New Year’s To Be Rocking ‘Priceless’ For MasterCard

By Jeffrey Green (@epaymentsguy)

Consumers living in any of 175 countries who share their holiday “priceless moments” via social media could see their entries featured on New Year’s Eve on huge billboards in New York’s Times Square. MasterCard, which launched its “Priceless” ad campaign 16 years ago, is showing no signs that the effectiveness of the promotion is losing any steam.

The event marks MasterCard’s largest integrated digital and social media campaign ever, and it’s designed to celebrate families, friendships and community among people living around the world. Folks may post their moments on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram, on each of which MasterCard is creating a branded presence via #PricelessNewYear.

As part of the promotion, MasterCard plans to leverage its Priceless spot called “Arrivals,” which features real family footage welcoming loved ones home. It will air a 30-second ad on all major U.S. TV networks and during ABC’s New Year’s Rocking Eve with Ryan Seacreast. The “Arrivals” spot also will run through the end of 2013 on the small screens within New York’s 7,000 cabs, whose riders will be encouraged to share their photos and wishes via social media.

On December 31, MasterCard will show contributed “Priceless” moments on the Nasdaq and Reuters signs in Time Square between 6 a.m. and midnight. The signs also will encourage the expected 1 million onlookers attending to share their moments as well.

In an email response to PYMNTS.com questions regarding the campaign, Cheryl Guerin, MasterCard executive vice president and group executive, U.S. marketing, declined to say how much the company is spending on the New Year’s Eve campaign, indicating only that it’s a “significant investment” in both digital and broadcast channels.

Because the campaign is rooted in social and digital media, MasterCard will be measuring the amount of photos people share using the #PricelessNewYear hashtag, Guerin said. “And of course, we will be keeping a close eye on engagement at the culmination of the campaign on New Year’s Eve, where we will be curating many of those photos and sharing them on the digital billboards in Times Square,” she said.

The concept for the campaign drew out of MasterCard’s recent brand activities by connecting people around the world and celebrating families, friendships and community during the holiday season, Guerin said. MasterCard intends to leverage both traditional and social media channels in other promotions into the New Year as well, she added.

To promote the event, MasterCard created a “Morning Brew” video in which folks in New York describe their contribution ideas, which could wind up on a billboard in Times Square during the New Year’s Eve celebration.

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