Do You Moo-Hoo?

Brandweek, July 3, 2000 by Ann M. Mack

Moo-ve over Bessie--there's a new cow in town! As a part of Cow Parade New York 2000, nearly 500 life-size, fiberglass cows have invaded the city, grazing streets, sidewalks, parks and piers. Among the bovine bunch, two "udderly" unique animals--ready and wired for the dot-com revolution--stand out from the rest of the herd. The bright purple duo, created by Santa Clara, Calif.-based Yahoo!, represent the first-ever Internet-connected cows.

Visitors to Manhattan's South Street Seaport Pier 17 can surf the Net and check and send e-mail from the cows' Web kiosks. With trendy shops and restaurants, the lower Manhattan pier presents the perfect pasture for the purple pair, says Cindy Bishop, senior brand manager for Yahoo! The guerrilla marketing effort by Yahoo! hopes to capitalize on the traffic generated by the tourist trap. "The destination appeals to people from New York, as well as tourists," she says. "When people travel, they really need to access their e-mail and the Internet." Cupertino, Calif.-based Telocity, a provider of integrated broadband services to the residential market, is providing the "electronic milk" for the kiosks that will be powered by digital subscriber line technology (DSL).

Yahoo! always looks for unexpected marketing opportunities, such as the connected cows, to build its brand, says Bishop. "Yahoo! is known to be fun loving and carefree," she explains. "We go out of our way to get into people's lives in a tangible way outside the virtual world."

Right now, Cow Parade, which runs through Labor Day, is the talk of the five boroughs of "Moo York City." Decorated by an eclectic group ranging from world-renowned artists to school children, the 500-cow showcase is expected to be seen by more than 25 million people. After the exhibit's 10-week run, the cows will be put up for auction with proceeds benefiting New York charities.