Compaq Computer Corp., Houston, announced this week that it has entered an exclusive agreement with singer/songwriter Sting for a marketing campaign that leverages the spirit of the song “Brand New Day.”
“Sting maps wonderfully across our market” said Doug Wheeler, vice president of corporate marketing at Compaq. “He's in every market Compaq is in and his success has sustained over time, he reflects our values directly. He's innovative, and he's demonstrated consistency. That's us.”
The agreement with Sting, which lasts through December of 2000 will encompass worldwide appearances by the artist in conjunction with the extensive use of Compaq technology and branding in advertising and marketing imagery associated with the tour. Compaq identified items also will appear on the cover and packaging of the Sting CD as well as marketing communications associated with its release.
Compaq's relationship to the theme Brand New Day which for Sting is valued at about $20 million, was characterized by Wheeler as being more about the superiority of Compaq technology and how it is being used to help Sting during his tour and his daily life.
“The Brand New Day theme isn't anything Y2K specifically” Wheeler told DM News, “it's more about how an artist can use technology to its greatest advantage.”
Marketing alliances between leading hi-tech manufacturers and brand name celebrity talent became more common throughout the 1990's. In 1993, Apple Computers launched a print advertising campaign for it's Macintosh Powerbook in conjunction with football wide receiver Art Monk of the Washington Redskins and international tennis champion, Martina Navratalova.
However, the Sting-Compaq is far more intimate than any seen to date between a major technology manufacturer and worldwide renowned recording artist. Compaq wouldn't reveal exactly how it was going to police Stings sponsorship in conjunction with music retailers and computer system resellers. But Wheeler reassurred that what it has in mind will extend beyond the Internet and Stings concert tour “Let's just say we want to draw in as much cross-marketing as we can,” he said.
We've looked at his fans and our customers. They're virtually the same. Our target market is 18-49 male and female. So is his.
“But what is interesting about Sting, is that every time he releases an album, he gets a whole new set of fans.”
