'Herbie' spins NASCAR's promo wheels
'Herbie' on track
June 22, 2005
With Lindsay Lohan and a magical '63 Volkswagen Bug defying the odds to compete in a NASCAR race in Walt Disney Pictures' "Herbie: Fully Loaded," which opens today, NASCAR is not only integral to the movie's story line, but the racing league's many corporate sponsors also achieve high-profile integrations that mirror the exposure they get in real-life races.
And by replicating the sea of brand logos that blanket NASCAR race cars, drivers' uniforms and racetrack signage, Disney won over key promotional support from NASCAR sponsors, which in turn is providing the studio better access to NASCAR's 75 million-strong fan base.
"We're very excited about our promotional support for the film," said Brett Dicker, executive vp marketing at Buena Vista Pictures. "It gives us entree into the world of racing which is essential to the movie. 'Herbie' is a Disney classic married to the modern world of NASCAR so it was just a perfect fit for the partners and for us."
Six official sponsors of NASCAR, teams that compete in NASCAR races or the tracks that host NASCAR events signed up to cross-promote the movie. They include Nextel, the title sponsor of NASCAR's premiere national racing series, the NASCAR Nextel Cup and Radio Shack. For the other four sponsors -- Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co., UPS, Valvoline and Netzero -- it also was the first time they partnered with a Disney movie.
For NASCAR, which has been working aggressively to popularize the sport of stock race car driving through entertainment tie-ins and cross-promotions since 2001, "Herbie" represents the biggest role for NASCAR in a major feature film and the first time the racing league has been involved in the making of a movie from the very earliest stages. "It's the first time that we've been absolutely part of the scripting, preproduction, postproduction, marketing and publicity elements behind a film," said Sarah Nettinga, director of film, television and music entertainment for NASCAR.
The movie filmed in part at the California Speedway in Fontana, with some shooting occurring during actual races. UPS driver Dale Jarrett, Lowe's driver Jimmie Johnson, DuPont driver Jeff Gordon and Home Depot driver Tony Stewart have cameo appearances in the film.
NASCAR, which is not considered an official promotional partner for "Herbie" but is using its marketing resources to help publicize the movie, was paid an undisclosed fee by Disney for its logistical support and production assistance in filming NASCAR races and custom racetrack sequences.
Nettinga said NASCAR -- reportedly the only national sports league that has opened a Los Angeles office dedicated to entertainment-based promotions and placements -- was thrilled with the roles NASCAR and its sponsors had in the movie, as well as the promotions NASCAR was able to help bring to the table.
"It's one of those rare opportunities for a two-way street," she said. "We're bringing Disney great opportunities and they're bringing our sponsors great opportunities so it's the perfect tie-in for them and for us."
Nextel, which is running a 30-second spot that features two NASCAR drivers talking about Herbie as if it's a real car, said the "driving factor" behind Nextel's decision to partner with "Herbie" was the movie's story line that has Lohan's character Maggie Peyton dreaming of winning the NASCAR Nextel Cup series. "It's a way to activate our NASCAR sponsorship, while going after that family demographic," said Michael Robichaud, senior director of sports and entertainment marketing for Nextel. "Having Nextel aligned with Disney is a good way for us to broaden the appeal of our brand."
In the movie, the NASCAR Nextel Cup series is mentioned often in the dialogue, Nextel signage is featured prominently and, as in real-life races, Nextel's logo appears on drivers' uniforms and race cars.
As part of its promotion, Nextel is offering "Herbie" ringtones and wallpaper, hosting in-store events, running a "Herbie" microsite and airing its TV spot and a "Herbie" trailer on its Nextel Vision jumbotrons at NASCAR races through month's end.
Because of its integration in the movie -- due in part to Jarrett's cameo -- UPS, the official shipping company for NASCAR and sponsor of the UPS car No. 88 driven by Jarrett, agreed to its first ever film promotion. "The reason we're doing what we're doing is because of the significant tie-in with NASCAR and the inclusion of our car and our driver in the film," UPS spokesman Steve Holmes said.
For its promotion, UPS is featuring a special "Herbie" paint scheme on its car that will race at the Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, Calif., on Sunday. It also ran an Internet sweepstakes offering the winner a trip to the Sonoma race and a prerace ride around the track in a "Herbie" bug driven by Jarrett.
