In the Wild: DirecTV Rides Upfront Week Wave

With upfronts kicking into high gear this week, DirecTV is debuting a multi-channel out-of-home and digital campaign that depicts the week as a metaphor for what the platform does all year long: showcase the best of TV.

Things got rolling Sunday with flights into NYC running 30-second spots on live TV on the back of airplane seats through DirecTV Remote, its in-flight, in-room and in-business network. The commercial welcomes viewers to the upfronts and highlights how DirecTV helps brands connect with viewers outside the home.

Reporters covering the week-long flurry of presentations were treated to a mailer with an upfront survival kit that included a Hydroflask water bottle, Advil, a Tide stain-remover pen, a Moleskine notebook, a portable fan and hand sanitizer, all packed in a DirecTV Advertising mini tote.

Step into Times Square and there are DirecTV digital billboards. Dynamic digital signs are also seen near key venues and at transit hubs, while LED trucks will be driving around the city with messaging. Street teams and brand ambassadors are placed near events with swag and free rides around the city. Each touchpoint reinforces a different element of DirecTV’s advertising capabilities, from premium video and live sports to streaming and out-of-home reach. The campaign will conclude at the end of upfront week with TV spots on return flights from New York as attendees head home.

While the campaign focuses on this particular week, DirecTV said the momentum it creates will live on, positioning the initiative as the start of a broader shift in how advertisers engage with the platform.

 “When we looked at upfronts week, it started to feel like a perfect, if slightly unintentional, demonstration of what DirecTV does every day: bringing the entire TV world together in one place,” said Mark Peters, Creative Director for TBWA\Chiat\Day LA Group, which worked with DirecTV and media agency Starcom US on the campaign.