TribalWorks

I still remember early attempts at in game product placement and advertising in the game Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory.  In that game, you can read virtual AXE body spray billboards and see AXE products displayed in bathrooms throughout the game.  The subsequent Splinter Cell: Double Agent game had Nivea for Men products.

I agree with what is said in this article, the key is to make advertising seamless and a part of the action:

“It has to be organic and seamless,” said Jeffrey Dickstein, digital advertising sales director for video game designer Ubisoft, which integrated a Dyson vacuum into a CSI game, targeting women over 35 who were avid fans of the TV show.

The prospect of in game advertising should get any marketer excited.  Video games provide a key attribute rarely found in any other media; interactivity.  Where else can someone drive a 3D rendered Ford Mustang? or power up on a can of Pepsi from a virtual vending machine?

Of course, certain genres such as sports or realistic locations such as a subway station are easier to integrate ads into than fantasy or sci-fi titles.

The possibilities are bound by the creativity of the agency and the game developer.  Although games should not be centred around advertising, building sponsorship and product placement opportunities should be in the minds of both developers and marketers.

As usual, our issue of Marketing magazine came stuffed with inserts and goodies. One insert that caught us by surprise was the premier issue of Vita magazine. What was surprising was that this magazine was targeted to a completely different demographic. Vita is targeted to:

• Women
• 40 years +
• Francophones

By getting all 3 parameters wrong, leads me to wonder if:

1. There is a bug in Marketing magazine’s database which caused them to send Vita to the wrong segment OR
2. Marketing magazine used a shotgun approach and put Vita in with every magazine shipped

Either way, it should be something that is addressed.

As a part of the Weber Ultimate Tailgate Giveaway , Weber will be hosting free tailgating parties at the first four home games of the Chicago Bears. 

Fans will be able to enjoy music, check out the latest tailgating and grilling necessities from Weber, receive autographs from Bears alumni players brought to you by Jewel-Osco, compete in a variety of football skills competitions, receive free samples of great-tasting Eckrich products, check out the latest offers from the Chicago Tribune, get their blood pressure screened in the Novartis Blood Pressure Success Zone and purchase beverages.

All attendees will have the chance to enter to win the “Weber Ultimate Tailgate Giveaway.” One giant prize package will be given away to one lucky fan per event. The package includes but is not limited to: Weber Q Grills, Jewel-Osco Gift Cards, an Eckrich gift card, Chicago Tribune Commemorative Framed Newspaper Covers, a U.S. Cellular Prize Pack, Comcast Tailgating Chairs, a gift card courtesy of the Novartis Blood Pressure Success Zone and XSport Fitness Gift Packs.

I think this promotion is a very good way of strengthening both the BBQ Tribe, which Weber has been successful in tapping, and the Chicago Bear Tribe:

• Tailgating is one of America’s most beloved activities - Weber helps bring friends-family-fans-football together
• Similarly, BBQing connects friends and families

Thus, the Chicago Bears are providing value by delivering an enhanced game-day experience.  In the end, all stakeholders win.

There are opportunities out there for marketers and brand managers from various categories to find the intersection of multiple tribes from two complimentary products/services.  Finding them and building upon existing synergies is a cost effective way to build your tribe.

A recent article spoke about the prospect of a second NHL team locating in Toronto.

Two more NHL governors said the league should put a second team in Toronto, although one of them said it should be by relocating an existing franchise rather than expanding.

“I don’t think it can be an expansion team,” a governor said. “We can’t expand because we would be the laughingstock of professional sports.

“We’ve got too many troubled franchises. We’ve got to look at relocating a couple of them. These franchises were troubled long before the economic downturn and next year is going to be worse on them.”

Despite what people may say, Toronto is not a sports town, if it were, then the Raptors, Jays and Argos would be all hot tickets regardless of performance.  It is not even a hockey town, otherwise we would see the Marlies and local OHL  teams selling out.  It is Toronto Maple Leafs town period. 

