December 5 &6, 2008

Downtown Denver

 

 

For 34 years on the first Friday and Saturday nights following Thanksgiving week, the 9NEWS Parade of Lights has signaled the official kick-off of Colorado’s Holiday Season. This community celebration has delighted audiences young and old, both those attending in person along the two-mile parade route through Downtown Denver, or those tuning into the highly-rated primetime telecast on top-rated 9NEWS. This year, on December 5th and 6th, the 2008 9NEWS Parade of Lights is expected to draw more than 375,000 live attendees plus be tuned in by another 360,000 households for the high definition telecast.

Imagine the impact of reaching a combined audience of more than 735,000 people in association with the region’s most anticipated and cherished holiday event as we enter the most prolific shopping cycles of the year.  As a sponsor of the 9NEWS Parade of Lights, your brand will be seen and experienced in a manner no other marketing program can accomplish.  Best of all, while you are communicating your prime marketing and public relations messages, you’re role in making the parade possible will be seen as a huge holiday greeting card to the community.

The 9NEWS Parade of Lights is a magical nighttime event, which features more than 40 units including extravagantly illuminated floats, giant helium-filled character balloons, magnificent marching bands, traditional equestrian units and colorful cultural entries, the 9NEWS Parade of Lights is professionally produced by Downtown Denver Events and the Downtown Denver Partnership.  The parade opens before 1,800 grandstand spectators and television cameras, with Denver’s spectacularly lit City and County Building as a backdrop and concludes with the much-anticipated arrival of Santa sitting atop a gilded sleigh.

9NEWS (K*USA-TV), Denver’s top-rated station has sponsored the parade since 1997.  They produce a one-hour, primetime 9NEWS Special telecast of the entire parade broadcast in high-definition which will be broadcast live at 8:00 p.m. on Friday, December 5, 2008 with three additional rebroadcasts, two in prime access and one in late fringe on Christmas Eve. The Parade’s 2007 combined ratings show a strong audience with 361,400 total households and 24.6 household rating points. 

Like an overstuffed holiday stocking, the 9NEWS Parade of Lights is a bountiful event marketing opportunity:

• After 34 years, the 9NEWS Parade of Lights is regarded as the “Official Start of Denver’s Holiday Season.”  No other seasonal event attracts a larger, more loyal audience annually.

• Experienced by a combined audience of 735,000 people, (375,000 spectators along the parade route and 360,000 television households), comprised principally of families in the age range of 25-54.

• Promoted, staged live and telecast, (from late November through December 24th) encompassing the peak sales season for the retail sector, plus the idea timeframe of end-of-the-year corporate expressions of thanks and goodwill to the community.

• Supported by more than $200,000 in advance promotion by media powerhouses, The Denver Post, the Rocky Mountain News, and 9NEWS.

Presenting, Associate and Supporting (Unit) sponsorships are available some including telecast ad packages.  For more information contact Julie Gore or Jill Lentz.