Preppy retailer Gap is using the mobile channel to encourage participation in its annual Casting Call contest that seeks the next faces of babyGap and GapKids.

The company has partnered with mobile entertainment agency Skyrockit. The Gap Casting Call application aims to make it even easier for parents to enter their children into the contest.

?The strategy is really to allow people to enter the contest when they are on the go,? said Holly Brousseau, senior vice president of production and client services for skyrocket, San Francisco.

?For example, a parent walks into Gap with his or her kid, sees the poster, snaps a photo and uploads it via the app,? she said. ?It is simple, and no computer, cables, or card readers needed.?

Gap faces on mobile
Using the application, parents can take or select a photo of their child, upload it, and then vote for their child to become the Fan Favorite winner.

The Gap application also encourages parents to engage their friends and family members in the Fan Favorite portion of the contest by giving them the option to promote their child on Facebook and Twitter.

Parents who do not have access to an iPhone can enter their children and vote for them at http://www.gap.com/castingcall.

Now in its fifth year, Gap expects Casting Call to attract over a million entrants.

The company decided on an application because it is constantly exploring ways to make the contest even more accessible for time-constrained parents who live on the go.

The contest details
Twenty finalists?five baby girls, five baby boys, five girls and five boys?will be flown to San Francisco for a professional babyGap and GapKids photo shoot in mid-November.

From Dec. 6-20, America will choose the Grand Prize Winners, one child from each of the four categories, to be featured in the windows of babyGap and GapKids stores nationwide around February 2011.

The four Grand Prize Winners will also receive a $1,000 Gap GiftCard while the 16 remaining finalists will receive a $500 Gap GiftCard.

The Fan Favorite winner will receive a $1,000 Gap GiftCard.

?Mobile is the perfect platform because the technology is already there,? Ms. Brousseau said. ?Harnessing the various features of the device, we're able to build an app that encourages engagement, even away from the desktop screen.?

Final take
Giselle Tsirulnik is senior editor of Mobile Marketer
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