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Robin D’Elia’s job at MediaVest’s Liquid Thread is
to wrap advertising in the most appealing package
possible and then send it out over the Internet, social
media platforms, television—wherever viewers are
consuming content.
“We create content as an engagement platform so that
people will stay with your message and your brand and be more compelled and inclined to want more or even
make a purchase,” says D’Elia, the agency’s senior VP and
group client director.
For example, D’Elia and her team worked with Pur
water filtration systems to sponsor a long-form documentary
in which several celebrities—including Jessica
Biel and Emile Hirsch—climbed Mt. Kilimanjaro to
raise awareness about the importance of clean water to
prevent water-borne illnesses. The documentary, Summit
on the Summit, aired on MTV in March 2010 and was
accompanied by an interactive Website that tracked the
trek while featuring its sponsors. The integrations were
present but were neither obvious nor intrusive.
“We don’t look to replace commercial messaging,” says
D’Elia. “We look to complement it by creating experiences
where consumers are going to be engaged, entertained,
informed and want to share it with their friends.”
D’Elia and Liquid Thread also have worked on integrated
brand campaigns with Wal-Mart (paired up with
Food Network), Kraft and P&G.
“I think when branded content is done really well,
consumers are much more engaged so they will remain
with the experience,” says D’Elia. “What we look to do
is provide value to the consumer or to audiences. To
provide that value, we work to give consumers more
entertainment, more information and a utility that
will assist them in their life somehow. We give them
the ability to share this content and create a dialogue
around it, whether it’s a dialogue with the brand or
dialogue with other consumers.”
Liquid Thread was formed last year from the merger
between Starcom’s SMG Entertainment, MediaVest’s connectivetissue,
and its digital agency, Pixel. Brian Terkelsen,
to whom D’Elia reports, leads the unit.
D’Elia came to the company in October 2008 from
New Line Cinema, where she was senior VP, national
television promotions and marketing. At New Line,
which is now part of Warner Bros., D’Elia worked with
broadcast, basic and pay cable, and video-on-demand
networks to produce programming in support of New
Line’s theatrical releases—such as the Lord of the Rings
trilogy, Sex and the City and Wedding Crashers—as well
as New Line’s licensing, home entertainment, music
and international products.
