Broadcasting Telecasting (Jul-Sep 1953)

Going shopping by TV IS a hit with sponsors THROUGH its Star Shoppers program, which in itself is not for sale, KTTV (TV) Hollywood has built a long-range merchandising plan which offers advertisers "Supermarket Merchandising Added to Selling in the Home." Known as the SMASH Plan and geared to station advertisers — active and prospective— who merchandise through food markets, the half-hour audience-participation program originates from various supermarkets in the greater Los Angeles area five times weekly, utilizing five different remote units. One week in advance of each day's telecast, the selected store is equipped with shelf-strips identifying all KTTV Star Shopper Values, drawn from the product list of station clients. The day and date of the approaching telecast are listed along with naming the program each item sponsors or in which it participates. In cooperation with store management, a stack containing 18 KTTV advertised items is arranged. The station often suggests inclusion of items notnormally stocked by the particular market. Additionally, store employes wear badges featuring an invitation from host-m.c. Bill Welsh to attend the telecast, and the parking lot is flanked by life-size pictures of Mr. Welsh and the KTTV camera. The station provides the store with pictures, mats and other promotion material with which to Herb Gordon, Ziv vice president in charge of production, and Ginger Rogers, one of four stars in company's new five-hours-aweek radio program. Page 100 • August 17, 1953 build an advertising campaign. Retailer enthusiasm often results in full page and double truck ads in the local newspapers, featuring as many as 28 KTTV-advertised items. Entertainment-wise, the program, which premiered March 23, features a continuous display and mention of these products through contests. One such contest has three women, after hearing a list of items read or seeing them only once, attempt to bring back as many of the remembered items as possible from the store shelves. Another features a series of questions, the answers to which contain key words in product names. Prizes are again KTTV items, packed in special station-identified sacks which each winner holds within camera range, while Mr. Welsh names the contents. Promotion-wise, there are many facets to Star Shoppers. By displaying selected store products adjacent to KTTV items, new advertisers are attracted when they see the promotion afforded their product, according to John Vrba, station general sales manager. The markets themselves have benefited by the stimulated interest and sales. As many as 800 people have congregated for an individual telecast, he pointed out, adding that it is a homogeneous group that almost turns the program into a neighborhood party. This happens to the store at 2 p.m., an hour normally considered a dead time. Advertisers and agencies in the Los An geles area have become so conscious of th, merchandising aspects that their represents' tives are often found at each telecast, notin \ the immediate results. Canada Dry Gingti' ale Inc.'s Los Angeles office, which sponsci the Terry and the Pirates film series o KTTV, credits a 50-case order from a hit! erto unsold market to the fact that th sparkling beverage was brought into th<' particular market by the station in conjunc tion with Star Shoppers, reports Roy Macl the firm's assistant division manager. Sponsors added to the station's roste ; wholly or partly because of the SMASl Plan, according to Jack O'Mara, station pn motion and merchandising director, includt O'Cedar Corp. (polishes, waxes); Bosco d (milk amplifier); Gordon Bread Co.; Ba bara Ann Bread Co.; Detergents Inc. (All American Maize Products Co. (Apiazo ii stant dessert); Arden Farms Co. (daii products); Best Foods Inc. (mayonnaise Hawaiian Pineapple Co. (Dole quick froze pineapple juice); Oscar Mayer & Co. (me products); Pepsi-Cola Co. (soft drink Ralston Purina Co. (cereals); Kellogg C ( Rice Krispies and other cereals) ; Nehi Be! erage Co. (Royal Crown Cola, Nehi anl Party Pak beverages), and Arrowhead Puritas Waters Inc. At a program cost of $3,000 weekly, tl; SMASH Plan, the station believes, will p{ off from between ten and fifteen to on' The main problem, according to the locj offices of station representative Blair-T will be how to accommodate fall businesi Summer time schedules had been pretty w( filled by the time the promotion fold reached the agencies. In discussing the long-range SMASH Pla Mr. O'Mara advises against other statiojj attempting it unless they have the necessaj remote equipment. He believes the impo tance of KTTV's five remote trucks canni, be stressed contributing to tlj success of the plan. iu,..,lliluliiilllltlllll|lllilllllllllllliilllllil , A firm not given to gambling bets $24,000 weekly on radi< THINK the big budget days are over in radio? If so, the Frederic W. Ziv Co. is making a bad bet. Its new Hour of Stars, an hour-a-day, five-days-a-week series, is costing $24,000 a week, and in at least one market it has been put in an evening time slot for the express purpose of competing with evening TV. William B. McGrath, managing director of WHDH Boston, has scheduled Hour of Stars in the 7-8 p.m. period with this explanation: "Located in a heavily saturated TV market, we felt early the impact of TV on our evening hours. Advertisers were quick to desert the period between 7 and 10:30 p.m. on the mere assumption that the audience had taken a powder. Our experience in the last two years has proved this not to be the case, and advertisers are gradually turning to nighttime radio. "With this in mind, we are constan attempting to strengthen our evening pr| gram structure and have decided to schedu the Hour of Stars between 7 and 8 p.m." Alvin E. Unger, Ziv radio sales vice pre ident, has reported the show has been so to more than 150 stations. The progra stars Ginger Rogers, Peggy Lee, Tony Ma tin and Dick Powell, each playing 1, favorite records in individual 15-minute si ments. Ziv has arranged with music pu lishers and record companies to make a vance predictions of what tunes will becon hits, giving the Ziv company a good chan of coming up with popular records ev< though the program is transcribed long b fore broadcasts. Broadcasting Telecastit