DIRECTV Advertising is launching a multi-channel marketing campaign around Upfront Week in New York City, using the annual gathering of television programmers, streamers, advertisers and media buyers as a metaphor for the company’s converged television advertising platform.
The campaign includes digital out-of-home placements, experiential activations, digital video, trade publication ads and social media marketing. It was developed with creative agency TBWA\Chiat\Day LA and media agency Starcom US.
The effort begins Sunday with ads running on live television programming delivered to airplane seatback screens on flights into New York through DIRECTV Remote, the company’s digital out-of-home network. The 30-second spot serves as the centerpiece of the campaign, welcoming attendees to Upfront Week with an animated video that draws parallels between the weeklong industry showcase and DIRECTV Advertising’s broader pitch to marketers.
The campaign uses the tagline “Enjoy the Week-Long Metaphor for DIRECTV.”
“For one week, every major programmer and streamer comes together in one place,” Amy Leifer, the Chief Advertising Officer at DIRECTV Advertising, said in a statement. “The Upfronts have always been about showcasing the best of TV, and when we stepped back and looked at the week as a whole, we realized that’s exactly what we do at DIRECTV every day.”
Throughout the week, DIRECTV Advertising will target attendees with digital signage near Upfront venues and transit hubs, LED trucks carrying campaign messaging and digital billboards in Times Square.
The company will also deploy street teams, brand ambassadors, branded carts and custom-wrapped SUVs around Upfront events, offering promotional items and transportation around the city.
Each part of the campaign is intended to highlight a different element of DIRECTV Advertising’s offering, including premium video, live sports, streaming and out-of-home reach. The campaign will close with television ads on return flights from New York as attendees leave the market.
“When we looked at Upfronts week, it started to feel like a perfect, if slightly unintentional, demonstration of what DIRECTV does every day: bringing the entire TV world together in one place,” said TBWA\Chiat\Day LA Group Creative Director Mark Peters. “So, we just had fun with pointing that out.”
“The media ecosystem has never been more fragmented, and that creates a real opportunity for platforms that can unify it,” said Shelby Saville, Chief Executive Officer, Starcom US. “As audiences continue to splinter, brands are under growing pressure to show up with consistency, relevance and scale. DIRECTV offers something powerful: a unified platform that connects live TV, streaming and out of home, creating a seamless experience for viewers and brands, one that meets people exactly where they are, just like this campaign.”
DIRECTV Advertising said it plans to extend the campaign beyond Upfront Week through continued marketing and client engagement during the broader Upfront buying season.
