Well in advance of the Summer Olympics, Johnson & Johnson has teamed with NBC to present online video stories of the road several U.S. Olympic athletes have taken to get to the Beijing games.
The documentary-style shorts of the eight athletes and their families, produced by NBC Sports, are available on iVillage at www.ivillage.com/familyroom. The subjects include Tina Ellertson (soccer); twin brothers Paul and Morgan Hamm (gymnastics); Reese Hoffa (track & field); Chellsie Memmel (gymnastics); siblings Steve and Katie Mocco (wrestling and judo) and Lauryn Williams (track & field).
Johnson & Johnson’s intention is engage Olympics fans in the stories behind the success of the respective athletes profiled through interviews and handheld camera clips of their families.
“The main objective was to drive a deeper and more compelling connection to the athletes,” said Dave Mingey, director of Olympic marketing for Johnson & Johnson. “Every athlete has a mother and father and a larger family.”
Johnson & Johnson aims to bring Olympics fans along on those family journeys as a prelude to the summer competition.
The iVillage audience for the brief videos, which range from five to seven minutes-long, is predominantly female, aged 18 to 40. That’s the “sweet spot” for J&J brands, according to Mingey. Several brands are represented on the site and in billboards, including Band-Aid, Neutrogena, Tylenol and Neosporin.
There are also links to the site from http://www.NBCOlympics.com and Johnson & Johnson is inserting vignettes from the athlete videos in product spots it’s running on NBC on-air properties. Featured athletes will also appear on NBC’s “Today” show over the next several months.
J&J also has in-store displays in Costco, Krogers, Walgreens and Stop & Shop promoting the Olympics stories. Mingey said athlete appearances are also planned for some retail locations.
Johnson & Johnson has been an Olympics partner since the 2000 summer games.
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