Wednesday, May 14, 2008

Do-Gooder Marketers Do the Soft Sell



By Shahnaz Mahmud


From AdWeek:

The music video for Radiohead's "All I Need" begins with slow, somber musical beats and a split screen revealing images of children. One side shows a child waking up, dressing for school and eating breakfast. The other, youngsters living in dingy conditions and toiling in a sweatshop.


The last shot pairs the one boy back from school removing his kicks with a boy assembling the last pieces of a strikingly similar sneaker in a factory. The tagline: "Some things cost more than you realize."


"All I Need," which debuted earlier this month on MTV properties worldwide, ends with an MTV logo. It was created for MTV Exit (End Exploitation and Trafficking), a multimedia initiative launched in Europe in 2004 by Viacom's MTV Europe Foundation, an independent charity based in London. The effort includes the distribution of anti-human trafficking information at Radiohead's concert tour in North America, Europe and Asia, which kicked off in West Palm Beach, Fla., this month.


MTV Exit -- which recently expanded into Asia -- also plans to release an animated film on human trafficking later this year, as well as produce other live events.


The network's efforts illustrate the growing use of branded-entertainment as a way to distribute corporate-responsibility campaigns, which are geared to creating deeper relationships with do-gooder consumers. Other brands using this tactic include Boost Mobile, the Microsoft Network and Virgin Mobile USA.


"Content creates an emotional bond with the consumer. It [forges] a connection between the brand message ... and the viewer in a way that a 30-second ad can't do," said Bill Hilary, president of Interpublic Group-owned Magna Global Entertainment.


Gayle Troberman, head of digital marketing at Microsoft's consumer marketing group, added that social responsibility branded-entertainment marketing: "is going to be the next big wave of content and marketing investments."


MSN has taken an innovative approach with its new Web portal -- which launches next month—WhatOnEarthIsGoingOn.msn.com. It's a partnership with U.K.-based company What On Earth Is Going On, which focuses on socially relevant marketing initiatives. Users on the portal can connect to global brands based on their interests and passions.

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