Channel 500, a Canadian producer of long- and short-form infomercials, named McLellan Group, Toronto, to handle public relations.
The agency won the business through a referral, though Channel 500 did shop around. There was no incumbent on the account, whose spend was not disclosed.
“There's a lot of people out there offering a similar type of service, and somehow Channel 500 needs to basically stand out from the crowd,” said Caroline Bretsen, manager of public and media relations at McLellan.
Founded in 1993, Channel 500 specializes in 60- and 90-second infomercials as well as 30-minute commercials with calls to action. The Toronto company offers concept development, scripting, production, telemarketing and fulfillment management.
Channel 500 clients have included Nokia, Mattel, Royal Bank, Kitchen Aid, Bank of Montreal, British Telecom, Guthy Renker, Greenpeace, Christian Children's Fund, Ford Motor Co., IBM Corp. and Hewlett-Packard Co. Many are still clients.
McLellan's mandate is to publicize Channel 500 to Fortune 500 companies as the DRTV provider expands its services. The 15-year-old agency's roster includes Philadelphia Federal Credit Union, Lakehead University, RBC, Bell Canada and Richard Ivey School of Business.
“While marketers excel at promoting their clients, they're often so busy that they just don't have time to promote themselves,” Bretsen said.
