Sony P-O-P Communicates with Consumers at a Deeper Level

It will put a smile on your face and a song in your heart -- even if you are made of stone.In an effort to communicate with consumers "at a deeper level," Sony Corp. of America, Park Ridge, N.J., has developed the Moai Stone Head display for its CD Series of headphones. "The display creates an image that exceeds that of the product itself," says Ken Wood, national sales manager, accessory products division. "The market [for electronics] is perceived to be youth oriented. We saw the display as a good way to communicate that the people at Sony have a good sense of humor, like the consumers, and a good sense of creativity, like the consumers."The idea for the display stemmed from the national ad campaign featuring the Moai Heads on Easter Island with an added twist. One of the heads, which is wearing a pair of Sony headphones, is smiling. "The 'listen to your head ... your head will thank you for it' campaign was too clever an idea to use only with a national ad campaign," Wood explains. So New York-based Thomson-Leeds took the ad campaign one step further by developing a scaled-down version of the Moai heads, resulting in 1,000 3-D Moai heads for use as point-of-purchase displays. An added back-drop creates the proper setting for the head.This approach, Wood says, allows Sony to communicate at a deeper level, creating greater product differentiation and appreciation of Sony's efforts to do something bigger than simply talk about the product. The idea of creating an identity follows that of Kellogg and Tony the Tiger. Although the image of the Stone Heads won't be as long lasting as Tony the Tiger, the theory and results are the same: to communicate on a different level and more closely with the consumers.Accompanying the 3-D head is a counter card featuring a free coupon offer for a Stone Head poster or a silk-screened T-shirt. Wood says the giveaway, which runs through June, has proven to be quite popular with consumers thus far. So popular, in fact, that Sony may have to produce more of the giveaway items.Even though the giveaway only runs through June, the 3-D foam head display, which was introduced in January, will be of continuing importance throughout the entire calendar year, he explains.Further stemming from the original ad, which was conceptualized by Chicago-based Leo Burnett, are regional print ads from April through June. The point-of-purchase aids are provided to the elite, high quality audio/video stores that carry the full line of CD Series headphones, which range in price from $29.95 to $599.95. To these full-line dealers the displays are provided free of charge. This includes the 3-D head display, the free premium coupons display and the ad support with regional ads. As a result, Sony has recognized strong support from the retailers. "The reciprocity is felt," Wood adds.In the past, Wood explains, Sony emphasized the technical merits of its products. Now that its credibility has been firmly established, it is time to embellish on that from a creative angle. Sony is selling entertainment products. It brought that sense of entertainment into its P-O-P, and then "communicated the value of entertainment to the consumers," Wood says.The foam head, which measures 12 inches high by 8 inches deep by 6 inches wide, is a scaled-down version of the original Moai Stone Heads, which stand in excess of 30 feet high, he explains.The molded-urethane foam head was initially hand sculptured in wood and pine. From that wood model, a mold was made to produce the foam heads. Costing approximately $40 each, the foam head display portrays the desired stone appearance when decorated with a spatter-type paint.

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