He may be a little fellow with a limited vocabulary, but E.T. is causing quite a commotion as he prepares to revisit theaters March 22.
Promotional partners for the 20th anniversary re-release of one of history’s most-cherished family films, E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial, start launching campaigns this month that will give the property greater exposure than it had for its 1982 premiere.
“E.T. is such a unique character, and the brand has never been used promotionally before,” says Beth Goss, senior vp-national promotions for Universal Pictures, which is releasing the film in conjunction with Steven Spielberg’s Amblin Entertainment. “We have high standards for him, so we looked for innovative, family-driven brands.”
The blue-chip family of partners includes Kraft Foods, Dairy Queen Restaurants, Hershey’s Food Corp., and Toys “R” Us. (Irvine, CA-based Toyota recently became a late addition, sources said.) The party actually began last November, when Universal launched what will be a 13-month celebration by unveiling a new E.T. logo on all of its products, an enhanced version of the musical score, and a new Web site at et20.com.
Kraft Foods, Glenview, IL, kicks off its campaign next month with a sweepstakes running on 100 million packages across 30 brands. The sweeps will award 10 trips for four to space camp at Universal Studios Florida; secondary prizes include 15,000 E.T. bikes and CD-ROMs.
“What sparks kids’ interest about E.T. is the adventure of flying over the moon, so we decided to go with that,” says Kraft director of kids’ marketing Lisa Coker about the grand prize.
Meanwhile, Kraft’s Post Cereals division will offer finger flashlights and collectable phonecards in-pack. TV ads and extensive P-O-P displays in stores will highlight the overall campaign. EastWest Creative, New York City, handles.
Toys “R” Us, Paramus, NJ, the film’s global merchandising licensee and exclusive retail partner, is “looking to build E.T. as an evergreen property,” says Warren Kornblum, executive vp-worldwide marketing and brand management. The chain has a minimum three-year deal with Universal, and is rolling out numerous E.T. products. TV spots via Leo Burnett, Chicago, break this month, along with online activity, print ads, and in-store events.
Family Reunions
Hershey Foods’ Reese’s brand, which made product-placement history for its supporting role in the movie (appearing as Reese’s Pieces), has readied an eight-week campaign involving all five SKUs. The effort kicks off mid-February with TV ads and P-O-P displays; in March, all packages will carry a mail-in offer for a free movie ticket redeemable (only for E.T.) at 30,000 theaters — all of which will carry P-O-P displays at concessions.
Another old friend, Washington, DC-based Special Olympics, is back with an enhanced version of a PSA originally produced in ’82 that will appear on the film’s future DVD release. Proceeds from the film’s world premiere in Universal City will go directly to the nonprofit. “Be an E.T. Torchbearer” lapel pins will be sold by other promotional partners to raise additional funds, and a Salute to Heroes program will provide discount tickets to Universal theme parks for athletes, coaches, and families.
“Their message of global acceptance is very similar to the film’s message of embracing diversity — and is especially relevant right now,” says Elizabeth Gelfand, vp-strategic marketing at Universal Pictures, Universal City, CA.
Simon & Schuster will include info on how to purchase the pins in two of its five forthcoming tie-in books and on an E.T. activity poster that will be distributed to 1,000 schools by Special Olympics. P-O-P displays in bookstores support.
New York City-based Simon will advertise its books in 300,000 packages of videogames from licensor NewKidCo, which in turn will get an ad in one of the E.T. titles.
New York City-based NewKidCo is spending $3.5 million — its largest marketing campaign ever — to herald four E.T. interactive games that premiered in mid-November. A fifth game rolls out this month, and five more will launch to coincide with the DVD release, says ceo Hank Kaplan. TV spots that broke during the holidays start another rotation this month. NewKidCo is also exploring an in-theater coupon offer and joint work with other partners, according to Kaplan.
Finally, Dairy Queen, Minneapolis, will run a “Buy a Blizzard and get one for 20 cents” promotion in all 5,500 store for the first week in April. P-O-P displays and TV spots support, as does a coupon for 20 cents off Blizzards that will ride on 30 million packages of Reese’s products.
When you’re working with E.T., you’d better be prepared to share.
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