Lincoln Mercury Brings Drivers to Irvine; Herrmann Opens Office
Doner in Newport Beach has placed client PingPong Technology on hold as the Fountain Valley software maker reshuffles its business plan.
PingPong, funded partly by Kingston Technology Co. co-founder and Chief Executive John Tu, reportedly laid off 31 of its 47 employees after abandoning plans to develop a search engine for general Internet users.
Sixteen employees remain, mostly software developers, who will help PingPong return to its original business of selling software to companies that want an in-house search engine for database and documents.
In the meantime, PingPong has not spent any of the $30 million it initially earmarked for a national advertising campaign to be handled by Doner, said Billy Fried, who heads up the agency’s non-automotive accounts.
“They’re trying to figure out what their business model is going to be so we’re in a holding pattern,” Fried said, explaining that PingPong wasn’t sure if it wanted to focus on consumer or trade media.
Last year, the Internet company indicated that it planned to launch a national advertising campaign, including print, interactive and online, by mid-2000, which never came to fruition.
This isn’t the only trouble PingPong has seen on the advertising front. In 1999, the company initially signed on FCB Worldwide in Costa Mesa as its first agency of record. But 60 days after sealing the deal, the two parted ways after they failed to agree on how to position the product.
Wheels to the Road
About 44 Lincoln LS owners headed to Wild Rivers Water Park in Irvine earlier this month to test their cars on three professionally designed driving courses.
The event,the first of its kind for Lincoln Mercury,was organized by Marketing Manager Jim Rogers, who used the Internet, specifically auto information service Edmund.com’s Town Hall chat room, to invite drivers from as far away as Canada and New York to test their cars and chat with Lincoln engineers. Rogers spent more than two years developing relationships with customers online to build brand loyalty.
“This event was a total success for Lincoln because it allowed us the opportunity to talk with our customers informally and get their feedback about our products,” Rogers said. “Not only did it show our customers we appreciate their business, but this type of event helps to build meaningful relationships, which can really go a long way.”
The company spent an undisclosed amount to organize the event, and has plans to set up others in various locations throughout the country. Burson-Marsteller in Irvine handled the public relations.
Herrmann Opens OC Office
Annapolis, Md.-based Herrmann Advertising Design/Communications has opened its first satellite office in Newport Beach.
The 20-plus-year-old full-service ad shop, with more than half of its business going to law firms, established a presence in OC to better serve its clients, many of which have offices in the area, said Jennifer Jones, senior vice president and the only person working at the local office.
For the past three years, OC has been seen as growing market,often dubbed a “hot bed” for technology companies,and many of Herrmann Advertising’s clients say “there’s a real value” to having an office in the area, Jones added.
Herrmann Advertising, which does not disclose its annual capitalized billings, will serve clients like Oppenheimer, Wolff & Donnelly, Newport Beach, from its OC shop.
Though now Jones is concentrating on business development, in the future she said the agency plans to add staff as business grows. Herrmann Advertising services small and large law firms nationally and globally, and an array of other business including National Geographic.
“We plan to keep our home base on the East coast,” she said.
Looking South
Visually Speaking in Buena Park, a full-service marketing agency, rang in the New Year with changes. The OC shop is now called PR/DNA Public Relations and recently opened its first satellite location in San Diego. Jack Austin Lane, the company’s new vice president of business development, heads the 3,000-square-foot office. He says there has been a growing trend of large businesses moving into San Diego’s downtown area and the agency wanted to be closer to potential clients. Currently, PR/DNA is pitching two undisclosed medical technology accounts.
Bits and pieces
Star 97.8 FM’s Lara Scott began hosting a weekly Friday night party at Tijuana’s Long Bar and Grill in Irvine last week. This is the first time Star has designated a weekly bar night in an OC restaurant. Future events start at 4 p.m.