So why then do I think a 2nd NHL team would be successful? 

Because, almost an entire generation of Leaf fans in Toronto have been patiently waiting to win another Stanley Cup without much success.  Life long Leaf fans are starting to feel that the organization they are loyal to is not doing enough to earn their loyalty and are not serious about contending.  The feeling of animosity towards the organization they once loved may grow stronger if the Leafs once again fail to make the playoffs or worse, finish last in their conference. 

This could be a ripe environment for a prospective new owner to move in to the Toronto market and help nucleate the anti-Toronto Maple Leafs tribe.  Make no mistake, this anti-tribe is hungry for something different.  Thus, the model of expensive tickets and low performance that we are seeing now will not be tolerated.

Anna Maria Virzi wrote a good article today discussing a talk Stephany Cavatoni from The Active Marketing Group gave.  Cavatoni provided six factors which determined if a tribe existed or not.  They were:

• Rituals
• Rites of Passage
• Symbols
• Adornments
• Norms/Values
• Leaders

On the whole I think these are some good indicators.  However, in addition to knowing whether or not a tribe exists, I think it is important to know what state the tribe is in.  The state will enable you to to know what strategies to use and what tactics work best.

Accelteon has loosely defined 3 Major States of Tribes:

1. Well-Defined & Functional
2. Evident But Not Yet Defined
3. Not Evident

Each state poses its unique challenges, which we will get into with future posts.  However, brands that can put their products/services at the core of a Well-Defined & Functional tribe can benefit the most (think Harley-Davidson or the Green Bay Packers).

Accelteon played a big role in promoting the event last year and we are looking forward to doing the same this year.  In part due to our efforts, the 2008 International Bowl saw an increase of about 18% in attendance from the previous year.  The International Bowl is an annual College Football Bowl game played between the Big East and Mid-American Conferences.

The game will be held at Rogers Centre on January 3, 2009 at 12:00 PM.  It is the only NCAA football game played outside of the US.

As I was browsing through my Facebook account, I couldn’t help but notice an ad for a new social networking site specifically for hunters, HuntRush

Lifefitter brings HuntRush.com and HookTight.com to the hunting and fishing community.

Columbia, SC based Lifefitter Network, a project of technology incubator LoudDoor Labs, announced the beta release of its latest social networks HuntRush.com and HookTight.com for hunters and fishermen.

“There are few things I enjoy more than hunting and fishing”, said co-founder Jeff French. “The outdoors community is overlooked by web 2.0 firms, but it’s a market we are proud to serve, and I look forward to being an active member on each of these sites.”

One of the main purposes of hunting and fishing is to bond with others that share their passion.  Thus, hunters and fishers already form strong tribes.  It is surprising then that Jeff states that the outdoors community is under served by web 2.0 firms.  If true, it leaves a big opening for Lifefitter and other organizations to tap into this community.

Success will occur if Lifefitter can create an online experience that captures the essence of being with their fellow hunter.

CTV recently launched a new promotion, Live the Drama, which enables fans of popular TV shows to enter a contest.  However, this is not like other promotions:

The five grand prizes include VIP treatment at the final wrap party of ER; a CSI set visit and “victim makeover” by the show’s special effects makeup artist; an opportunity to attend a live taping of Dancing With the Stars (including a private dance lesson with one of the choreographers); a Desperate Housewives wardrobe tour and shopping spree; and the first-ever visit to the set of Grey’s Anatomy.

The promotion from CTV’s Creative Agency invites fans to battle for prizes by completing “missions” inspired by their favourite series. “This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for Canadian viewers to win trips to the sets of their beloved television shows,” says Susanne Boyce, CTV’s president, creative, content and channels.

Essentially, each mission asks you to act out a scene or a theme from a TV show.  Then, after the submission period is over, viewers can vote online for their favourite entry.  CTV is running the contests for 5 shows and only reveals one mission at a time.  Thus, if you are a fan of multiple shows you have to come back.    

