By Rick Griffin
San Diego creative agency i.d.e.a. delivered “crisis creative” to its client, Hawkers, a Spanish sunglasses company, after someone at Hawkers posted a controversial tweet relating to President-Elect Donald Trump’s campaign promise to build a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border.
The tweet encouraged Mexicans to buy Hawkers sunglasses: “Mexicans, put on these glasses so they can’t see your crying eyes tomorrow when building the wall.”
Ryan Berman, co-founder and chief creative officer, i.d.e.a., said his firm produced in 48 hours a 60-second video called “We Love All.” He said the video attracted more than two million hits in two days on Hawkers social media channels in Mexico.
Meanwhile, Mexican race car driver Sergio Perez announced he was no longer endorsing Hawkers because of the tweet. In a statement, Perez said, “When I read the comment, I didn’t find it funny at all. I have decided to split with the brand because I am not in favor at all of the comment.”
In response, Berman said i.d.e.a. produced and coordinated insertions of full-page ads in seven Mexican daily newspapers. The ads featured Hawkers’ CEO apologizing, plus the creation of and donation of $25,000 to the Dear Sergio Perez Foundation to support children in poverty. The ads also said limited edition of sunglasses bearing Perez’s name would be sold at prices that buyers themselves could set. The company said its inventory of several thousand sunglasses was sold in three hours.
“Ultimately, the client had a big problem that needed to be addressed,” Berman said. “We broke every process in our agency to deliver this crisis creative and together we found a way. I’m very proud of our team.”
Jagger and Kristi’s Christmas Wish-A-Thon Raises $20k
XHRM-FM Magic 92.5, operated by Local Media San Diego, reports that more than $20,400 was raised during a 14-telethon between 5 a.m. and 7 p.m. on Dec. 1. The funds will grant holiday wishes through Dec. 23, the station said. Wishes are granted at 7:15 a.m. weekday mornings. Listeners are invited to submit names of family members and friends in need of a Christmas wish at www.magic925.com.
It is the sixth year for the “Jagger and Kristi’s Christmas Wish-a-thon” promotion, led by morning personalities Mark and Kristi Jagger, one of a few married morning radio teams in the country.
“There are more families than ever are struggling to pay rent, feed their families and take care of medical expenses,” said Kristi. “If an unexpected circumstance happens, sometimes there is no recovering. We want to help those families in need have a Merry Christmas.”
“The important thing to remember about Christmas Wish is all donations stay right here in our community, helping local families who need it most,” said Mark.
The couple has worked together as on-air personalities since 1996. They married in 1997 and have been hosts of “Jagger and Kristi in the Morning” on Magic 92.5 since 2002.
Local Media San Diego, a San Diego-based broadcasting company backed by private equity firm Thoma Bravo, operates XHTZ-FM Z-90, XTRA-FM 91X and XHRM-FM Magic 92.5.
SDX Chairman’s Startup is PitchFest Winner
A startup company founded by Doug Hecht, 2016-2017 chairman of SDX, was the top winner in the technology category at the San Diego Venture Group’s recent PitchFest competition.
Hecht is CEO of Lymber, a startup with a free mobile application that offers users the ability to book on-demand fitness classes at up to a 75 percent discount from normal rates without signing up for health club membership fees.
Lymber received a $5,000 check, plus workspace and services from the Venture Group, along with access to the Venture Group’s new regional office in Silicon Valley. Hecht said he’ll use the money for marketing efforts in San Diego.
Lymber offers more than 168,000 classes, including yoga, Pilates, Barre, cycling, crossfit, jazzercise and tennis, and affiliations with more than 8,600 studios in 22 major U.S. markets.
Southwest Strategies Expands Bi-National Efforts
Public affairs firm Southwest Strategies says it is expanding its bi-national engagement for clients in the Cali-Baja region with the hiring of Pedro Anaya Jr. as senior manager of binational affairs and community relations. Anaya has worked in San Diego’s Latino community for over two decades and has experience assisting clients with Latino and multicultural outreach initiatives.
“We are confident that Pedro’s experience in multicultural and bi-national relations, coupled with a talented team of more than 40 experienced public affairs professionals, will provide our clients with new and exciting opportunities on both sides of the U.S.-Mexico border,” said Chris Wahl, president, Southwest Strategies.
Southwest Strategies was founded by Wahl and Alan Ziegaus in 2000. Offices are located in San Diego, Fresno and Sacramento.
Rick Griffin is a San Diego-based public relations and marketing consultant. His MarketInk column appears weekly on Mondays in Times of San Diego.