Say what you will about the new traffic patterns in Times Square, they certainly provide a captive audience to advertisers taking part in what is known as viral or experiential marketing, hoping to involve passers-by and pedestrians in campaigns to generate buzz.
Such an advertiser is eBay, which on Friday morning will begin promoting a three-day campaign to stimulate interest in the Daily Deal section of its Web site (deals.ebay.com). The campaign, to run next Monday through Wednesday, is centered in Times Square and pays homage to “Let’s Make a Deal” and other venerable game shows with events in person, on signs and online called “Let’s Make a Daily Deal.”
Monty Hall, the longtime host of “Let’s Make a Deal,” is to take part in the campaign, appearing Tuesday at the Times Square Studios on West 44th Street with the comedian Mario Cantone to play games with guests. Mr. Cantone will be the solo host of “Let’s Make a Daily Deal” on Monday and Wednesday.
Those unable to be in Times Square can play along online at ebay.com/dailydealgame.
There are also going to be mobile versions of the games, appearing on the sign on the Thomson Reuters Building in Times Square; so-called street teams of hucksters wandering the neighborhood, handing out promotional materials; ads on the ABC and Nasdaq signs; and ads on Web sites like dailycandy.com, facebook.com, meetup.com and thrillist.com.
The campaign is the first for Daily Deal, said Alan Marks, senior vice president for corporate communications at eBay in San Jose, Calif. The feature was introduced for the 2008 holiday shopping season.
The goal is to generate more awareness for Daily Deal and other features on eBay that offer merchandise for sale at fixed prices rather than by auctions. “About half the site today is fixed price,” Mr. Marks said.
The campaign was already in the works when word got out that the City of New York was planning to close parts of Broadway to establish a traffic-free zone for pedestrians near the Times Square Studios, complete with lawn chairs so passers-by can rest, read a newspaper or sip a cup of coffee.
“It was more coincidence than anything else,” Mr. Marks said.
Based on how the campaign goes, he added, eBay would consider returning to New York with a similar effort or taking it to other cities.
The campaign is being developed by an internal team at eBay and Edelman, the public relations agency that is part of Daniel J. Edelman Inc.
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