Jeff and Rich Sloan are talking infomercials and new products again and they spoke to Collette about the industry and had callers pitch their ideas. To listen to the podcast and check out Collette’s interview, head over to Startup Nation by clicking here.
Concepts TV On Fire In New Jersey’s Infomercial Hotbed
With 3 Decades of Production Success, the Boonton-Based Company Remains at the Core of the DRTV Explosion
For Immediate Release:
BOONTON, N.J. (4/2/12) – Ever wonder where all those addictive infomercials originate? Like California’s Silicon Valley, the Northeast has given rise to a similar infomercial mecca stretching from New England to the Philadelphia suburbs. One infomercial agency, Concepts TV Productions in Boonton, New Jersey remains at its center.
Founded by Montville, N.J., resident and Brooklyn native Collette Liantonio in 1983, this creative boutique has been involved in hundreds of infomercial hits. Four of its recent productions (Furniture Fix, Wonder Hanger, Twin Draft Guard and Total Pillow for Vermont-based marketer Hampton Direct) are contributing to this amazing success story. Concepts’ large portfolio of direct marketing clients also includes New Jersey based marketers TELEBrands, IdeaVillage, Ontel and Tristar Products.
“We are proud of all of the work we’ve done to create infomercial hits during the past three decades, but it’s our work with those in the Tri-State region, that has been the most satisfying,” says Liantonio. The president and founder of Concepts TV Productions has won more than 70 production awards for her direct response television work. “In fact, three of our Garden State’s earliest DRTV hit products, Ambervision (TELEBrands), Topsy Tail and Bedazzler (TV Winners), were crucial to elevating New Jersey into a leadership role in the world of commercial television.”
To read the entire article, please click here.
Housewares products hit the right note in tough times
by Collette Liantonio, from the March issue of Response Magazine
Since the onset of the Great Recession in 2008, DR agencies have been faced with one tough question that overrides all others for their clients: How can a consumer justify a purchase when he or she is barely holding on to a job or a home?
It’s not easy. When DRTV commercial producers create a spot or long-form infomercial, defining the true value of a product is crucial to the sale. Getting the consumer to grasp that he or she is, in fact, getting a great deal for a great product is tougher than ever. One needs to look no further than the explosion of “buy one, get one free” offers being used to prompt consumer action.
Consumers can’t afford to replace major household products when money is tight. The need for home improvement doesn’t go away. It just means consumers have to look in another direction.
Perhaps that’s why the housewares space continues to be very good to DR marketers. Rather than replacing worn out items, or spending thousands on home improvement projects that were all the rage in the home equity heyday of 10 years ago, consumers are now looking for low-cost replacements until the economy turns around.
Three products from Hampton Direct have had great success — Twin Draft Guard, Wonder Hanger and Furniture Fix. In each case, the product was built for DRTV demonstration. Each was a simple, inexpensive solution rather than an expensive replacement.
Consumers on a budget simply felt more comfortable utilizing a quality product like Twin Draft Guard, rather than contracting out for a complete weather-stripping job on their homes. By using Wonder Hangers, they also were able to find a simple and easy way to expand their closet space, without knocking out walls to rebuild their closets. And rather than shelling out $1,000 for a new living room set, they were able to easily repair sagging chairs and couches with Furniture Fix.
While each of these products hit a sweet spot during the Great Recession, they still required an eye for the production capabilities particular to direct response marketing. Any successful DRTV campaign is built around amazing product demonstrations that cut through the clutter of a crowded television landscape and turn ever-skeptical consumers into customers.
In the Furniture Fix spot, sumo wrestlers weighing a combined 1,000 pounds sit together on a couch using Furniture Fix to emphasize the product’s strength. In the Wonder Hanger spot, the product supports a 20-pound weight. The difference that proper creative development can make to allow your campaign to cut through the clutter is immeasurable. At the same time, it’s crucial that your producer knows the leaders in the DR space to connect you to other capable vendors. If your producer doesn’t have a complete DRTV network, beware.
Still, the ultimate key is that the right DRTV production agency can help you find the right message to reach the right consumer. And with the right producer — one that understands your product, whether it falls into the housewares vertical or beauty or fitness — your product stands a much better chance of finding its way into consumers’ homes, even in a difficult economy.
