Sony to Launch Major Consumer Ad Campaign in Support of HDTV, Blu-Ray
Posted Wed May 3, 2006 at 12:07 PM PDT by
Hoping to build upon its lead as the industry's top-selling brand of consumer
electronics, Sony has announced it will launch
one
of the biggest consumer ad campaigns in the company's history to promote
its growing line of HD products, including Blu-Ray, reports Associated Press.
Running through March 2007, Sony's will spend "hundreds of millions of
dollars" on its new HD marketing initiative, said Mike Fasulo, the company's
chief marketing. The move comes after Sony's success last year promoting its
BRAVIA and SXRD HDTV ad campaigns, which saw the sets jump to No. 1 in sales
in their respective HDTV categories.
"With HDTV we found we have to educate consumers with repetition,"
Fasulo told AP. "The only way you can do that is with campaigns."
Calling HDTV the "umbrella" under which all of Sony's marketing efforts
will fall, Fasulo said the company's ad campaign will encompass all of their
HD-related products, including Blu-Ray as well as HD camcorders, audio products
and the PlayStation 3 game console, which is also driven by Blu-Ray.
"Customers have a high level of trust with the Sony brand and with that
comes responsibility," said Fasulo. "The challenge we have is to market
without confusion... the industry's shift from analog to digital TV is like
going from black-and-white TV to color years ago. Consumers must make an educated
decision."
Fasulo also said Sony's marketing efforts will extend across all media, including
print, billboards, television, "live" events and the internet, including
an upcoming online contest where consumers can create their own ads for Sony
products, with the top submissions winning prizes.