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Elect Susie Flynn

"If You Knew Susie"
by Stuart Flynn (New York Times)

Every two years, the word "campaign" takes on a double meaning as marketers sponsor advertising with election themes, making believe that they are running their brands, endorsers or mascots for Congress or president.

For instance, in 1996, Nike pretended to toss the baseball cap of Ken Griffey Jr. into the ring. The Miller Brewing Company urged voters in 2004 to select Miller Lite and Miller Genuine Draft as the "president of beers."

And last year, the Mayfield Dairy Farms division of Dean Foods held a "Flavor Decision '06" vote in four Southern states to select a new variety of ice cream. The winner was blueberry cream pie, which campaigned on a platform of "Making tomorrow sweeter."

Now, an organization with more on its mind than peddling a product is adopting the tactic. To generate support for a plan to make sure all American children are covered by health insurance, the Children's Defense Fund is sponsoring a "healthy child" campaign centered on a highly unlikely candidate for the nation's highest office: a 10-year-old girl.

The campaign - that is, the ad campaign - is called "Elect Susie," after its spokeswoman-cum-candidate, Susie Flynn. Television commercials, print ads, posters and a Web site (electsusie.com) adopt the trappings of a campaign - that is, an electoral campaign - complete with flags, bunting, slogans, messages of encouragement from supporters and disclaimers ("Paid for by Friends of Susie Flynn and the Children's Defense Fund").

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Read More: The official website - and all the campaign commercials - are here. The full NYT article is here.

Labels: Advertising, Stuff I Found Online

posted by Lindsay @ 4:50 PM