BopStar Introduces Publicity Services

Nashville, July 2009: After three years of success creating and promoting celebrity baby baskets, BopStar is expanding! Citing her ample prior experience as a publicist in the entertainment business, BopStar’s founder and President MaryLenore Arsenault has decided to revitalize her publicity services.

“Publicity has always been my first love,” she declares, “It is so gratifying to be able to tell the world about people doing great things – whether they’re making music or designing products.”

Launching her business in Toronto in 1987 as Be-Bop Communications, Inc., Arsenault assembled an impressive group of clients in short order: The Juno Awards (the Canadian Grammys), Roy Thomson Hall (Toronto’s premier performance theatre), Massey Hall (Toronto’s premier concert hall), Walt Disney, and the People’s Comedy Festival. It was a cross section of the very best Canada had to offer, and it paved the way for Arsenault to open a New York office in 1996.

Jim Carrey, People's Comedy Festival

She’s had the opportunity to work with world-renowned personalities ranging from Jim Carrey to Margaret Thatcher, managing every aspect of the publicity she generated with discretion, honesty, and diligence. Arsenault’s astonishing roster of former clients (Casablanca Kids, The Children’s Group, EMI Music, Sony Music, Walt Disney Records, etc.) - underscored by her citation as the Best Independent Publicity Firm at the 2001 Canadian Music Industry Awards - testifies to her acumen. But by 2006, the intensity of her commitment and the demands of her schedule had become disheartening, and she left New York for Nashville.

“The average lifespan of an independent publicist is ten years,” she explained, “and I put in 20!”

Walt Disney Records, Special Family Concert

New city; new company. Arsenault decided to create a unique marketing opportunity for companies producing exceptional items for expectant parents and infants. She would fill her BopStarBaby Celebrity Baby Baskets with these products, ship them to celebrity households, and then track their appearances throughout the media. The concept is well suited to a culture entranced with celebrity, where photos of products actually being used by a star can become a valuable marketing tool.

The ensuing press coverage gave her plenty of evidence that her new business was thriving, yet Arsenault couldn’t help missing the career she’d left behind. While reviewing editorial calendars of various magazines in early 2008, she noticed multiple potential openings for her clients. It didn’t take long before she’d created media baskets to be submitted for editorial consideration in over 20 children’s industry publications. The results were swift and substantial, with over 40 placements in six months. Eager to have her handle their publicity, several of the BopStarBaby Celebrity Basket participants placed Arsenault on retainer, and subsequent media baskets have garnered excellent returns. Yet in the process of building her business and maintaining her invaluable relationships throughout the press, she’s created an unforeseen dilemma.

“I have editors from major publications contacting me for products constantly – and I’ll be honest with you – sometimes they need more than what I can come up with,” Arsenault confides. “I’m always scouting wonderful new things, because I know I’ve got people who can’t wait to see them!”

BopStarBaby’s new publicity services will help address that issue, and many more. They’ll be available in the following formats:

• Long term representation, incorporating a monthly retainer for a minimum of one year. The advantage of this ongoing involvement is to accommodate lengthy publication deadlines, thereby ensuring full coverage throughout the year.
• Short term representation, incorporating a monthly retainer for a minimum of three months (or lump sum payment) for specific campaigns.
• Special projects, incorporating a lump sum payment for singular events/services.

“We’re excited about this new phase of our business,” asserts Arsenault, “There are so many great products in the children’s industry that I’d love to help promote. This will be an opportunity to do something I’ve always really enjoyed for clients I really believe in. I am positive it’s going to be a major value-added for BopStar!”