Revlon will be incorporated into soap opera storyline

by ANITA CHABRIA, PR Week USA 25-Mar-02

NEW YORK: Revlon has made product placement passe with a new deal to incorporate the makeup giant into the storyline of ABC soap All My Children.

Beginning last week, Revlon made the jump from advertiser to character when show writers began a three-month story about Revlon becoming the arch-rival to Enchantment, the cosmetics empire owned by headlining character Erica Kane, played by Susan Lucci.

Over about 25 episodes, Kane will send her daughter Kendall into Revlon as a spy when that company sets out to steal an Enchantment employee.

Kane will refer to Revlon with negative terms such as "vultures,

but Revlon will have the ability to override objectionable plot lines, according to The Wall Street Journal.

Revlon reportedly paid "millions

to be cast as the villain, according to an ABC spokesperson, and will be the only cosmetics company advertising on the soap while its storyline runs. The idea came from the show's writers, who developed the concept before contacting Revlon.

"We would only have done it if it were organic to the storyline,

ABC spokeswoman Sallie Schoneboom told the AP.

Despite various press reports, Revlon has been taciturn about speaking to the media. The Wall Street Journal scored a comment from a company spokesperson, but most journalists have not had their calls returned.

Allowing fans to decide what they think of the concept without Revlon's input may be a smart strategy. A recent soapcentral.com poll of more than 1,000 viewers found that 31% of respondents thought the idea was "really cool."