Pajama Jeans, a Moxie award winner and one of Concepts’ biggest hits, are featured in the March issue of Response Magazine. Response spoke to Concepts’ president Collette Liantonio and Sonia Makurdsik, exclusive marketing consultant for Hampton Direct about this worldwide phenomenon.
By: Nicole Urso
Kathy Griffin owns wearing her PajamaJeans.
“I am in PajamaJeans, and I’m not a paid spokesperson, I’m just saying they’re pajamas and jeans in one. They have no zipper, you just lift them up and down,” she said as she demonstrated the elastic waistband during a segment of Griffin’s “Emmy’s Aftermath.”
Wendy Williams is also a fan. She bedazzled her famous catchphrase “How U Doin’?” onto the backside of a pair and gave them to guest Holly Madison. Then she surprised her studio audience and sent them home with a pair, too.
The famous As Seen On TV jeans have appeared on the “Today Show,” “Today with Kathie Lee & Hoda,” “Good Morning America,” “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno,” “Nightline,” MTV, “The Jimmy Kimmel Show” and “Conan O’Brien.”
“Once the PR took off, it took on its own life, and the pop culture appeal of the product was the big home run,” says Steve Heroux, CEO of Burlington, Vt.-based Hampton Direct.
The wildfire popularity of PajamaJeans draws obvious comparisons to the Snuggie, a loungewear novelty and celebration of comfort that debuted in 2008. The famous blanket with sleeves went on to major retail success, which is exactly what Heroux set out to achieve when he first took over the exclusive licensing and distribution of PajamaJeans in 2010.
The Perfect Pair
PajamaJeans are designed to have the look of jeans and the feel of pajamas. They are made of a stretchy blend of cotton and spandex with an interior lining of DormiSoft, a proprietary fabric that feels like the inside of sweatpants. They were developed and originally sold by PajamaGram, sister brand of The Vermont Teddy Bear Co., and just a 20-minute drive south from Hampton Direct.
PajamaGram sells “gifts of relaxation” including pajama gift sets and the Hoodie-Footie, a head-to-toe, zip-front onesie for adults and kids. It launched PajamaJeans in 2009 and sold them through its catalog and website for $59.95, but it was the first PajamaJeans TV commercial that caught Heroux’s attention.
“I think their business model was a little bit different than what I felt PajamaJeans needed, so I had a couple meetings with their CEO John Gilbert, and we went back and forth and signed an exclusive agreement to do all of their distribution in the summer of 2010. That is when we took over the project and the brand,” says Heroux, a member of the Response Advisory Board.
Heroux called in his right-hand direct marketing sage, Sonia Makurdsik, to help him develop the campaign. Makurdsik has been the exclusive marketing consultant for Hampton Direct since 2005 and helped bring products to retail including the Total Pillow and Wonder Hanger. The two met at QVC. Makurdsik was producing direct response spots while Heroux would pitch products from various vendors. Makurdsik joined Hampton Direct last month officially as the new executive vice president of marketing.
Her work on PajamaJeans started with the requisite market research where she identified a trend in comfort wear but a need for stylish options.
“You see college kids going to school in pajamas,” says Makurdsik. “You see the very expensive sweatsuits being worn in the airports. You see how Crocs became its own brand in itself, and doctors and nurses were wearing them. We saw Uggs, that style, that comfort wear, and the message was there.”
She worked with the creative team to re-shoot a new PajamaJeans commercial in a direct response format. With the help of Concepts TV Productions, they made 60- and 120-second short-form commercials explaining the features — the look of denim with pocket embroidery, brass details and flared bootcut — and the benefit of comfort with the elastic waistband and DormiSoft fabric technology.
Collette Liantonio, president of Concepts TV Productions, says, “Our challenge was to cast a variety of models with various body types who would look comfy, yet trendy. Fortunately, the jeans flatter almost every figure.”
The commercial also demonstrates various uses of PajamaJeans for today’s modern multitasking women, from traveling and working out to toting around the kids. They come in 8 sizes, ranging from extra small (size 4) to 3 XL (sizes 26-28), all with a 31-inch inseam. Styles include a blue bootcut and the new black skinny, which is sold exclusively online.
