Lotus Launches Superman Marketing Campaign for Notes, Domino R5

Lotus Development Corp. signed an agreement with DC Comics, a division of Warner Bros., to allow the use of the Superman character in the promotion of Lotus’ Notes R5 and Domino products and in the company’s Super.Human.Software marketing campaign.

The campaign was created by Ogilvy & Mather Worldwide, the advertising and marketing agency for Lotus and its parent company, IBM. The campaign underscores the continuing proliferation and impact of technology upon consumers worldwide.

The Lotus R5 products–Notes R5, Domino R5 and Domino Designer R5–will allow organizations to create global collaborative technology solutions.

“We believe the characteristics of Superman represent the perfect embodiment of what the R5 products will allow our customers to do. By enabling each individual to do the best job possible–giving them the tools to be ‘super- human’–we can work together to solve any problem,” said Steve Sayre, Lotus’ senior vice president of worldwide corporate marketing. “We believe that technology is increasingly impacting peoples’ everyday lives, and therefore warrants leveraging a pop-culture icon of Superman’s stature.”

The global campaign leverages broadcast television as well as outdoor, Internet and business and trade print advertising. In the United States, Lotus advertisements featuring the Super.Human.Sofware theme will appear in national newspapers, business publications, newsmagazines and computer trade publications. Lotus will run network and national cable broadcast spots over a six-month period. The Lotus commercials will be featured on prime time and morning news programs, in major sporting events and in prime-time programming. Spending was not disclosed.