Universal Pictures

Challenge:

After a successful run in theatres, Stephen Spielberg’s movie Catch Me If You Can was releasing on video. Wanting to keep the momentum going, Universal Studios was looking for a promotion that it could execute on the May 12 release date while helping drive visibility and sales for this title.

Solution

Capitalizing upon the “Catch” and “Steal” themes of the movie, Sports Strategies created Catch Me If You Can Nights with 13 Major League and Minor League Baseball teams playing in key markets. In order to help create a buzz, all of these events were scheduled to run concurrently on the May 12^th release date for the video. Sponsorships with targeted teams and radio cross-promotions loaded the bases with elements such as:

• Pre-promotion supporting video release
• On-field “Catch Me If You Can” pop-up contest
• Radio promotions offering consumer entry in pop-up contest and DVD giveaways
• Movie trailers and themed features on stadium video board (Catch of the Night, Caught in the Act crowd feature, DVD giveaway with stolen base, etc.)
• Hospitality to host retail customers

Results

Catch Me If You Can’s baseball promotion was a hit on many levels. For a relatively minimal cost, we were able to deliver a campaign that leveraged an association with Major League Baseball, impacted targeted consumers who were actively spending money on family entertainment and effectively showcased the title to retail customers. This program helped Catch Me If You Can top the charts as the #1 selling DVD for its release week.