Move over, MTV. Here comes QVC.
That's right music fans. In between the blond women selling jewelry and the dermatologists shilling skin-care products, television retail channels are booking live musical acts -- and not off-brands, either. Think LeAnn Rimes, Barry Manilow and the Goo Goo Dolls.
Manilow is preparing for his second QVC gig this fall to promote his new CD, "The Greatest Songs of the Seventies." His first appearance, to promote "The Greatest Songs of the Sixties," resulted in 43,000 CDs being sold in one hour, according to QVC.
It's just one way the home-shopping channels are trying to change their image. As network and cable TV shows become laden with ads and branded products, shopping channels such as QVC and HSN are going in the opposite direction -- attempting to attract new viewers by working more content into their shows and making them seem less about selling.
"Both QVC and HSN are trying to decrease the average age of people buying, so they're going to add younger, hipper kinds of items," said April Horace, a Denver-based analyst at Janco Partners Inc.
QVC's core demographic is a 50-year-old affluent woman who enjoys shopping, and about 85% of its customers are female, said Doug Rose, QVC's vice president of merchandising brand development. About 7.5 million households have made a purchase on QVC.
But QVC and HSN reach the 90 million homes that receive basic cable, and the channels are inviting celebrities such as Paula Abdul to talk about products and artists such as the Goo Goo Dolls to broaden their appeal. Adding well-known products and performers can help attract new viewers in a way that introducing an unfamiliar jewelry line, for example, would not.
HSN, which is in the midst of a makeover as it celebrates its 30th anniversary, is inviting celebrities including actress Tori Spelling and chef Wolfgang Puck to explain their products.
In Spelling's case, it's a jewelry line. Puck talks about a certain dish and promotes the products necessary to make the dish.
Bill Brand, HSN senior vice president of programming, says it's part of a focus on "lifestyle" programming -- that is, shows that integrate a story with the shopping.
"We want to be more than just another marketing vehicle," Brand said.
In May, before Paul McCartney's new CD went on sale, HSN viewers heard exclusive cuts from the album and saw a behind-the-scenes special about its creation during a special "listening party."
