The Discovery Channel launched an integrated marketing campaign July 26 promoting the season finale of reality show The Deadliest Catch. The effort contains a sweepstakes consumers can enter through the show’s e-mail newsletter.
The push includes e-mail marketing, an augmented reality game, display ads, home page takeovers and social media. The network partnered with Experian CheetahMail on the effort, and crafted all creative elements in-house.
The effort follows a comprehensive digital campaign, launched in April, to support the show’s sixth season. Deadliest Catch is a reality television series that chronicles the real-life adventures of five Alaskan king crab fishing boats.
The company’s goal is to increase traffic to its blog, Discovery Insider, and its fan site.
“We also want to bump up participation in and subscribers to the ‘Discovery Channel Insider’ newsletter,” said Andrew Scafetta, manager of communications for Discovery Channel and the Science Channel.
To enter the sweepstakes, consumers must answer a question about Phil Harris, captain and part owner of the crab fishing vessel Cornelia Marie, which appears on the show. Harris died from complications due to a massive stroke during filming last February.
Discovery is also hosting the sweepstakes, which runs through July 30, on its homepage and on the Deadliest Catch fan site. Winners receive the first five seasons on DVD.
