Jeep buys advertising time on FYE's digital signage network

You'd never see a press release that read "Jeep airs television commercial on NBC," or even, "Jeep buys Google AdWords for key terms." Why, then, was there a press release floating about nearly a quarter after Jeep's foray into digital in-store advertising with FYE? Well, it's because this isn't PR from Jeep, it's from FYE themselves. And it's not really about Jeep's marketing savvy or innovation, it's an ad for FYE's in-store media network. Let's look at some of the details first:

The core of the promotion involved a contest with f.y.e. customers given a chance to scan the barcode on an entry to win a new Jeep Wrangler. It was a fully integrated promotion which included in-store signage, Jeep ads on f.y.e. in-store TV, store associates in Jeep tee shirts, Wrangler presence on the f.y.e. web site, Jeep integration with the retailer's e-marketing communications, a jeep integrated into the fuse TV show, "Amplified Guide to the Holidays", a Jeep Wrangler tag on f.y.e.'s national radio spots, and a special "scan to win" booklet with a Wrangler ad distributed in the stores. It was an exciting non-traditional way for Jeep to reach its' potential customers but, by far, the most exciting and unique portion of the promotion were the custom ads delivered at f.y.e.'s listening and viewing stations (LVS).

During the promotion, the LVS systems displayed nearly 18 million Jeep ads, and recorded that over 70,000 of the promotional booklets were scanned. FYE is quite proud of this, noting that their first significant use of the system to sell outside advertisements was a resounding success, and will surely pave the way for more projects with outside and non-core brands.

I can't recall the last time I saw a specialty retailer sell a digital media network like this, though there are certainly numerous examples of such venues doing so with more traditional forms of advertisement. Walk into a Starbucks, for example, and you'll see numerous little fliers and displays for credit cards, music, and all sorts of other non-core and external brand merchandise.

I'm definitely eager to see if more retailers decide to follow FYE's example.

Tags: FYE, digital signage, in-store media