Jan 1, 2006 12:00 PM, BY AMY JOHANNES

In 1932, the grandfather of country music, Jimmie Rogers, mournfully sang in Gambling Polka Dot Blues of taking on the big rollers in town and losing it all. His musical descendants, however, have gambled in the big city—and won. The Country Music Association took a calculated risk when it moved the 2005 CMA Awards to New York City for the first time in history, but it proved to be a risk worth taking.

Fourteen big-name brands led the charge backing the 39th annual CMA Awards—held Nov. 15 at Madison Square Garden. The event generated $4.5 million worth of sponsorships and some $36 million in revenue to the Big Apple.

Marketers leveraged the awards show via music tours, sweepstakes, sampling and free concerts. NYC Marketing and sister agency, NYC Big Events, Inc., secured and managed partnerships for the 2005 CMA Awards with Chevrolet, Prilosec OTC, Lever 2000, Kodak, Kellogg, XM Satellite Radio, Chase, Kmart, Crème Savers Candy, AOL Music, Crisco, Gibson Guitar, BMG Columbia House and Jack Daniels.

Through sponsorships and promotions, each brand linked consumers to country music in a new light.

Prilosec OTC staged an 18-city bus tour, offering free health screenings, karaoke and concerts to boost the CMA Awards show, which ended in New York. XM Satellite Radio broadcast country music and live interviews over the local New York public radio station, WNYE 91.5, two weeks leading up to the show. “We showed country music is cool, country can live in New York City,” says CMA VP-Strategic Marketing Rick Murray. “We were able to leverage our CMA brand much further by [latching onto] partners’ media budgets, as well as surround ourselves with the brands’ attributes.”

The 2005 CMA Awards could spin $20 million to $30 million in additional revenue for the country music industry over the next three years via sponsors, promotion deals and radio sports, Murray predicts.

The CMA drew nearly 11,000 spectators to Madison Square Garden—more than triple what the Grand Ole Opry holds in Nashville. And for the first time, the CMA let fans buy tickets to the show.

For the agencies, the awards prompted a new marketing model using a municipality, entertainment property and brands to attract others to the area. “We created a model to bring major events to the city…[and] a chance to offer and deliver brands complete marketing solutions,” says Jim Donofrio, NYC Marketing senior VP-partnerships.

At first, the notion of moving the CMA Awards out of Nashville didn’t strike a chord with country music fans. Nashville had been the award show’s home for the last 38 years.

“There was a bit of risk taking the show out of Nashville,” Murray admits. “But the board of directors and the staff felt it was time.”

The association hoped the move would demonstrate the popularity and breadth of country music to New York City advertisers. A secondary, more “wish list” goal, Murray says, was to spark interest in re-establishing a country music radio station in New York City. (It has been without a country station since the late ‘90s.)

To help rally support around the awards show and its new location, brands led the charge forging new relationships with New York City, the CMA and country fans alike.

“Our partners are our heroes,” Donofrio says. “It’s because of them these awards came to the city.”

Longtime sponsor Chevrolet upped the ante for 2005, rolling out the Chevy All Access Music Tour, a traveling exhibit that brought country music to life via exhibits, memorabilia, music collections, interactive experiences and live performances.

The tour, which kicked off in June at the CMA Festival in Nashville, was part of Chevrolet’s “An American Revolution” campaign, which unveiled 10 new cars and trucks over 20 months.

In September, Chevrolet took over Union Square with its Chevy Music Festival to promote the CMA award nominations and the show, touting its new line. The brand also featured artists in its 2006 country calendar highlighting New York’s five boroughs.

“With all the crossover appeal with country music, we wanted to make [music] a bigger part of our marketing campaign,” says Kim Kosak, Chevrolet general director of advertising and sales promotions. “[The sponsorship] gave us greater exposure just because of the move, and an opportunity to talk about our brand product.”

Country music found new roots with CPG-maker Kellogg, which ran a sweepstakes in circulars at five Northeast grocers that sent five grand-prize winners on a trip for four to the CMA Awards and to an exclusive after-party featuring a performance by Wynonna.

Consumers who bought Kellogg’s products with a shoppers’ card entered the sweepstakes. Sales increased during the promotion with one retailer reporting a 40% hike that week alone.

“We saw this as a great opportunity to support an event with such widespread appeal,” says Mike Seeger, manager customer marketing, Kellogg Co. “You’ll always have consumer appeal for country music.”

New Yorkers couldn’t go far without seeing a reference to country music in the days leading up to the awards. NYC Big Events showcased local attractions and tourist destinations with its “Country Takes NYC” promotions. For example, consumers received discounts and special country dishes at local restaurants during the Culinary Day event on Nov. 6.

“We were spreading country fever,” Ashley Jacobs, NYC Big Events’ senior VP-marketing, says.

While country music returns to its Nashville roots in 2006 to celebrate its 40th year, the CMA isn’t dispelling a future return to the Big Apple. “Never say never,” Murray says.

New Opps

FILM
Meet the Robinsons
Buena Vista Pictures, December 2006
Lewis is a brilliant 12-year-old inventor. With his Memory Scanner, he hopes to retrieve memories of his mother. But the scanner is stolen, and Lewis joins forces with a boy from the future, to retrieve it.

HOME ENTERTAINMENT
Bambi 2
Buena Vista Home Entertainment, Spring 2006
Bambi has just lost his mother and is being cared for by his father—the Great Prince of the Forest. Father and son learn from each other in this heartfelt tale.

Scooby-Doo: Pirates Ahoy!
Warner Home Video, Q4 2006
Scooby-Doo and the gang find horror on the high seas when pirates stalk them through the Caribbean.

TV
The Avenger
TNT, Q2 2006
The story of a man known only to a few people in the intelligence community as The Avenger: a small town lawyer and former Special Forces operative who hires himself to avenge the murders of loved ones.

MUSIC
Disneymania 4
Walt Disney Records, April 2006
Disneymania 4, features today’s hottest tween/teen stars singing Disney their way. Artists include: B5, Aly & AJ, Jesse McCartney and the Cheetah Girls.

Content provided by The L.A. Office. Find your next entertainment opportunity at laoffice.com!

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