CHILEAN AVOCADOS GET IN THE GAME
September, 2009: CAIA (Chilean Avocado Importers Association) is already on the field and in the game – of soccer that is. CAIA is now in its second year as a sponsor of the American Youth Soccer Organization (AYSO). The organization reaches more than 650,000 boys and girls, 250,000 volunteer coaches and administrators and countless parents, all of them interested in healthy lifestyles and eating.
CAIA ads are running in AYSO’s magazine and CAIA’s outdoor advertising, in both Spanish and English, presents the CAIA message in key markets in Southern California.
CAIA has also just launched its “Everyone Plays” online contest for youth soccer teams across the United States. It encourages teams to shoot a video, which shows how they incorporate Chilean Hass Avocados into their practice- or post-game snacks. Consumers will be able to choose their favorite video on www.everyoneplayswithavocados.com. “We named the contest “Everyone Plays”, explains Bezarts, “because it is AYSO’s philosophy that every child plays at least half a game and thus the words “Everyone Plays” have special meaning for AYSO families.”
“Getting our message out to youth soccer teams, which includes those all important soccer-involved families, through this new vehicle is just one of the many innovative ways we are working to gain attention and sales for Chilean Hass Avocados,” reports CAIA marketing director Maggie Bezart.
AYSO is promoting the contest by sending out e-mail blasts to its database of more than 320,000 coaches, parents and volunteers across the country.
“This e-mail blast, along with our ongoing involvement with AYSO shows that we recognize how important soccer is to both general market and Hispanic families,” says CAIA marketing director Maggie Bezart. “These AYSO programs, integrated with all our other activities, are really developing the marketplace for Chilean Hass Avocados.”
In addition to AYSO, CAIA is a sponsor of Major League Soccer’s Chivas USA, one of America’s best-known soccer brands and a favorite of Hispanic consumers in the US. “We’re very involved in Chivas’ popular soccer clinics called “Kick-it At the Park” throughout Southern California,” reports Bezart. “We are serving our easy Avocado Spread to parents, siblings and the soccer players during the six clinics we are sponsoring in the Los Angeles area, and are delighted with the enthusiastic response of this audience to the samples and to CAIA’s participation,” Bezart continues.
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