- This holiday season, Verizon and Mattel are partnering to help bring Barbie and her friends into the 21st century, with the iconic doll starring in the telecom company’s holiday marketing campaign that shows off Verizon’s home internet services.
- As part of the campaign, Verizon is outfitting a real-life Barbie DreamHouse in New York City with internet connectivity that fans can visit to experience the transformation first-hand.
- The partnership is intended to showcase Verizon’s portfolio of family product offerings, including Verizon Family, a service that features location sharing, parental controls and other features; the Gimzo Watch, a children’s smartwatch that provides a connection between kids and caregivers, and of course, the company’s home internet service.
The campaign will dominate Verizon’s holiday messaging as a 360-degree marketing effort that will run across digital, TV, social media and outdoor billboards. The centerpiece of the campaign is a stop motion video in which various versions of Barbie (and one Ken) all live in a DreamHouse that gets recently equipped with Verizon’s home internet service.
The enhanced connectivity serves all of the Barbies’ needs, from online gaming (where one quips the activity would be easier with opposable thumbs) to creating a podcast (where one doll theorizes there are giant hands that control their lives) to being “chronically online” (as one Barbie searches a malady in which she hasn’t blinked in 65 years). All of the StreamHouse residents are pleased with the enhanced connectivity, except Ken, whose smoothie blender was unplugged to make way for the Verizon service. (He adjusts to it.)
“The holiday season is an incredibly special time for Verizon and our customers, and we wanted to do something big, entertaining, and first-of-its-kind,” said Leslie Berland, executive vice president and chief marketing officer at Verizon, in a release. “The Barbie StreamHouse brings to life the magic of Barbie and friends, powered by Verizon Home Internet and all the ways our customers live and play. We can’t wait to host everyone and experience the world of Verizon and Barbie like never before.”
To enhance the campaign, Verizon and Mattel have outfitted a real-life “StreamHouse” in New York City that fans will be able to visit between December 12-15. The house, located at 214 Lafayette St., will feature a host of activities, including an interactive guided experience hosted by Barbie featuring games, photo opportunities and giveaways.
As part of the companies’ community engagement efforts, Mattel Philanthropy and Verizon will host 100 students from Girls, Inc., for an exclusive StreamHouse experience that will include a behind-the-scenes look at the technology powering the house. In addition, students from a nearby “Verizon Innovative Learning school” will visit the interactive experience as well.
