TPIR sponsors...

[Brian44]

[quote name=\'tvrandywest\' date=\'Jun 29 2003, 04:41 PM\']
ISC's advertising campaign has emphasized the importance of an inventor not just having a better idea, but having better business skills. Their research has shown that Alexander Graham Bell was NOT the first to invent the telephone, but he got the credit and the money because of his rush to the patent office with the proper business acumen and knowledge. So you get a phone as a reminder of the importance of patenting and marketing any good invention.
 [/quote]
 Bravo, Randy!  Thanks for the explanation!

Now, can you explain what the iron has to do with the Turtle Wax?  

[Argo]

[quote name=\'Shredder\' date=\'Jun 28 2003, 06:47 PM\'] You'll hear Rod annoucning it all the time.  'Invention submission corporation'.  The one with the cavedude and a hammer pounding a wheel.  

I didn't know where to place this note, so I figured here would be the best shot. Has anyone come up with an invention and given this company a try?  I just did to solve a problem that was just pointed out to me recently(There's no way to miss out on the obvious for 10 years without coming off as an idiot), and was wondering if it's a legit operation.. [/quote]
 WOW, kiss my grits... I thought i was silly to think that ICS was giving away a free phone. Well, thats what the ad says, but never thought it was what it was really saying. Glad i spoke up.

Thanks Randy and everyone else for clearing that up.

BTW, sorry i kinda went off topic with the original post here heh

[Mike Tennant]

[quote name=\'Brian44\' date=\'Jun 29 2003, 03:49 PM\']Nowadays, Price buys most of those small prizes outright.  They have no problem telling e-mailers at cbs.com that they purchased the corn popper at Wal-Mart, the massager at Target, etc.  Do they have that big of a budget surplus that they don't need to go after sponsors for their small prizes?  My guess is that they more than make up for it on the big-ticket items.[/quote]
Does this also explain why an increasing number of prizes are described without mentioning their brand names?  This always sounds weird to me, and occasionally (as Randy can attest) it makes for a somewhat awkward moment when the contestant wants that information.

On the other hand, it does increase the realism of the home versions, which, of course, have always featured generic products.  Somehow, though, I don't think the folks at TPIR have this in mind when buying prizes and writing copy.

[uncamark]

Which reminds me - I always wondered about plugs in which Johnny O or whoever is reading off the list of lovely parting gifts and might say (examples thruout:)
\"Peel and Stick, just that easy, just that quick\"
(switch to slide of Turtle Wax)
\"And an iron, and a six-month supply of Turtle Wax...\"

Did this mean that Turtle Wax also threw in an iron? And was it to get Turtle Wax's contribution to the minimum required to get a fee plug?

1.  Probably.

2.  Probably not, since they're paying the free no matter what.  It seems to me that at some point in the late 70s-early 80s, either one of the networks or a merchandising company (or \"schlockmeister,\" as they're affectionately known) may've been noticing how many of the grocery item consolation prizes were being refused or donated to charity by contestants--therefore, the idea was that if besides the case or two of Rice-a-Roni, why not throw in some tangible appliance or tote bag that the contestant might just keep?

Now whether you had to keep the case of Rice-a-Roni to keep the, say, toaster, I don't know, or if you had to refuse or donate both together or separately, I don't know.

[chris319]

It's possible that a prize had to be added in order to bring the value of the items awarded up to the value of the plug. IOW the prize supplier was getting $25 worth of plug but only supplying $15 worth of prize so a warming tray was thrown in.

[tvrandywest]

[quote name=\'Mike Tennant\' date=\'Jun 30 2003, 09:14 AM\'] Does this also explain why an increasing number of prizes are described without mentioning their brand names?  This always sounds weird to me, and occasionally (as Randy can attest) it makes for a somewhat awkward moment when the contestant wants that information.
 [/quote]
 These are the fun moments!

Contestant: \"Is that a cordless phone?\"
Bob: \"Randy, is that a cordless phone?\"
Me (finding no info in the copy): \"I believe it has a cord, Bob!\"


The whole world of prize brokering is a fascinating one. If you get the chance, buy Art Alisi a drink or two sometime (or buy me three  ;-)  and you may hear an earful. Everything from Hollywood Squares' \"fam trips\" for Peter Marshall, the staff and celebs to the Posada Vallarta in Puerto Vallarta, to what those 10 second plugs can sell for on network shows.

Not all prizes are traded for the promotional consideration mentions. Lots are purchased and in those cases the copy usually has no mention of the manufacturer. But the mentions for the small products that are paid for go a long way towards carrying the freight.

You already know that national advertising rates vary with the estimated size and demographics of the audience. And you know that 30 seconds of ad time can sell for tens of thousands of dollars or hundreds of thousands of dollars (or even close to 2 million for the Superbowl), Well, certainly you don't think that when an advertiser gives away a phone or a year's supply of Rice-A-Roni that they're getting those 10 seconds for the price of a bag of rice or a plastic phone made in the Dominican Republic by child labor? Especially with a hit network show similar to TPIR (as opposed to a cable wonder like \"The All New Pet My Dog\").

Even the providers of sizeable prizes may pay for the exposure in addition to paying the brokers and agencies they connect through. And of course a free Dirt Devil always helps the announcer emphasize the copy   ;-)

JUST KIDDING!!!!


Randy
tvrandywest.com