COM 351 Group Advertising Project
This project is worth 30 percent of your final grade. Each member
of the group will receive the same grade. They only exception to this policy
is if the majority of the group states in writing that a person or person(s)
did not participate to any great extent and don't deserve the same grade as
everyone else in the group. I will take such a statement under advisement in
determining final grades. This project is due May 20th. Each group will make
a presentation and turn in a presentation paper. Details follow.
Product: Water Wigglies
Also known as Water Wigglers or Watersnakes (as made by other toy companies).
Made by Play Visions. The Play Visions logo is a castle in the sky.
Marketing has passed on to you all the information they know:
90% of the public has never seen one.
Consumers don't know what to do with one (they don't understand the benefits
of having one)
The target audience in the past has primarily been kids, but new research seems
to indicate that the college market is an untapped source of
revenues.
There are currently no strong images associated with the product (either positive
or negative).
No specific appeals are currently being used, though years ago the countertop
displays had a slogan "don't let your kids choke on other toys,
have them play with Water Wigglies." This obvious fear appeal failed miserably
and led to decreased sales. Recent data suggests that no one
remembers this appeal anymore so it shouldn't have an residual effects on a
new ad.
It's unclear what attributes are important to the consumer for this product.
The Wigglies come in three colors - purple, blue and green.
Wigglies can have glitter, swirls, beads and/or cubes inside (see website for
other variations).
Just recently, "aliens" were added to Wigglies. It's too early to
tell if this will affect sales.
People tend to enjoy them if they have an opportunity to try them.
Most sales have been through counter displays in toy stores.
Radio and TV advertising have never been tried, so there is no data available
on effectiveness of past ads.
Water Wigglies have a slogan – "Squeeze Me!" and a "spokesperson"
– "Mondo the Water Wiggly", but no jingle. You would have to
convince the President of Play Visions with real data to change the slogan or
the spokesperson.
Parents have been looking for toys that are non-violent and safe.
Water wigglies use non-toxic liquids inside.
Water wigglies are tough to break.
Water wigglies do have a warning label on the package (and on the display box).
Parents feel many toys are simply too expensive (a consumer perception).
The price of Water Wigglies is $5.99 (it was $4.99 without the "alien")
Play Visions has a website – www.playvisions.com, but it is primarily aimed
at vendors.
The Marketing department is positive that this product can be sold to the college
market. They've already gotten all the MIAC schools to carry them in their bookstores.
If sales go well, the University of Minnesota will carry them. But, they want
to see how things go first.
The budget is limited. Marketing says that you can create one radio ad and one
TV ad. Depending on how good they are, they may run both, one or neither. They
also want to know which radio and TV station (only one of each) that would be
best to run it on (don't worry about the cost factor - marketing will work on
that).
For the paper: Explain what you did and why you did it. For example, if you
decide to use a fear appeal, why did you decide that? Was it based on concept
testing? a focus group? a survey? personal experience? or from other sources.
Draw on all the advertising material we'll cover - research, market segmentation,
influences on the consumer, the psychology of advertising, creative concepts,
message design, TV and radio characteristics, selling premises, media planning
and selection and so on. Also include a script for the radio ad and a script
and storyboard for the TV ad. You are not required to actually produce either
ad but you may do so if you wish.
For the presentation: Present your ads (for example you may read the script,
act it out, or play it) and use your justifications/explanations from the paper
to try to convince me (the President of Play Visions) that I should run your
ads instead of simply relying on counter displays to sell the product.
The paper and presentation will be counted equally in the determination of your
final grade.