» Client: Washington-based XM Satellite Radio
» Job: To promote XM’s coverage of Major League Baseball
» Agency: Lowe of New York, in conjunction with Varitalk LLC of Chicago and XM’s internal marketing team
» Theme: Friendly, fun, amusing, interactive, viral. The company wanted to promote Major League Baseball in a way that didn’t feel like boring, traditional advertising but instead became a conversation piece and a way for friends to communicate with each other.
» The Concept: The team came up with Call Stars, in which friends could send personalized messages to eachother starring Cal Ripken, Derek Jeter and David Ortiz.
The messages are geared toward the recipients’ interests and tell them to check out XM’s coverage of baseball at the same time. The campaign is similar to calls “made” by Samuel L. Jackson to promote “Snakes on a Plane” and Alec Baldwin to advertise “30 Rock.”
» The Plan: Call Stars was promoted through XM’s Web site, as well as through other advertising mediums. The group came up with bobblehead-style figures of each baseball celebrity to make the ads cute and accessible. Call Stars has a viral appeal; friends send each other messages, who in turn find the calls funny and pass them on to their own friends.
The Call Stars campaign was just one portion of a multimedia effort that included billboards, sweepstakes, print ads, online promotion and a 125-ballpark media tour.
» Creative Team: Brian Grossman (marketing director, XM); Danielle Cushion and Rene Rios (marketing for XM); Chris Walsh (creative services, XM); Sean Connelly (media, XM); David Beatus, Eddie Van Bloem and DJ Pierce (Lowe); Latinsphere (Spanish translation of Ortiz’s message); Varitalk (technology); and David Ortiz, Derek Jeter and Cal Ripken (voice recordings)
» Ages: Late 20s to early 40s
» Background: Lowe’s clients worldwide include Saab, GMC, Johnson & Johnson and the well-known “milk mustache” ads promoting the beverage.
» Working on next: Lowe will continue its work for XM, next focusing its efforts on music content.