Makurdsik, a modern mom who travels frequently, owns two pairs of the blue bootcut. “Personally, because I travel so much, I love them because I can run around the airport and don’t need to deal with sitting so long and getting those marks. It feels like I have sweats, but yet I can go out to a client meeting after I arrive at the airport.”
To read the entire article, please click here.
Collette Liantonio, President of Concepts TV Productions is featured in the March issue of Response Magazine, speaking about how technology has helped producers work smarter and more efficiently in a challenging economic environment.
By: Bridget McCrea
The recent recession changed the way a lot of companies do business. And while the DRTV industry as a whole was somewhat insulated from its effects, both long-form and short-form producers have learned to work smarter, better and faster in the challenging environment.
The fact that modern-day technology and sites like YouTube have turned all of us into videographers has put even more pressure on the professionals. “All of my children got HD cameras for Christmas this year and their production quality is incredible,” says Collette Liantonio, president at Boonton, N.J.-based Concepts TV Productions. “But there’s more to developing DRTV campaigns than just a camera; people don’t always appreciate the fact that we’re DR gurus and not just producers.”
That lack of appreciation has pushed key players in the industry to find less expensive production techniques — all the while maintaining (or enhancing) the overall look, feel and effectiveness of the campaigns themselves. Technology helps producers achieve this balancing act, what with the myriad production techniques (like green screens) and editing suites (which allow remote parties to work on the computer from their own location) that are available on the market today.
“We don’t have to send rough cuts out of the state or country for client review and approval anymore,” says Liantonio. “We all get into the virtual editing suite and get the job done much more efficiently.”
Liantonio also uses virtual backgrounds when shooting testimonials to minimize crew and costs that add up when working on location. “As long as it doesn’t compromise the integrity of the testimonial’s message,” she says, “it’s a great way to save both time and money.”
To stay on top of the game, the most experienced producers are making sure to stay in tune to the key trends, opportunities and challenges currently impacting short- and long-form production.
Rolling up Their Sleeves
Short-form producers rolled up their sleeves in 2011 and found innovative ways to meet higher production standards without breaking budgets. “Even emerging, entrepreneurial brands are demanding higher production values, knowing that those values are vital to building a business that can compete with established brands,” says Tim Hawthorne, chairman and executive creative director at Hawthorne Direct in Fairfield, Iowa, and member of the Response Advisory Board.
Concurrently, “faster and cheaper seem to be a growing trend,” says Hawthorne, who increasingly turns to technology to help achieve the delicate balance between high production values and smaller budgets. “Client requests for faster, cheaper shows is not a positive trend for the industry,” adds Hawthorne, “but it’s certainly representative of the current economic climate.”
To augment its clients’ short-form campaigns in a cost-effective manner, Hawthorne Direct incorporates online video into all websites; actively uses social networking for research and “listening” to consumer feedback; uses SMS text as a response mechanism; and is experimenting with the use of QR codes.
Liantonio says the Web has become a hotbed for short-form testing. Some test shows are created with an in-house camera, no set price points, and few, if any, production values. Those efforts have pushed short-form producers into the role of Web designers.
“That’s a big change that’s taken place in our industry,” says Liantonio. “If you can’t do Web design, you really can’t be in short-form production.”
Taking Center Stage
Concepts TV’s biggest short-form successes over the past year included Miracle Socks, which are compression socks designed for the senior market, and the Sift & Toss cat litter system. The Miracle Socks campaign honed in on phone sales, based on the target demographic, while Sift & Toss capitalized on the Web, social media and mobile, the latter of which increased product sales by 12 percent.
Web and social media have also taken center stage at THOR Associates in New York, where CEO and Founder Fern Lee says all marketing efforts revolve around multichannel platforms.
“When developing creative we make sure to have assets that can be culled down to 10 seconds, 15 seconds and 30 seconds,” explains Lee, a member of the Response Advisory Board, “so that the DR can drive to retail and have media assets for all digital use — from social networking to affiliate marketing.”
THOR’s short-form hits for 2011 included Looney Tunes ClickN Read Phonics. That campaign required Lee and her team to shoot a show that included more than 20 children, animation from Looney Tunes and a Spanish-language version.
