For the last two years, Taco Bell's 'Buzz Marketing Team' has been meeting every Wednesday morning at the fast food giant's Irvine, Ca.-headquarters. The group, which huddles
for an hour or so, includes the company's PR director, human resources manager, business-planning executives, merchandising and product development people, as well as the
company's advertising agency partners.
The group kibitzes about current events both at home and abroad, what's on the zeitgeist and what the chatter is around the water-cooler. "It's one thing to get out great news
about products, but this is about how we can keep constant buzz going about the company," says Laurie Gannon, PR director at Taco Bell.
Taco Bell's "Buzz Marketing Team" was created in 2001 after new CEO Emil Brolick demanded changes in how the public perceives the fast food chain, which opened its first
restaurant in 1962. Indeed, Taco Bell's advertising campaign in the late 1990s, featuring a Spanish-speaking Chihuahua, won kudos from ad execs and the public alike, but failed to
drive sales. Earnings, up 3% in 1998, fell 7% in 2002.
With PR playing an essential role, Taco Bell changed its tagline to "Think Outside The Bun" and put the media focus on the food, which consumer research showed was what people
wanted. Now there's a constant thread of PR weaved throughout the company's marketing efforts. These efforts included an online promotion with Match.com on Valentine's Day to
promote the pairing of spicy pepper jack and mild Monterey cheeses loaded into Taco Bell's Monterey Chicken Quesadilla. Web users were encouraged to take an online quiz to
determine whether they had a "mild" or "spicy" personality. The online promotion got picked up by Nation's Restaurant News, Monterey Herald, Houston Chronicle, Brandweek and
Broadcasting & Cable. "The key is to make sure we are top of mind with our consumer base, which varies with what you're selling," Gannon says.
For mature brands like Taco Bell, it's critical to think outside of the box. In an age when four old brands can vanish -- only to be replaced by four new brands -- PR pros
have to think of unusual and/or innovative ways that will burn the brand into the public's consciousness and get the next generation thinking about the company, regardless of the
market.
"The most important thing is brainstorming for new ideas," says Andrea Martone, media director for New York-based PR firm CooperKatz & Co., which represents aged brands
like Carrier Corp., Otis Elevator, Coca-Cola's PowerAid and Lightolier. "You're starting to see an evolution where [companies] are forced to do new and different things. They're
so many competing brands and people are always looking for something better."
To celebrate Otis' 150th anniversary this year, CooperKatz transformed the Hammerstein Ballroom in New York City into the site of the 1854 New York World's Fair, recreating the
scene where Elisha Graves Otis unveiled his "safety mechanism" that became the elevator. B-roll supported the effort, with footage from some of the oldest "birdcage" elevators in
the country. The event generated coverage nationwide via The New York Times, Chicago Sun Times and Los Angeles Times, among other dailies, as well as tremendous pickup among
broadcast outlets, such as CNN, PBS and CBS' "Late Show with David Letterman."
Research on what's going to garner the best buzz is crucial, says PR pros. And while it may not be of the Mickey Rooney, Judy Garland variety, maintaining buzz for mature
brands often takes on a "Let's Put on a Show" quality.
For Esquire's 70th anniversary this year, for instance, the magazine is taking over a 5,425 square foot, four bedroom, five-and-half bathroom penthouse on the 89th floor of
The Trump World Tower at the United Nations Plaza. Through December, Esquire's 'Ultimate Bachelor Pad' will play host to at least a dozen events, including an Opening Night Party
in October; an exclusive VIP party for the National Colorectal Cancer Research Alliance hosted by NBC anchor Katie Couric, as well as a music night to raise money for people with
HIV/AIDS. "It's all about staying relevant," says Stephen Jacoby, Esquire's associate publisher, marketing. "PR plays an enormous role in getting notable people to rally around
the project."
