Sponsor (Jan-Apr 1957)

fectionery Co., which makes the candy bar Good and Plenty, is sponsorin both programs and announcements in 10 major t\ cities tliis year. Film commercials will pluji both the fivecenl pocket package and the large faniiK size. Lester Rosskam. Jr.. vice president of the company, says the 20-second and minute announcements '"include appeals to all candy consumer groups, and will also promote all seasons and major holidays." The large package, because it boosted Good and Plenty supermarket sales so much last year, will get a bigger share of the promotion this \ear. Rosskam says: "Good and Plenty sales keep climbing for a plenty-good reason : spot television. We've been using tv for seven years, and every year our sales have shown a substantial increase. We've had dramatic proof that the trade recognizes the celling power of television. When we introduced our new half-pound package, we got fine trade support and wide advance distribution just by announcing our plans to feature the package on tv. "'Television is the whole reason why sales keep climbing, and that's why we're concentrating virtually our entire budget on spot tv." Mars, Inc., Chicago, through Knox-Reeves agency, Minneapolis, spends a reported 70% of its annual advertising budget for spot television in behalf of its three nickel candy bars. Three Musketeers, Milky Way and Snickers. Its popular dime bar, the Mars bar. is advertised in consumer magazines. The spot television effort consists of a half-hour svndicated film show, Buffalo Bill. Jr.. in 65 markets across the country. Saturday mornings are preferred times for the program because the client wishes to reach children in addition to as many housewives as possible, according to Russell Neff, director of radio and television for Knox-Reeves. The agencv took over the account at the beginning of this year, continuing I lie Buffalo Bill Jr. program for the third consecutive year. It normally lakes a 13-week summer hiatus, when school kids are on vacation and returns to the air in October. Lasl year Mars used a supplemental") l\ spot schedule on 1~> stations, going off the air last r oiilh. The commercials arc filmed. both for the spots and the programs. Curtiss Candy Co., according to Advertising Manager F. R. Reiter, is using "a small amount of local radio. Its advertising plans are in a limbo stage, inasmuch as its advertising and management executives are "undergoing a marketing and media stud\" on which future expansion and extension will be based. Curtiss this year will spend about si million on advertising, most of which is going to newspapers at this juncture before final analysis of the media study is completed. The compain has long used radio, both network and spot, and last year it w-as an alternate sponsor of CRS TV's Tales of the Texas Rangers. Planters Nut and Chocolate Co. puts the bulk of its broadcast expenditure into its sponsorship of Eddie Fisher on the NBC TV network. About 95' ! of the commercial time is devoted to its peanuts and candy with a brief opening mention on the opening billboard for its peanut butter. The compain, according to its advertising department, is currently re-evaluating media and is contemplating the use of television at the local level. The locallevel advertising, as it is now thought of. will tie in with various local promotional and merchandising plans in the offing. Planters" agency is Don Kemper, Inc. Stephen F. Whitman & Son. Philadelphia, is one of the big investors in spot. Spot, tv and radio in combination, account for more than 50% of the total advertising investment, and, of this, the bulk of the emphasis— perhaps 80' V of it — is in spot television. William I Bill I Clay, supervisor on the account at N.W. Aver & Son in Philadelphia, says the tv spot pattern is a schedule of flights on a minimum of 100 stations. The flight patterns vary, and are concentrated prior to the four major promotional events for candyChristmas. Valentine's Day, Easter and Mothers Day. The biggest announcement buildup is in the fall before the Christmas season. The client buys only A. A\ and AAA prime times in television, scheduling announcements per market on the basis of an individual market budget which allow lor a range of up to 11 announcements weekly in each market depending on ratings. They are on film, and 20 seconds long. Whitman seeks an adult audience, and prefers adjacencies to top-rated nighttime programs. In radio, the storj is a \er\ different cne — and an untold one. Whitman continues to conduct a great deal of experimentation in its radio advertising, and. after two \ears of analvsis it's about ready to make its 1957-'58 media selections on the basis of multiple-market results of this testing. The account is testing for many factors, one of which is the balance achieved h\ ill the use of radio alone. (2i or in conjunction with tv, or (3) tv alone. Sixty-second announcements are preferred in radio. Whitman, a traditional print advertiser, entered into the spot broadcast field almost two \ears ago. One of its advantages over many of its competitors: the name and package had long been established in the public mind because of the heavv consumer magazine campaigns. As a result. Whitman would seem to have less of a problem than other manufacturers in gaining brand recognition and package identification. The Fred W. Amend Co., Danville. 111., puts 95% of its total advertising budget in television to advertise its Chuckles cand\. Its advertising appeal is primarily to youngsters and secondarily to mothers. The company bought spot television in about 10 major markets last year, slotting live participations and film announcements in and around kid shows. Amend likes a combination of live sell w ith a popular local personality, such as John Conrad on Elmer the Elephant in Chicago, and 20-second animated film commercials around the ABC T\ network feature. Mickey Mouse Club. The range of frequency is from five to 10 a week, with an average of eight announcements per market per week, teports Amend President A. F. Rathbun. He says the company used radio advertising consistently from about 1927 to 1950, when the pattern changed to tele\ ision. "We concentrated on cowboy movies for three to four years, and then bought our own show. Hail the Champ. lor showing in 21 markets for almost two years. \t this point, we plan to staj w ith spot t\ for awhile." Chuckles is its only consumer prod 16 -I'tiNSOR 23 FFHIU \I!Y 1957