Background: Community-based prevention marketing (CBPM) is a program planning framework that blends community-organizing principles with a social marketing mind-set to design, implement, and evaluate public health interventions. A community coalition used CBPM to create a physical activity promotion program for tweens (youth 9-13 years of age) called VERB[TM] Summer Scorecard. Based on the national VERB[TM] media campaign, the program offered opportunities for tweens to try new types of physical activity during the summer months. Methods: The VERB[TM] Summer Scorecard was implemented and monitored between 2004 and 2007 using the 9-step CBPM framework. Program performance was assessed through in-depth interviews and a school-based survey of youth. Results: The CBPM process and principles used by school and community personnel to promote physical activity among tweens are presented. Observed declines may become less steep if school officials adopt a marketing mind-set to encourage youth physical activity: deemphasizing health benefits but promoting activity as something fun that fosters spending time with friends while trying and mastering new skills. Conclusions: Community-based programs can augment and provide continuity to school-based prevention programs to increase physical activity among tweens. (Contains 2 tables and 1 figure.)