Comcast Cable of Philadelphia "recently enlisted" 76ers
President Pat Croce for a multimillion-dollar, "subscriber
acquisition and upgrade campaign" called "Fast Break,"
according to Monica Hogan of MULTICHANNEL NEWS, who reports
that the creative was handled by Philadelphia-based agency
D4 Creative Group. The TV spots ran in the Philadelphia
area and were backed by direct mail, radio and newspaper
ads. Throughout the two-week campaign, Comcast offered new
subscribers "free installation within a 24-hour window," as
well as "speedy installations and three months of half-price
service" to current subscribers upgrading to HBO or digital
cable. The first 1,000 customers "who called for the
upgrade offer" also received a free copy of Croce's new
book, "I Feel Great and You Will Too." Comcast "plans to
use" the campaign again, "possibly in February," as Comcast
execs said the promo effort was 15-20% "more successful than
others the company has run." Comcast Corp. owns both the
76ers and the MSO (MULTICHANNEL NEWS, 12/18 issue).