As the official tire sponsor of NASCAR for 57 years, Goodyear tires are featured prominently in NASCAR races and in the movie. Herbie gets a workup that includes brand new Goodyear tires. The company's logo also is seen on race cars and driver uniforms in the movie. In addition, Lohan wears a Goodyear branded baseball cap in the film.
For its promotion, Goodyear was a sponsor of the "Herbie" premiere Sunday night, supplying several hundred racing tires to decorate the El Capitan Theatre in Hollywood as well as a Goodyear blimp. It also is running an in-store promotion through August at Goodyear retailers around the country, offering customers who buy four tires a special edition Goodyear "Herbie" baseball cap.
Valvoline, which owns and sponsors a NASCAR team and has sponsorship deals with the Daytona International Speedway and the Bristol Motor Speedway, is racing its Valvoline No. 10 car with a special Herbie paint scheme at the Pepsi 400 race at Daytona on July 2. Valvoline, whose car, team and signage are featured in the film, also is offering customers a free movie ticket or die-cast car with the purchase of Valvoline oil at thousands of auto specialty shops and major retailers.
Radio Shack, which has a deal with the Texas Motor Speedway as a co-sponsor of the NASCAR Cup Samsung/Radio Shack 500 race, is selling miniature "Herbie" remote control cars and is running national TV and radio spots to promote the movie and the collectible cars called ZipZaps. Radio Shack also is promoting the movie in-store, through direct mail, online and in sales circulars.
While it is reportedly spending in the low seven figures on one of its largest film promotions ever, Radio Shack appears to be the only "Herbie" promotional partner associated with NASCAR that does not have some kind of role in the movie.
Other "Herbie" partners not affiliated with NASCAR include Visa Canada, Northwest Airlines World Vacations, Pringles, Walmart and Volkswagen.
Despite the starring role of its Volkswagen Bug in the movie -- Herbie is even listed as a guest star in the opening credits -- Volkswagen provided very limited promotional support to Disney. It is displaying Herbie at its booths at the New York and Detroit auto shows, and taking Herbie on a U.S. tour celebrating the 50th anniversary of Volkswagen of America.
"The movie focuses on a mid-'60s Volkswagen," said Steve Keyes, spokesman for Volkswagen of America. "It's a bit of nostalgia for us, but we decided not to commit large sums of money to support it. We decided it would make more sense to promote our new products."
Keyes said Volkswagen's recent mega-marketing deal with Universal, valued at about $150 million over five years, had nothing to do with the automaker's decision. "It was never an issue for Disney or Volkswagen or Universal," he said.
And by replicating the sea of brand logos that blanket NASCAR race cars, drivers' uniforms and racetrack signage, Disney won over key promotional support from NASCAR sponsors, which in turn is providing the studio better access to NASCAR's 75 million-strong fan base.
"We're very excited about our promotional support for the film," said Brett Dicker, executive vp marketing at Buena Vista Pictures. "It gives us entree into the world of racing which is essential to the movie. 'Herbie' is a Disney classic married to the modern world of NASCAR so it was just a perfect fit for the partners and for us."
Six official sponsors of NASCAR, teams that compete in NASCAR races or the tracks that host NASCAR events signed up to cross-promote the movie. They include Nextel, the title sponsor of NASCAR's premiere national racing series, the NASCAR Nextel Cup and Radio Shack. For the other four sponsors -- Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co., UPS, Valvoline and Netzero -- it also was the first time they partnered with a Disney movie.
For NASCAR, which has been working aggressively to popularize the sport of stock race car driving through entertainment tie-ins and cross-promotions since 2001, "Herbie" represents the biggest role for NASCAR in a major feature film and the first time the racing league has been involved in the making of a movie from the very earliest stages. "It's the first time that we've been absolutely part of the scripting, preproduction, postproduction, marketing and publicity elements behind a film," said Sarah Nettinga, director of film, television and music entertainment for NASCAR.
The movie filmed in part at the California Speedway in Fontana, with some shooting occurring during actual races. UPS driver Dale Jarrett, Lowe's driver Jimmie Johnson, DuPont driver Jeff Gordon and Home Depot driver Tony Stewart have cameo appearances in the film.
NASCAR, which is not considered an official promotional partner for "Herbie" but is using its marketing resources to help publicize the movie, was paid an undisclosed fee by Disney for its logistical support and production assistance in filming NASCAR races and custom racetrack sequences.
Nettinga said NASCAR -- reportedly the only national sports league that has opened a Los Angeles office dedicated to entertainment-based promotions and placements -- was thrilled with the roles NASCAR and its sponsors had in the movie, as well as the promotions NASCAR was able to help bring to the table.
