TFO announces launch of "je ne sais quoi" advertising campaign

TORONTO, Nov. 13, 2012 /CNW/ - Something unique is happening at Groupe Média TFO these days, and if you can't quite put your finger on it, then you're not alone. The Franco-Ontarian media outlet has given itself a new nickname-- je-ne-sais-quoi télé—the "je ne sais quoi" referring to that indefinable something that the French language and Francophone culture bring to TFO's content and programming.

The goal of this campaign, says Gisèle Chrétien, Chair of Groupe Média TFO's Board of Directors, is to make sure that French-speaking Ontarians realize the full scope of TFO's offerings. As she explains, "The TFO team has worked very hard to develop content that will please all of our audiences, at home and in the classroom, from pre-schoolers to music lovers to the loyal fans of our public-affairs programming."

According to Groupe Média TFO President and CEO Glenn O'Farrell, the advertising campaign being launched today is part of a broader initiative to modernize the organization, which offers unique products and services for today's Francophone and Francophile audiences. "Our customers are looking for relevant, intelligent content, both in traditional media and on new media platforms. We offer them new content that is more dynamic and youthful, and we have now adopted a new brand image and a new voice to express who we are."

The advertising campaign and rebranding initiative, developed by the Lowe Roche, one of Canada's top advertising agencies, represents the most significant advertising and brand-recognition effort that TFO has undertaken since it was established 25 years ago. According to Monica Ruffo, CEO of Lowe Roche, "French makes everything special—a bit more seductive, a bit more daring, a bit more 'je ne sais quoi'. This campaign celebrates that quality, and everything that makes Francophone culture—the very heart of everything that TFO does—so appealing."

For Groupe Média TFO, it was important that this campaign speak not only to Francophones but Francophiles as well, so as to reach all of the audiences that are potentially interested in cultural and educational products in French but are not familiar with TFO. In a market dominated by the English-language networks, it is worth remembering that high-quality cultural content delivered in French can be every bit as enticing as what the English-language networks have to offer. Consequently, this new campaign is primarily bilingual, with a slogan—je ne sais quoi—that comes from French but is commonly understood in English as well.

The campaign also communicates TFO's bright, dynamic, youthful spirit, buoyed by a wave of new programming such as BRBR, celebrating the French-Canadian emerging music scene, Plein les vues, presenting the latest news about the movies each week, and 360, offering reports, interviews and discussions about Francophone life in Ontario and around the world.

The result, as the campaign slogan puts it, is to give TFO a certain... je ne sais quoi.

SOURCE: GroupeMédia TFO