Starcom makes Sparletta Quest For Fame a reality

Essentially the programme, Sponsored by Sparletta, is a presenter-search for SABC 1's YO TV. Fun filled auditioning events have been organised in three regions - Cape Town, Durban and Pretoria – and each event saw 1 000 children between the ages of 9 and 15 years old being auditioned. The Friday afternoon broadcasts which commenced on 4 July, during YO TV programming, will flight highlights from the audition events building up to the announcement of regional finalists. Viewers are invited to phone in and vote for the winner.

Adding excitement to the 'Quest For Fame' campaign, the Sparletta truck will pay a visit to each finalist's school delivering Sparletta product hampers. "A day in the life' of each finalist will be flighted in separate episodes culminating in the announcement of the winner in December 2003.

This campaign is an ideal demonstration of Starcom's global mission and vision – Fueling Brand Power. "Internationally, Starcom operations are committed to this concept which simply means unearthing compelling consumer insights to identify passion groups and media behaviour, creatively linking these insights to create ownable media properties and delivering measurable success against clients business goals. It's all about innovating the way in which our clients brands make contact with the consumer and making sure that the message is well received and delivered in the right environment," says Gordon Patterson, Managing Director, Starcom.

"Sparletta's 'Quest for Fame' is a very different approach to marketing a soft drink and needed a brave client to make it a reality. We thank Lindsay Turner, Sparletta's Senior Brand Manager for her insight and determination to make it happen, despite some of the hic ups we faced along the way," says Belinda Kayton, Media Strategist, Starcom. "It was a tough negotiation but well worth the effort as our client now has ownership of this property which will definitely penetrate and positively impact on the target market."