"It's one of those rare opportunities for a two-way street," she said. "We're bringing Disney great opportunities and they're bringing our sponsors great opportunities so it's the perfect tie-in for them and for us."
Nextel, which is running a 30-second spot that features two NASCAR drivers talking about Herbie as if it's a real car, said the "driving factor" behind Nextel's decision to partner with "Herbie" was the movie's story line that has Lohan's character Maggie Peyton dreaming of winning the NASCAR Nextel Cup series. "It's a way to activate our NASCAR sponsorship, while going after that family demographic," said Michael Robichaud, senior director of sports and entertainment marketing for Nextel. "Having Nextel aligned with Disney is a good way for us to broaden the appeal of our brand."
In the movie, the NASCAR Nextel Cup series is mentioned often in the dialogue, Nextel signage is featured prominently and, as in real-life races, Nextel's logo appears on drivers' uniforms and race cars.
As part of its promotion, Nextel is offering "Herbie" ringtones and wallpaper, hosting in-store events, running a "Herbie" microsite and airing its TV spot and a "Herbie" trailer on its Nextel Vision jumbotrons at NASCAR races through month's end.
Because of its integration in the movie -- due in part to Jarrett's cameo -- UPS, the official shipping company for NASCAR and sponsor of the UPS car No. 88 driven by Jarrett, agreed to its first ever film promotion. "The reason we're doing what we're doing is because of the significant tie-in with NASCAR and the inclusion of our car and our driver in the film," UPS spokesman Steve Holmes said.
For its promotion, UPS is featuring a special "Herbie" paint scheme on its car that will race at the Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, Calif., on Sunday. It also ran an Internet sweepstakes offering the winner a trip to the Sonoma race and a prerace ride around the track in a "Herbie" bug driven by Jarrett.
As the official tire sponsor of NASCAR for 57 years, Goodyear tires are featured prominently in NASCAR races and in the movie. Herbie gets a workup that includes brand new Goodyear tires. The company's logo also is seen on race cars and driver uniforms in the movie. In addition, Lohan wears a Goodyear branded baseball cap in the film.
For its promotion, Goodyear was a sponsor of the "Herbie" premiere Sunday night, supplying several hundred racing tires to decorate the El Capitan Theatre in Hollywood as well as a Goodyear blimp. It also is running an in-store promotion through August at Goodyear retailers around the country, offering customers who buy four tires a special edition Goodyear "Herbie" baseball cap.
Valvoline, which owns and sponsors a NASCAR team and has sponsorship deals with the Daytona International Speedway and the Bristol Motor Speedway, is racing its Valvoline No. 10 car with a special Herbie paint scheme at the Pepsi 400 race at Daytona on July 2. Valvoline, whose car, team and signage are featured in the film, also is offering customers a free movie ticket or die-cast car with the purchase of Valvoline oil at thousands of auto specialty shops and major retailers.
Radio Shack, which has a deal with the Texas Motor Speedway as a co-sponsor of the NASCAR Cup Samsung/Radio Shack 500 race, is selling miniature "Herbie" remote control cars and is running national TV and radio spots to promote the movie and the collectible cars called ZipZaps. Radio Shack also is promoting the movie in-store, through direct mail, online and in sales circulars.
While it is reportedly spending in the low seven figures on one of its largest film promotions ever, Radio Shack appears to be the only "Herbie" promotional partner associated with NASCAR that does not have some kind of role in the movie.
Other "Herbie" partners not affiliated with NASCAR include Visa Canada, Northwest Airlines World Vacations, Pringles, Walmart and Volkswagen.
Despite the starring role of its Volkswagen Bug in the movie -- Herbie is even listed as a guest star in the opening credits -- Volkswagen provided very limited promotional support to Disney. It is displaying Herbie at its booths at the New York and Detroit auto shows, and taking Herbie on a U.S. tour celebrating the 50th anniversary of Volkswagen of America.
"The movie focuses on a mid-'60s Volkswagen," said Steve Keyes, spokesman for Volkswagen of America. "It's a bit of nostalgia for us, but we decided not to commit large sums of money to support it. We decided it would make more sense to promote our new products."
Keyes said Volkswagen's recent mega-marketing deal with Universal, valued at about $150 million over five years, had nothing to do with the automaker's decision. "It was never an issue for Disney or Volkswagen or Universal," he said.
Share on LinkedIn
