Agency/media company

The Media Edge

Client

Whitehall-Robins

Brand

Advil

Media budget

Less than $1 million

Media used

Television

Out-of-Home

Timing

January through December, 2001

Media team

Shari Read, marketing director, Whitehall-Robins

Carl Schubert, senior product

manager, Whitehall-Robins

Tracy Bellamy, associate media

director, The Media Edge

Jennifer Thompson, media

supervisor, The Media Edge

Shana Cohen, media planner,

The Media Edge

The background

The assignment was to develop a media plan that would create awareness for the Advil muscle pain indication in an environment where the consumer might actually experience the pain resulting from muscle exertion. As one of the leaders in a very competitive analgesic category, we had to deliver a massive impact campaign that would position Advil as an innovator.

The plan

In 2001, we forged a relationship with the amateur athlete and targeted muscle pain sufferers using a unique mix of TV sponsorships and unprecedented out-of-home venues.

The television component included an Advil title sponsorship of the internationally renowned Eco-Challenge on Discovery Channel. The Eco-Challenge and our sponsored competitors, Team Advil, received substantial media coverage and the show exceeded anticipated audience levels by 65%.

Advil also sponsored the Amateur Athlete feature on several local TV newscasts. On TSN, Advil sponsored the Relief Pitcher feature, including a uniquely branded segment looking at sports-related pain following the pitching change. To further extend Advil's awareness, secondary components like Internet banners, print and P-O-P were folded into the packages.

Next, we placed the Advil muscle message in relevant O-O-H environments, where the consumer might experience muscle pain first hand. Most notably, we transformed the steps of the SkyDome 100-level seating area into an advertising venue - a first for both SkyDome and the pharmaceutical category. Additional media placements included the Union Station stairs, posters in fitness centres, rinkboards in amateur arenas, and granite tee markers on golf courses.

All in all, the 2001 Advil muscle campaign established new standards for a category that is typically limited to a conservative advertising approach.

Television sponsorships

Discovery's Eco-Challenge

* Team Advil branding

* :05 billboards

* :30 spots

* :30 promotional spots

* tune-in adjacencies

* Advil team vignettes focusing on pain and endurance

* Internet banner

* Team Advil captain featured on the cover of the Discovery guide and in a DPS ad

* Advil-branded P-O-P

The sponsorship built on the popularity of Mark Burnett (producer of Survivor and Eco-Challenge) and established the beginning of a long-term relationship with a growing, international sports event. Advil received extensive PR support, including a media tour of Team Advil that was picked up in both TV and print.