Mutual of Omaha, which was founded in 1909, has for the last couple of years been re-branding itself after the company fell off the media radar when the longtime TV series
"Mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdom" went off the air in the mid-1980s.
"The main thing is to constantly refresh the brand and make it contemporary without forfeiting to fads," says John Hildenbiddle, senior vp for brand management and public
relations at Mutual of Omaha. "It doesn't have to be annually, but every three or four years you need to take a look at how the public views the brand."
He adds: "PR has to be integrated into the entire strategy of making the brand fresh with a variety of audiences." Mutual of Omaha has a three-year deal to cross-pollinate its
content with the entire Discovery Network, which includes "Animal Planet," "Discovery," "Discovery Health," "TLC" and "Travel Weekly."
But not all mature brands have the luxury of fat TV budgets. Harris Edwards Inc., a Bedford Hills, NY-based PR firm, got good buzz for the 103-year-old Yonkers Public Library
when in 2002 the library relocated to the Otis Elevator Building, located on the waterfront in Yonkers.
The campaign was multipronged, with a sharp, new library card named the "i-card", a new logo for the library as well as several special events, including a citywide bookmark
contest in connection with the New York Knicks basketball club and a traveling exhibition featuring a history of the library, as well as the Otis Elevator. The campaign got heavy
pick-up with multiple features in The New York Times (Westchester), Hudson Valley Magazine, Real Estate Weekly and local radio, among other media outlets.
"There was no resistance in the press because it was presented in a unique way, with visuals, panel discussions and contests," says Carolyn Mandelker, president of Harris
Edwards. "We got everyone interested, from kids to working families to the middle class."
Contacts: Laurie Gannon, 949.863.3915; [email protected]; John Hildenbiddle, 402.351.5480; [email protected]; Stephen Jacoby, 212.649.4162; [email protected]; Carolyn Mandelker, 914.242.0010; [email protected];
Andrea Martone, 212.455.8016; [email protected]
How Two Mature Brands Are Building Buzz
Esquire: A New Man
Esquire celebrates its 70th Anniversary this year. Here's a partial list of events Esquire folks hope will help build buzz for the event and at the same time better distinguish
the brand from all of the so-called lad boy titles, like Maxim and FHM, which have been stealing all the thunder in the men's magazine market in recent years.
- An opening night party celebrating "70 Years of Women We Love." This will be a very high profile event with celebrities, VIPs, etc.
- The second edition of the Esquire's "Best & Brightest." Similar to last year's event, this is an event celebrating a roster of individuals, across many disciplines, who
are changing the world on many fronts. The party will take place at the Esquire Apartment in The Trump World Tower in New York - Custom logo for the 70th Anniversary
- Unique editorial platform spanning September through December issues
- Unique in-book advertising opportunities
- Advertiser sponsorship of an Esquire cover gallery on
Source: Esquire/Hearst Magazines
Mutual of Omaha: A New Kingdom
This is not your dad's insurance company anymore. Mutual of Omaha, which has been around since 1909, has taken pains in the last few years to re-brand the company. It wants to
get consumers thinking beyond "Mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdom", which ran on TV for years before petering out in the mid-1980s. Here are the four main pillars of Mutual of Omaha's
Brand Revitalization Effort, with supporting tactics:
- National Advertising
"Authentic Optimism" creative approach
Ads based on true policyholder stories
Network and Cable television focus
"Begin Today" tagline
- Public Relations
All-new Mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdom specials on the Animal Planet network.
Mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdom Kids' Summit essay contest
Dynamic web site, http://www.WildKingdom.com
- Sponsorship
Sponsorship of USA Swimming, the national governing body for the sport of
amateur swimming
Title sponsor of "Mutual of Omaha's Duel in the Pool," broadcast on NBC Sports
Grassroots outreach to local swim clubs throughout the country
- Corporate Identity
Subtle updates to corporate symbol
Rebranding all sales and collateral material
New signage at all Mutual of Omaha locations
Source: Mutual of Omaha