eBay, Domino's Link Up for College Promos

Auction giant eBay and pizza giant Domino’s this week kick off two new back-to-school promotions to leverage their respective online and offline strengths.

Beginning last week, Domino’s began delivering pizzas with eBay fliers, offering customers the chance to win 1 million eBay Anything Points, good for $10,000 of eBay merchandise, and prizes such as $10 pizza gift certificates and discounted textbooks at eBay’s Half.com. The campaign will distribute a total of 15 million fliers.

Contestants can sign up for the sweepstakes online at eBay. Domino’s Web site promotes the contest, with a link to the entry site. The contest ends on Sept. 30, with a drawing around Oct. 21.

The second promotion, geared toward college football season, is the “Stay True to Your School” promotion. Via another 15 million box-top offers, the two companies will give customers the chance to win “the ultimate homecoming trip,” a road trip to a college football game with five friends. The promotion also offers $10 pizza gift certificates and one for $500.

The promotions are another step for San Jose, Calif.-based eBay to use offline brands to build on its 75 million registered users.

In February, eBay signed a marketing deal with Dr. Pepper/Seven Up to promote its auction services via an under-the-cap contest. The campaign offered customers the chance to win credits for use in eBay-style auctions for CDs, concert tickets, and other prizes.

With the Domino’s campaign, eBay takes the offline alliance format further, directly offering customers the chance to participate in its online auctions thanks to its Anything Points. In February, eBay launched Anything Points as a rewards program that hooks into loyalty programs from a variety of partners, such as Sprint and Hilton, allowing members to convert their frequent-flier miles or other rewards points to PayPal credits for bidding in eBay auctions.