“We were able to integrate digital and traditional direct marketing touch points for a strong ROI,” says Lee, “and a very successful campaign.”
To read the entire article, click here.
Las Vegas, Nevada
Concepts TV continued its winning tradition by being awarded two Moxie Awards at last night’s 2011 ERA D2C Moxie Awards Gala. Concepts won in the following categories: Best Short Form of the Year Under $50k and People’s Choice Short Form. Both awards were for the immensely successful product Pajama Jeans, produced for Direct Marketer Hampton Direct and Consultant SRM Direct.
With a 30 year history as a DRTV infomercial hitmaker, Concepts is proud to add these awards to its long list of accomplishments.
Concepts TV would like to congratulate all the 2011 Moxie award winners!
Double Grand Slam for Concepts TV at the Moxies
Boonton, NJ – The biggest convention of the year for direct response marketers and production companies, the Electronic Retailer Association Direct to Consumer Convention, may have come to a close but Concepts TV Productions is still celebrating after winning two major Moxie Awards. Concepts TV won the Best Long Form of the Year under $250K for “The Amish Heat Surge Fireplace” from Heat Surge LLC and the Best Short Form Variety Commercial for “Emery Cat” from All Star Marketing. “Two major wins in one night is incredible!” exclaimed Founder and President of Concepts TV Productions, Collette Liantonio. “Working with these products and these marketers was a pleasure, and I’m so proud that these productions were recognized by a jury of our peers. We look forward to producing many more award-winning productions for our clients.” Concepts TV Productions is well known in the direct response industry for making exceptional short-form spots, but their long-form capabilities are finally being recognized. The 30 minute Amish Heat Surge Fireplace, which already won two Aurora awards, was filmed all over the country. However, the most memorable shooting days took place in Winesburg, Ohio, home to the largest Amish community in America. There, Concepts filmed the Amish carpenters and the community working together in Amish barns to handcraft the authentic mantles. “I love it when a project takes you on a breathtaking journey,” says Dana Conklin, assistant director and producer at Concepts TV. “The Amish Heat Surge Fireplace is a product that people all across America really do love, and that’s obvious in the heartfelt testimonials portrayed in the infomercial.” Emery Cat, a cat scratching platform that enables cats to trim their own nails, was shot and produced in the Concepts TV studio and various homes in New Jersey. “That was an out of the ordinary shoot,” Ms. Liantonio recalls with a laugh. “Most cats don’t follow direction. When your featured talents aren’t people, it really forces you to think outside of the box. And because of that…we were able to produce a fun and creative spot. It’s the unique variety of projects that come our way that really make me love this business!” For more information on Concepts TV Productions, please call us at (973) 331 – 1500 or e-mail us at collette@conceptstv.com.
Concepts TV wins “Lucky 13″ Telly Award for “Bottle Top”
Boonton, NJ – Concepts TV Productions is thrilled to announce they have won their thirteenth Telly Award for the direct response production of “Bottle Top” on behalf of their client, Telebrands. “Bottle Top” is a device that turns any can into a bottle. This wildly successful 2009 TV campaign is currently a best seller in retail stores nationwide.
“I’m absolutely delighted with the award,” says Concepts TV President and Founder Collette Liantonio. “Bottle Top is a great product…and coupled with a great commercial and strong offer, we were able to create a real demand from the consumer.”
AJ Khubani, CEO of Telebrands, has worked with Concepts TV Productions for 25 years producing some of their biggest hits, such as Perfect Fit Button, Ambervision Sunglasses, Ped Egg, and EZ Combs. Khubani enthusiastically praised Concepts TV: “Concepts TV has a great creative team and they continue to produce hits for Telebrands year after year.”
“Bottle Top” was produced and shot at Concepts TV’s studio in Boonton, New Jersey, just 45 minutes away from New York City. For more information on Concepts TV Productions, please call us at (973) 331 – 1500 or e-mail us at collette@conceptstv.com.
Collette Liantonio, President of Concepts TV Productions, was quoted in the March 2011 issue of Response Magazine, in the article “A Winning Combination,” about how DRTV Producers balance the needs of their clients with end-user demands.
