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FedEx Archives: 1998 Press Releases

( BW)(FEDERAL-EXPRESS)(FDX) New FedEx Ad Reminds Viewers to "Be Absolutely Sure" About Shipping; Campaign to Break Tonight During Monday Night Football

    Business Editors

    MEMPHIS, Tenn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sept. 14, 1998--Tonight, when TV-viewing football fans speak about missed opportunities, they may be talking about more than the 49ers or Redskins. How about Mort?
    Mort, a fictional character featured in an ad from Federal Express - will star in the first commercial of a new FedEx ad campaign. Created by BBDO New York, the 30-second spot breaks nationally tonight during Monday Night Football on ABC-TV.
    FedEx revisits its advertising roots with a campaign featuring the new tag line, "Be Absolutely Sure." The new ads will communicate that FedEx is the most reliable way to ship packages - with the offbeat humor that has made FedEx ads of the past memorable.
    Tonight's ad, entitled "Opportunity Knocks," is directed by Kinka Usher. It features Mort, a swimming pool cleaner in his late-30s, who receives a letter - 20 years too late - from a generic delivery company. Had Mort received the letter on time, his destiny could have been totally different: "You've been accepted to Harvard University. And awarded a scholarship. Please respond by August 1978." The ad then reminds viewers to "Be Absolutely Sure," and ship reliably with FedEx.
    The ad campaign will feature a series of commercials showing humorous - but all too familiar - ramifications of late packages and the importance of choosing FedEx as the express company that will go the extra mile for you.
    "FedEx was founded on the principle of reliability," said David Shoenfeld, senior vice president, worldwide marketing at FedEx. "In this campaign, we're demonstrating our dedication to reliable service while using some offbeat humor or unusual settings. We think viewers will easily grasp the moral of these stories - that FedEx set the gold standard of the express delivery business."
    Demonstrating FedEx reliability by sketching entertaining caricatures of the business world has been the strategy of some of the company's best-known ad campaigns, including the Effie Award-winning "Absolutely, Positively Overnight" ads (1978-83), "It's not Just a Package, It's Your Business" (1987-88), "Our Most Important Package is Yours" (1991-94) and "Absolutely, Positively Anytime" (1995).
    Federal Express, a subsidiary of FDX Corp., connects areas that generate 90% of the world's gross domestic product in 24-48 hours with door-to-door, customs-cleared service and a money-back guarantee. The company's unmatched air route authorities and infrastructure make it the world's largest express transportation company, providing fast, reliable and time-definite transportation of more than 3 million items to 211 countries each working day. FedEx employs more than 142,000 employees and has more than 44,700 drop-off locations, 615 aircraft and 40,900 vehicles in its integrated global network. The company maintains electronic connections with more than a million customers via FedEx Powership(R), FedEx Ship(R) and FedEx interNetShip(R). Federal Express reported revenues of $13.3 billion for its fiscal year ended May 31, 1998.

NOTE TO EDITORS: Federal Express press releases are available on the World Wide Web at http://www.fedex.com.

     --30--md/na*

     CONTACT:  Federal Express Corp., Memphis
               Carla Boyd, 901/395-3484 or 800-218-6256 (pager)

     KEYWORD:  TENNESSEE
     INDUSTRY KEYWORD:  TRANSPORTATION TRAVEL/AIRLINES