TORONTO – TSN has launched a huge multiplatform ad campaign in support of its coverage of the of the 31st IIHF World Junior Championship.
On-air testimonials from NHL stars (and former World Junior tournament standouts) Joe Thornton and Chris Pronger, a massive three-piece billboard at Yonge/Dundas Square in downtown Toronto (pictured below), a grassroots promotional stunt, and a two-week national print and radio campaign highlight TSN’s multifaceted marketing plan for the network’s coverage, which also includes radio and online pushes.
TSN’s goal is to capture the excitement, passion and anticipation of the popular annual hockey holiday tradition,” says the company.
TSN’s coverage of the World Juniors, annually some of the network’s highest-rated programming, airs December 26 to January 5 on multiple distribution platforms – TSN, TSN HD and TSN Broadband. TSN will televise and stream online live coverage of 11 games – all Team Canada round-robin games, one preliminary round game not involving Team Canada, two quarter-finals, both semifinals, and the Bronze and Gold Medal games.
Eight of TSN’s Top 10 programs of all time are World Juniors telecasts, and a total of 20 World Juniors broadcasts have cracked the one million viewer mark. The 2003 Gold Medal Game from Halifax was the most watched program ever on TSN with 3.5 million viewers.
The focal point of the World Juniors marketing campaign consists of four 30-second spots airing in high rotation on the CTV family of networks including TSN, CTV, MuchMusic, MTV and NHL Network with high-profile NHLers reflecting on their personal World Juniors moments and the intangible elements and feelings that define their experiences (Thornton is shooting pool in his).
Click here, here and here to see the TSN promos.
The spots were developed in-house by the CTV Creative Agency and shot in High Definition in numerous locations throughout the U.S.
As well, two of Canada’s busiest intersections will prominently showcase the World Juniors: a massive 101×82 ft. three-piece billboard was installed today at Yonge-Dundas Square in downtown Toronto, featuring a 60-ft. hockey puck as the centrepiece. Transit shelter ads will also be placed at various locations around Toronto and Vancouver, beginning today.
And during the early-morning rush hour on semifinal Friday (January 4), a TSN Street Team in Hockey Canada jerseys will greet commuters at Union Station in downtown Toronto with mock game tickets, encouraging people heading to their offices to watch the two semifinal games live on TSN Broadband at 10 a.m. ET and 2 p.m. ET. The grassroots promotional stunt, which begins at 7 a.m. ET, was created in-house by the TSN Marketing team.
TSN’s external media rollout includes a two-week pre-promotional campaign on sports radio stations across the country beginning today, and a print campaign in daily newspapers and hockey trades.
