Visa Changes Commercial Plans For NFL Kickoff To Support Hurricane Harvey Victims

Visa is scrapping the ad set to appear during tonight's Chiefs-Patriots game on NBC and instead created a new spot that would drive donations" for Hurricane Harvey victims, according to Alexandra Bruell of the WALL STREET JOURNAL. The company "reached out to a handful of athletes it had worked with in the past, as well as the Red Cross and the NFL." Players including Giants QB Eli Manning, Patriots WR Julian Edelman and Panthers TE Greg Olsen "agreed to film footage using iPhones and local production equipment at their practice facilities and stadiums around the country." The players "identify their team and city, before saying, 'But right now, we’re all supporting the recovery efforts in the Gulf Coast.'" Visa "encourages viewers to donate to the Red Cross at the end." Bruell noted the NFL "agreed to give an extension on the ship date deadline for the ad and the Red Cross helped to set up a donation domain." BBDO, N.Y., "prepared a script and guidelines for athletes to capture content and edited the footage," while WME-IMG "helped to connect Visa with the athletes and provided public relations support." Olsen said that the "entire process took less than 24 hours." Visa had "spent over a month producing an ad that promoted" its mobile payment features, but that will be saved "for a later date" (WSJ.com, 9/6).