Daily BrewIvanka Trump brings Magnum ice cream bars marketing campaign to Canada
The daughter of The Donald was in Toronto this week to promote a less conventional 'luxury' item.
As the spokeswoman for Magnum ice cream bars, Trump has been making the rounds to talk up the product. It doesn't seem to be very difficult for Trump to get behind the product, either, as she is eight months pregnant with her first child and describes ice cream as the most potent of her cravings.
The Magnum ice cream bar - ice cream inside, chocolate coating outside, pretty standard stuff - is being launched in Canada this month. Unilever Canada, parent brand of Magnum in Canada, states the brand is about luxury, sophistication and glamour and has rolled out an aggressive marketing campaign to convey the message to consumers. The ice cream bar was launched in Europe in 1987 and is available in 40 countries.
In addition to Trump as the face of the brand, Magnum is also promoting its 'Magnum Heir' contest via Facebook, which offers the winner a $250,000 prize package. Movie-watchers may have also noticed an ad called 'Royal Treatment' in theatres promoting the brand. The ad will begin running on television next week.
Trump was selected as spokeswoman for the brand because according to focus groups, she was associated with luxury and was an heir to future wealth.
Some marketing experts, however, see the choice to select a well-known celebrity to push a brand in a new market as a very risky venture.
Peter Daboll, CEO of Ace Matrix (a company that measures the effectiveness of advertising campaigns), says advertising and marketing campaigns featuring celebrities hardly ever work.
"You're never going to get payback for the extra $10 million you're spending," said Daboll in the Toronto Star. "If you go with Joe unemployed actor and make the campaign more creative, that's a better option."
Despite the possible pitfalls of having a celebrity as the face of Magnum in Canada, the company seems to be getting its money's worth with Trump involved in numerous aspects of the marketing campaign.
She's promoting the brand through social media, made stops at major morning shows and hosted a gala launch event at a Toronto mansion.
The luxury launch event featured a red carpet, models in lingerie and chocolate body paint and ice cream bars on gold trays for sampling. Trump left the party early to return to New York and rest up for her little one's imminent arrival.
(Photo Courtesy of Strategic Objectives)
