To promote the return of its makeover show, Face Off, Syfy has taken over
Manhattan's noted sweet shoppe, Dylan's Candy Bar, and will be offering face painting,
cosmetics advice and free ice cream this weekend.
The promotion comes on top of a national paid media campaign
and on-air promotion for the start of the third season of Face Off, which is moving to Tuesday night, an evening Syfy is
making into a new destination for original programming.
In this season of Face
Off, the finale will be held live on Halloween night, which will allow
viewers to vote on who will win the competition for the first time. The season
starts Aug 21.
"When they brought the idea of Dylan's to me, originally I
was thinking how are we going to make candy and makeup worth together? But it's
really all about brand values. They're wildly imaginative and I think that
store is a feast for the senses," says Michael Engleman, Syfy's executive VP of
marketing. "It is really a store about imagination and transformation, and that
was a perfect interaction with Face Off, which is really a feast for the senses
as a television show."
Engleman notes that the Dylan's promotion doesn't approach
the reach and frequency of the large paid media campaign Syfy will be running
in the next few days to promote Face Off.
Events create visceral connections with fans, so "even if I reach a fraction of
the people with this promotion as I do with a paid media campaign, I think it's
a worthwhile endeavor, especially for a show as special as Face Off."
The network is also working to extend the Dylan's promotion
beyond the corner of 60th and Lexington Avenue. "We do have a social media
sweepstakes where we're using our social footprint to do Dylan's giveaway," Engleman
says. Another sponsor of the promotion, Make Up For Ever, is using its social
media outlets to promote its role in the event.
The Face Off Free
Cone Day is Saturday, with a free scoop of ice cream for every customer. There
will also be face painting for children and makeup lessons for adults conducted
by Make Up For Ever. All month the store will be offering a Party Your Face Off
drink, a Face Off Freeze ice cream
sundae and displays will indicate candy favorites of Face Off host McKenzie Westmore.
Syfy wants to give Face
Off a solid push because the show is a key part of building Tuesday night
as a destination for original programming.
"We have an opportunity to shore up and strengthen Tuesday
for the long terms with the kind of built in audience that comes with a Face Off," Engleman says. Syfy began
airing original shows on Tuesday nights beginning in April with Destination Truth and Haunted Highway. Other originals joining
Face Off on Tuesdays are Collection Intervention, Hot Set and Viral Video Showdown.
