til Debt Do Us Part is looking for folks in fiscal fiascoes for its second season consisting of 26 new eps. The popular show, hosted by finance wiz Gail Vaz-Oxlade, takes a tough love approach to money woes. Interested folks are invited to visit lifenetwork.ca for details. The program is also welcoming brands for integration opportunities, confirms Amy Waters, a spokesperson for the net. Life Net claims the show has consistently ranked in the top 10 for women 25-54 since debuting on its winter schedule.