I think this is a good starting point to get fans not only more connected with the show but also with other fans of the TV series.  They have certainly used some Tribal Elements (i.e. fan voting), but I think they could have gone further.

If CTV, builds a more complete strategy around this, they could be in a position to ‘own’ the show’s tribe - at least in Canada.  This could do wonders for CTV the next time they negotiate for distribution rights.

Earlier in September I blogged about the decrease in viewers for the second episode of 90210.  There I gave 3 possible explanations:

• The first episode was hyped up and brought in casual viewers along with the die-hards
  • If this is the case, then we might see the ratings hold steady over the next few weeks
• The show’s formula does not connect with its viewers (i.e. characters, story lines, etc)
  • If this is the case, then we might see the ratings continue to slide
• The new show does not connect with the die-hard tribe of the original series
  • This may mean that the show will lose its previous fans but have an opportunity to create a new tribe

Now it seems, the ratings have shown a slight increase both in the US and Canada for the third episode.

The new 90210 launched on Sept. 2 with a two-hour episode that registered 4.9 million U.S. viewers. The second week saw that audience drop roughly by half; last week, 90210 drew 3.3 million viewers.

In this country, where the series airs on Global, the pilot garnered an impressive 1.3 million Canadian viewers; the second broadcast plunged to 664,000, while last week’s show rebounded slightly to 790,000.

Although it is too early to know what is happening, it looks like either the newer generation tribe may be sticking around and bringing in their friends or it may just be a blip.  It would be great to see what the numbers look like 4-5 episodes from now.

In early September, the CFL and Future Shop announced their improved push for the All-Star Ballot which will allow fans to vote for the All-Star teams for the East and West division.  In addition to an online voting platform, the CFL and Future Shop will do the following:

“This is the first year we’ve done a dedicated television spot to promote [voting],” said Hellyer. “The other layer we’ve added is an in-stadium activation in Vancouver, Winnipeg and Edmonton, where we’ve designed special all-star balloting towels to promote the contest and allow people to have a little fun with it.”

The idea is great.  Allowing the team and league fans to vote for their players is consistent with the CFL’s goal to be as fan friendly as possible.  Furthermore, the TV spots and the in-stadium activation will go a long way in rallying the tribe towards their favourite teams and players.

However, I think the selection of the athletes promoting the TV spots could have been done better.

At the forefront of the campaign is a television spot that features Toronto Argonauts quarterback Kerry Joseph and Hamilton Tiger-Cats running back Jesse Lumsden, each dressed like Future Shop sales associates.

When approached by customers with questions about the store’s products, Joseph and Lumsden interrupt with boasts about their on-field prowess.

I don’t like this selection for the following reasons:

• Kerry Joseph and Neil Lumsden, although usually very good players, are having a pretty poor seasons.  In fact, Joseph has been benched in Toronto
• Both players are from the Golden Horseshoe and thus speak to the same crowd - a representative from each division would have been better
• According to our CFL Gravity Index, as of Week 12, the two least exciting teams to watch are the Toronto Argonauts and Hamilton Tiger-Cats  -  According to our Index, choosing Anthony Calvillo from Montreal and Ricky Ray from Edmonton would have been better choices.   Even if you take the Index as of Week 6, they would have been better off picking a player from Montreal and a player from Saskatchewan/Calgary.  (Click here for more info on the CFL Gravity Index)

According Nikki Hellyer of Future Shop, their customers are big CFL fans.

“Our customers are huge CFL fans. They love football and they love the Canadian Football League, so it’s something that they’re actively participating in,” said Nikki Hellyer, senior marketing manager for Future Shop. “I think when people watch football it’s something they get excited about. And everyone has an opinion, so this gives them an opportunity to voice that opinion.”

True CFL tribe members are looking for the best players on the All-Star teams and best teams to be in the Grey Cup.  This current ad with the players chosen is inconsistent with the attempt at getting the die-hard fans to participate in the balloting.