W Network has announced its sponsor partners for the first season of Say Yes to the Dress Canada, a spinoff of the TLC program developed in association with Temple Street Productions.
Partners include jewellery company Michael Hill as lead sponsor, along with the Kao Canada brands Jergens and John Frieda as the official skin and hair care sponsors, respectively.
As lead sponsor, Michael Hill will receive several product integrations and placements, including on-set displays and wedding parties using its jewellery to complete their look during “finishing touches” scenes.
Developed in association with Michael Hill’s media agency, Media Experts, the partnership also includes lower third ad units and logo placement in the closing credits of all 20 episodes.
W Network also partnered with Toronto’s Gaggi Media to bring aboard both Jergens and Frieda. Each partnership includes two 15-second vignettes developed by Corus Entertainment’s client marketing team; two 5-second billboards; 10 30-second promo spots; and a 5-second “Brought to you by…” spot.
W Network has put extensive marketing support behind Say Yes to the Dress Canada, including TV and radio, cinema advertising, out-of-home, transit signage and social media activity with Google and Facebook. The company will also hold a casting call for future seasons at the National Bridal Show in Toronto later this month.
The show’s premiere coincides with the debut of a revamped on-air and online look for the Corus Entertainment specialty channel, part of an internal commitment to refreshing the brand every two years or so.
While the network has retained certain core elements such as the orange “W,” it has added new visual elements including a classical-style font for dates and times. Dolores Keating-Mallen, vice-president, creative director, on-air promotions, described the new look as “casual chic.”
“It’s a beautiful look and really in-line with where the brand was evolving,” she said. “We had a beautiful brand to start with and we’ve upped the ante to make it so much nicer. It’s a strong visual identity.”
The channel, which counts women 40-44 as its core target, has also created a series of promos featuring talent from shows including Love it Or List it, Say Yes to the Dress Canada and Game of Homes. “Talent is important to every network, but it’s very important to us because our shows are so strong and our talent so identifiable,” said Keating-Mallen.
The network also plans to introduce teal to its colour scheme in the spring.
The brand update was developed by Troika, a Los Angeles-based brand consultancy and creative agency specializing in entertainment and sports media that has worked with brands including A&E, The CW and Entertainment Tonight.
While W Network owner Corus Entertainment has traditionally handled brand updates internally, Keating-Mallen said it was eager to “up the ante” for this particular refresh. Troika was one of three agencies invited to pitch on the assignment.
“We had the best collaboration we’ve ever had with an exterior agency,” she said. “They’re known for their creative strategy and the depth of their thinking in addition to their design excellence, and that for us was key.”
