The Orlando Sentinel from Orlando, Florida • Page 54

10 Central Florida Business July 17-23, 1995 STRATEGIES Pmii LOVES REACTION TO ATTRACTION 7TF 'J 1 uz A I Mi iinv '4 GEORGE SKENETHE ORLANDO SENTINEL Barney and other characters (above) entertain Tuesday. Some of the marketing strategies to at-250 children and adults during the sing-along tract the preschool set included special Barney stage show on the opening day of 'A Day in the appearances at the park in April (right), which Park with Barney' at Universal Studios Florida on got a favorable reaction from his fans. TOM SPITZTHE ORLANDO SENTINEL By Christine Shenot OF THE SENTINEL STAFF keting team will chart trends in attendance by families with Barney-aged children. Though they're waiting to see the numbers, executives at the park say they expect to see a lot more strollers from now on. "It'll be a few weeks before we really know the impact of Barney, said Rick Hensler, senior vice president for advertising and promotion.

"But our very first day showed an attendance increase that has us looking at it very carefully." Plans for a Barney attraction were set in motion nearly two years ago, after the dinosaur star appeared in parades at the theme park. The turnout was so strong that Universal started working on a permanent home for Barney. The design work stretched out over a year, with Universal's creative team working closely with Sheryl Leach, Barney's creator, and others from the Lyons Group, which produces the PBS show. "Our mission from day one was to make it the best toddler experience that's ever been done," Williams said. When they completed their plans about a year ago, Williams gave the Barney project team several months less than they'd requested to build the attraction.

He wanted to get it open in time for summer crowds this year. On its first day, the attraction appeared to be a hit with children and parents alike. Alan Hassenfeld, chairman of Hasbro which makes Barney toys, went to the stage show twice, each time scanning the room to watch the kids' expressions. "It's long enough, and yet it leaves you in the end wanting more," he said. A self-confessed Barney fan, he jumped up to applaud after the closing bars of Barney's signature "I Love You" song.

The success of Barney's first week isn't surprising, considering the billing he's gotten in recent months. During the spring, Universal started putting its marketing plans in motion. The park held special sing-along shows with Barney during the month of April and began running TV commercials about the upcoming attraction in select markets. For a couple of weeks leading up to the opening, Universal ran a cryptic message about the attraction and its opening date on about 50 billboards throughout Central Florida. Universal spokeswoman Linda Buckley said the purple signs, which carried no mention or picture of Barney and were written in several languages, prompted many phone calls.

But the biggest marketing push started about a month ago, when a specially painted Lynx bus touting the new Barney attraction took a trip up the East Coast. The colorful Barney bus stopped in Boston and Philadelphia for sing-along shows, and it went on to several other cities to deliver Barney toys to children through police departments. "Other than maybe the Jaws tour, I don't recall them ever promoting something like this on a national basis," said Tim O'Brien, an editor with the trade magazine Amusement Business. "It's amazing the amount of marketing savvy that they've put behind everything to spread the word." Though most agree the park has succeeded in making consumers aware of Barney's new second home at Universal Studios, the challenge will be to maintain the marketing momentum, particularly as Barney, the TV character, ages. Hensler and others on Universal's marketing team say they have no plans to ease up anytime soon.

Locally, the Barney bus will go into regular service and display a message that's hard to miss and sure to hit a wide audience. Nationally, Universal plans to continue highlighting Barney in its consumer advertising. Under its partnership with the Lyons Group, the theme park also will get a plug in trailers that are being added to Barney video tapes. And the park is planning to film Barney on location at Universal Studios. "You will definitely see Barney videos from Universal Studios," Hensler said.

"We're knocking around a number of possibilities." The other issue, some industry observers say, is how long Barney, the character, will keep his star status with children. Hensler said it's something park officials considered from the beginning. "That was the big question to everyone. Is Barney a fad or is he evergreen?" In the end, they decided that for their purposes, the dinosaur had staying power. "While the Barney merchandise seems to have waned, if you look at places where Barney comes alive his popularity is still through the roof," Hensler said.

Universal executives are not alone in thinking that they made the right choice by building a multimillion-dollar attraction around Barney. "Barney is a phenomenon that parents are holding on to because it's such a simple icon," said O'Brien, of Amusement Business. "He's maybe like a Mr. Rogers of the '90s." O'Brien added that even if Barney's popularity disappeared entirely in a few years, it would take little time or money for Universal to overhaul the attraction and substitute the dinosaur with another character. "It's a perfect fit for their mission to bring in more families," he said.

Dt wasn't a typical Barney audience, but there was no lack of zeal for the dippy purple dinosaur during his opening performance last week at Universal Studios Florida. Tom Williams, the theme park's president, cut an odd figure as he clapped his hands, stamped his feet and sang each verse of "If You're Happy and You Know It." Dozens of employees followed his example some sheepish, others smiling broadly while Barney cavorted across the stage before an invited crowd of 250 adults and children. Universal's management had good reason to be cheerful as they unveiled the park's new attraction, "A Day in the Park with Barney," following a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Tuesday. The attraction, which features a sing-along stage show and a large activity room, adds another dimension to what Williams describes as Universal's "kids' studio." Since it opened in 1990, Universal has mostly been known as a place that appeals to adults and teen-agers with hightech simulator rides and shows built around the allure of Hollywood. Only a few attractions, such as Revel's Play-land and E.T.

Adventure, were designed specifically for young children. Barney is expected to give Universal an edge it's never had before with the preschool set. Barney Friends, the PBS show that brought the purple Tyrannosaurus Rex to fame in 1992, is watched by millions as the No. 1 children's program on public television. The show targets toddlers and preschoolers.

In the weeks ahead, Universal's mar.