The article focuses on one of Concepts TV’s latest hits, Pajama Jeans, and the strategy behind marketing it to a wide audience.
A Winning Combination
Bridget Mccrea
What do you get when you cross a successful DRTV marketer of products like Wonder Hanger with venerable toy maker Vermont Teddy Bear? The end result is PajamaJeans, an invention that the latter developed for its PajamaGram mail order firm. The product, which is pajama-soft but looks enough like real jeans to be worn in public, sold so well during the 2009 holiday season that Vermont Teddy Bear decided to market them to the masses.
To gain exposure for the product, the manufacturer began working with Williston, VT based Hampton Direct, whose “As Seen on TV” hits include Furniture Fix and Total Pillow. Also on board was Boonton, NJ based Concepts TV Productions, where President Collette Liantonio and her team came up with a short-form campaign for the $39.95 product.
Liantonio took a grassroots approach to the PajamaJeans show, which she knew would reach a broader audience if a wide range of female shapes and sizes were shown wearing the pants. “We didn’t want to just feature emaciated girls; a good booty is really important,” says Liantonio, laughing. “We cast people who had ‘real’ bodies. That’s the beauty of the spot.”
By acknowledging the fact that the world is made up of more than just “skinny minny” models, Liantonio says the marketer has been able to reach a wider audience of DRTV viewers who either order directly from TV, or who visit the PajamaJeans website for more information before buying.
“I ususally warn clients against selling garments on TV that come in different sizes because those items are so personalized,” says Liantonio. “But in this case, the clients hit a home run, thanks to the universal appeal of the spot and the fact that it was directed at ‘real’ women.”
The entire article can be read by clicking here.
President of Concepts TV, Collette Liantonio, was interviewed for Electronic Retailer’s retrospective on the 25th anniversary of the informercial.
Electronic Retailer: How did you get your start in the DRTV industry?
Collette Liantonio: I have a Masters degree in theater education, with concentration in directing from New York University. I always wanted to direct a three-act play, but a three-act infomercial is equally exciting. I’ve taught The Art of Writing, Film Study and Spanish at a New Jersey high school. I worked as a director of public relations at a Fortune 500 company, but my first job in DRTV was as a director of production for Urban General Corp. In 1979, my first spot was “The Exterminator,” an insect zapper…it was a hit! I produced approximately 30 DRTV spots my first year and my boss was so cheap, he made me cook the food myself for every food shoot—no prop stylist, just me. I started Concepts TV in 1983 and had a difficult time convincing my clients that DRTV doesn’t compete with the retail industry, but drives it! Now, every retailer in America demands an “As Seen on TV” campaign for its new products. One of my first hits was Ambervision Sunglasses in 1984 and I worked with A.J. Khubani.
ER: What product or products changed the face of DRTV within the past 25 years?
Liantonio: In 1987, Kevin Harrington and Jim Caldwell of Quantum Marketing invited me to make an infomercial for “The Blade.” I couldn’t believe that I actually had the luxury of an entire half hour to tell the story. It was a smash hit! Rob Woodrooffe of Interwood Direct had me produce a half hour for “DiDi 7,” a phenomenal success that was a hit internationally.
My Spanish-language skills came in handy and I created dozens of spots for audiences decades before the Hispanic audience was discovered. I wrote and produced “The Abdomenizer” for Fitness Quest—one of the first AB shows ever produced. I wrote and produced “The Bedazzler,” “Topsy Tail” and “Harigami,” known by every girl in America. The George Foreman Grill…Smart Mop…The Heat Surge Fireplace…so many memories.
ER: What is your most memorable (insightful, funny or endearing) story of the DRTV industry and/or a colleague in the industry to date?
Liantonio: In 1994, we captured two ERA awards for both short form, “The Contour Pillow” and long form, “The Smart Mop.” I remember numerous presentations I made to the big New York City Madison Avenue agencies. They were anxious to emulate our sales success, but disdainful of our “primitive” direct approach. These same agencies now attempt to recreate these magic demonstrations in their “mainstream” image commercials. The difference is their spots cost hundreds of thousands of dollars. In my next life, I’m going to do image ads.
