Marketers turn to Britney's sister By Bruce Horovitz, USA TODAY She sings. She dances. She rocks. And her last name is Spears. Nope, it's not Britney. It's her sister, Jamie Lynn, who at age 11 is emerging as another marketing wunderkind in the family mold. On Friday Hasbro will announce it is featuring her in a flashy TV ad campaign premiering next week for its teen girl-targeted karaoke, the e-kara Pro Headset. Singer Britney Spears, right, and her sister Jamie Lynn Spears at the Teen Choice Awards 2002. By Lucy Nicholson, AP Although she's had smaller parts in a few other ads, gurus of teen marketing say the Hasbro ads will be Jamie Lynn's coming out party as a preteen marketing force. Her appeal? Teen icons are tough to come by. A hot teen act, like Britney, can sell not only millions of records but millions of bottles of soda and pairs of sneakers. Marketers from McDonald's to Pepsi are eager to appeal to youngsters who sway family spending. "It almost doesn't matter if she can sing or dance," says Michael Wood of Teenage Research Unlimited. "She's Britney's sister." The move into the spotlight comes at a time when her big sister has been shunning publicity. "You have to wonder if this whole thing wasn't calculated," Wood says. In recent weeks, Jamie Lynn has been everywhere. She was on Nickelodeon's All That. She has appeared on several talk shows. She appeared with Britney in a skit on The Teen Choice Awards. And in February, she briefly appeared with Britney in the film Crossroads. She has not cut a record — and has no plans to now. But the Hasbro ad has her singing and dancing to He Loves You Not by Dream. "It's really cool," says Jamie Lynn, a Britney look-alike with serious makeup in the ad. "I'm giving these to all my friends for Christmas," she says in a phone interview. Christmas is what Hasbro has in mind. The preteen-targeted toy, a top seller last year, with sales topping $50 million, was redesigned with a Britney-style headset replacing the microphone. Executives are looking for even higher sales. "Who could be more aspirational to the 7- to 11-year-old set than Britney's little sister?" marketing chief Ira Hernowitz says. He declined to say what the fifth-grader was paid. Celebrity brokers estimate, because of her age, a relatively modest $50,000 to $100,000. Britney's Pepsi deal is said to exceed $10 million a year. "This brings a lot of eyes to the product for a fraction of what Britney would cost," says Jim Silver of The Toy Book trade journal. It also touches on the oh-so-touchy celebrity age issue. At 20 "Britney is getting older," says Laura Groppe, president of Girls Intelligence Agency. "It's best to align yourself with a girl on the rise."
This little tramp isn't moving in on our territory! We'll rip out her heart and show it to her before she dies! Signed,
I can see Britney coaching her right now... Britney: "And remember, when all else fails, just tell everyone that you are a virgin."
Until this fad goes away, she's here to stay. I'm waiting for the New Kids, MC Hammer, Vanilla Ice backlash of the mid 90's.
