Cypress-based automaker Mitsubishi Motors North America Inc. is getting lyrical for its 2018 Eclipse Cross.
A social media campaign starring free-style rapper Harry Mack was expanded into a larger marketing initiative last month that includes a national broadcast spot.
Mack surprises drivers as they test-drive the Eclipse Cross by rapping about the model’s features, like “futuristic super all-wheel control … three modes so you can tackle street, gravel or snow.”
Chief Marketing Officer Francine Harsini said reactions from drivers make the spot a fun way to highlight its new car.
“The Eclipse Cross has a reputation of being fun to drive so we took a fresh and contemporary take on this campaign to cut through the clutter and inspire a new generation of consumers to include Mitsubishi on their consideration lists,” she said in a statement.
The campaign lines up with the automaker’s summer sales event, which focuses on its family of CUVs, including the Eclipse Cross, Outlander, Outlander Sport and Outlander PHEV.
In addition to TV spots, the campaign includes radio, online and video ads and dealer point-of-sale materials.
The company has kept the sales engine revving with double-digit growth in May to 31.7%, selling 12,416 units with year-to-date sales at 56,178 units, up 19.7%.
Swan Dive
Performance swimwear brand TYR Sport Inc. is shelling out $7 million to sponsor U.S. swimmer Katie Ledecky through the 2024 Olympic Games.
The Seal Beach-based company added the five-time Olympic gold medalist and Stanford University swimmer to its roster of sponsored athletes last month in one of the most lucrative deals in the history of swimming, according to the company.
It’s the first sponsorship deal for 21-year-old Ledecky, who decided to stop collegiate swimming to turn pro in March and focus on the 2020 Summer Games in Tokyo.
Chief Executive Matthew DiLorenzo said the company takes pride in its partnerships.
“In having had the opportunity to watch Katie grow as an athlete, we could not be more impressed by her determination and humility both in and out of the water,” he said in a statement. “We are confident that in working together we will create products that not only take performance to the next level, but ultimately change the course of history.”
Ledecky has broken 14 world records and won her first gold at the 2012 Olympic Games in London when she was 15, taking the women’s 800-metre freestyle. She’s also been named world swimmer of the year four times.
TYR, named after the Norse god of warriors, was started in 1985 in Huntington Beach by swimwear designer Joseph DiLorenzo and Olympic swimmer Steve Furniss. The company moved to its current 66,500-square-foot office in 2014 to accommodate growth. It also has two offices in New York.
At Your Service
Casanova//McCann named Jonathan Lackey director of digital services—a newly created position for the Costa Mesa-based advertising and communications firm.
Lackey will also oversee the agency’s newly launched in-house content production studio and social media listening lab ST2O.
He previously spent a decade managing Zuno Design Studios in Signal Hill, a firm he founded.
Chief Executive and President Ingrid Otero-Smart said the new role will help propel the company’s business.
“Our digital revenue has grown exponentially in the last few years, and we have acquired significant new business this year so adding this position is key to our continued growth and to keep our clients on the cutting edge,” Otero-Smart said in a statement.
The agency handles Latino advertising and communications for clients such as Nestlé, Cigna, the U.S. Army, Chevrolet and the California Lottery.
Bits & Pieces
Public relations and marketing firm Westbound Communications in Orange was awarded the Silver Anvil in Public Service/Nonprofit this month by the Public Relations Society of America. The award is considered the highest honor for public relations professionals and recognizes “outstanding strategic public relations practices meeting the highest standards of planning and implementation.” Westbound won the award for its Each Mind Matters mental health campaign for Mission Hospital in Mission Viejo led by Partner Rick Mittenberger, who died in March. … Powerhouse Communications has retained Palo Alto pizza chain Mountain Mike’s Pizza. The public relations agency will lead communication efforts for its more than 190 locations. Mountain Mike’s was acquired last year by Newport Beach investment firms Britt Private Capital LLC and Jupiter Holdings LLC, firms that recently purchased Powerhouse client Juice It Up in April, along with Dover Shores Capital LLC.
