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In tune with teens

General Growth’s ‘Rock the Mall’ concerts play to youth market

By Debra Hazel

In its most recent back-to-school promotion, General Growth Properties staged concerts by teen girl bands Innosense and Dream at 10 centers around the United States.

General Growth teamed with Pepsi and BMG Entertainment to present “Rock The Mall.”

Forget about shopping. These days malls are becoming concert venues, as evidenced by General Growth Properties (GGP) and its “Rock the Mall” program. At a time when some malls have implemented curfews for teens, GGP has elected to market to them: In its most recent back-to-school promotion, the Chicago-based developer staged concerts by teen girl bands Innosense and Dream, and held sweepstakes at 10 centers around the United States.

“This is a GGP branded promotion that encompasses all marketing disciplines,” said Cathy Domanico, national vice president of promotion.

The disciplines involved staging the events and working with co-sponsors BMG Entertainment, parent of RCA Records and Arista Records, the artists’ labels, and Pepsi. The goal was to keep teens, and their money, in the mall longer.

“Teens have a lot of buying power,” Domanico said. In fact, according to GGP research, teens are one of the company’s biggest customers, spending an average of $45 per trip and visiting 54 times per year.

The first concert, with full staging, sound and lighting, was held Sept. 20 in California. Innosense is a five-girl group whose alumnae include Britney Spears. The debut album for Dream, “It’s All a Dream,” will come to stores next month.

“We were surprised by the vast turnout and the excitement of the crowd. We got crowds between 500 and 2,000 teens,” Domanico said shortly after the first concert.

The program was the result of an old relationship and major talks, said Scott Richman, vice president of partnership marketing for New York City-based BMG. In a previous post, Jeannine LaRouche, GGP national director of consumer marketing, had worked on promotions with Richman; when she called him after joining GGP, the two companies began to work together.

“We wanted the equity from those brands to rub off on our artists brands,” Richman said.

The two bands were selected because of their appeal to teens, and their importance to BMG.

“These are priority artists for us,” in terms of promotion, Richman explained. Both bands appeared at each concert.

But the performances were not the only attraction. Sponsors Pepsi, Kellogg’s Rice Krispie Treats, Sam Goody and M2 Card hosted booths where samples and prizes were given away. Pepsi also ran events, including a one-on-one basketball game.

“We learned that the more things that are happening at an event, the longer they stay. Pepsi had prizes, a Pepsi Wheel, and they also did the Pepsi challenge,” Domanico said.

Do Something, a charity that encourages teen-agers to get involved with public service, also had a display. In another tie-in with Do Something, Innosense and Dream appeared at 20 local high schools and middle schools, encouraging students to volunteer in their community. After the assemblies, the bands invited the teens to visit their malls to see them perform live.

The promotion extended beyond the 10 centers that hosted performances. A total of 77 GGP malls held a “teen retailer’’ sweepstakes offering a shopping spree with the bands. In addition, teens received a scratch-and-win game card featuring prizes from RCA, Arista, Sam Goody and Pepsi.

“Rock the Mall” is actually the third in a series of concert promotions at GGP centers.

“Jeannine put together a program last [spring] with Kodak called ‘Through Your Eyes’ with a band called Youngstown. It was a huge success, drawing large teen crowds. We held it at 20 centers nationwide,” Domanico said. Kodak distributed one-time-use cameras while the band performed six to eight songs.

In 1999, the company put together a program in which teen band Billie toured several GGP properties. That tour boosted teen-age spending to $73 per trip. And not surprisingly, early results showed that “Rock The Mall” resulted in increased sales at related retailers.

“Sam Goody sold out of all product associated with the tour,” Domanico reported.

But the benefits for BMG exceeded the mere selling of merchandise in the centers.

“We also got radio excited [about the bands]. We’re creating value for our partners at the end of the day,” Richman said. “We’re thrilled. We hear there was a great turnout at each event, and the school component allows us to achieve a greater connection with our target market and our sponsors,” he said.

On GGP’s end, Domanico said, the firm learned what she called “the power of the teen.’’

“Every time we had the event, sales went up,” she said. “And we do know they keep coming back. We realize that at an early age, teens become brand loyal.”