Fans Get Excited About Million Dollar Monday...

Are you looking for new ways to drive excitement at the ballpark? Are you looking to feature an enticing offer that draws new consumers to the ballpark?

The Class A Cedar Rapids Kernals recently offered a tremendous"Million Dollar Monday" promotion that turned the heads of baseball fans throughout the state of Iowa. The promotional night, deemed the "perfect promotion", offered fans attending the game the chance to win $1 million if the team's pitcher threw a complete-game perfect game (getting 27 consecutive outs).

While the chances to win are slim (Yahoo.com places the odds of a perfect game at 90,000-to-1), the offer seems irresistible to fans who have to pay just a few bucks to get into the ballpark to enjoy some quality entertainment. The Kernals were able to effectively tie in a sponsor - Perfect Game USA baseball club/scouting service - to help underwrite the costs involved with implementing the promotion.

While the team didn't end up throwing a complete game, the promotional night served as a great way to get some new fans out to the ballpark!

Sounders FC Entertain Fans with Soccer Ball Race...

Are you looking for ways to engage fans during halftime or stoppages of play? Are you looking for new ways to provide entertainment value for fans?

The Sounders FC organization currently features an interactive soccer ball race segment during halftime of its matches at Qwest Field. The promotion is a fan favorite as it tests the speed and skills of three (3) contestants wearing giant soccer ball costumes. Check out the team's execution of the promotion during a recent home contest against the Columbus Crew:

Sounders FC representatives could make the promotion more engaging for fans by assigning a different section to each of the contestants, creating a performance driven incentive (for the chance to win X prize). Check back for related promotions offered by the Sounders FC organization!

Beer Cup Snakes are Taking Over Cricket...

Are you looking for ways to leverage an official beer sponsor? Are you interested in learning about game entertainment tactics that are popular across the globe?

Cricket fans across the globe - from London, England to Melbourne, Australia - have become infatuated with one of the most unlikely forms of entertainment at cricket matches they attend: Beer Cup Snakes. What the wave is to traditional American sports, the beer cup snake is to the game of cricket.

Fans in the stands at cricket matches make the beer snakes with thousands of empty beer cups, usually sold at concessions stands location within the stadium. The longest beer cup snake was formed at the WACA ground in Perth, Western Australia on New Years Eve 2008. The snake was 45 meters long (50 yards), measuring the length of the Inverarity Stand at the venue.

Once a beer cup snake is formed, fans seated in the crowd try to lift it skyward to make it dance (as if being charmed). However, while beer cup snakes have proven to be extremely popular with cricket attendees, they are often frowned upon by the stadium's security personnel.

What is the significance here for U.S. sports marketers?

1. Do not be surprised if beer cup snakes become a new trend in the United States (it is only a matter of time)
2. Consider ways that the concept of the beer cup snake can be applied to in-game promotions.Beverage partners could consider creating an interactive challenge in-venue where two (2) competing sections have to pass a beer cup snake (a chain of empty cups) down the section to win X prize

The videos below capture the art of the beer cup snake in action:

Who Wouldn't Love "Sure-Win Wednesdays"?

Are you looking to create a promotion that will drive fans wild? Are you looking for a way to leverage a Sherwin Williams partnership?

The San Angelo Colts of United League Baseball (ULB) are teaming up with Sherwin Williams to offer "Sure-Win Wednesdays". a tremendous promotion that is perhaps the biggest fan favorite at the park. To celebrate the team's tenth anniversary, the Colts are offering a "Sure-Win Wednesday" promotion where if the team loses, all fans in attendance receive a ticket for the next Wednesday's home game (a great branding play for Sherwin "Sure-Win" Williams). In 2008, the team went undefeated each time it held the promotion on a Monday.

Is the "Sure-Win Wednesday" concept more likely to work in the minor leagues? Yes. But would it be possible to implement such an ideain the professional ranks? Yes as well. Corporate partners who offer in-venue fan destinations (e.g. Dew Deck, Gehl Club, Miller Lite Party Deck) could feature a similar promotionaltactics for select guests at the ballpark on a particular night.

The promotional concept dates back to 2004 (the Rockford Riverhawks of the Frontier League ran the same promotion). Look for more teamsoffering a "Sure-Win Wednesday" promotion in the near future!

Source: OurSportsCentral.com

Coca-Cola Offers Golden Can NASCAR Promotion

Are you looking to create a promotion that will drive product sales at retail? Are you looking to capitalize on new ideas in the NASCAR space?

To commemorate the 50th running of the Coca-Cola 600 at Lowe's Motor Speedway, Coca-Cola recently announced that it would offer a golden opportunity for NASCAR fans. Coca-Cola is going to insert one (1) golden can in six (6) million specially marked 12-packs of Coca-Cola Classic that will be distributed across ten (10) states in the Southeast.

One lucky fan who comes across the specially marked golden can with a congratulatory message will win the official Toyota Camry Hybrid pace car used during the race. The Hybrid pace car is a unique prize because it is actually the first hybrid vehicle ever used to lead the field in a NASCAR race.

Coca-Cola is also supporting the 50th running of the race by introducing commemorative eight (8) ounce bottles and six (6) pack carriers of Coca-Cola across participating retailers in the southeast United States.

Source: NASCAR.com

Sonic and the Royals Team Up to Reward Fans...

Are you looking for new ways to reward fans based on team performance? Are you searching for new ways to leverage QSR partners?

Sonic and the Kansas City Royals recentlyannounced that they will offer a season-long"Steal a Base, Steal a Sonic Slush" promotion that rewards Royals fans every time the team steals a base during a game. For the chance to receive a free medium Sonic Slush, Royals fans are asked to just show their Royals ticket stub at a Kansas City-area Sonic drive-in following a game in which the Royals steal a base. Fans can redeem their ticket stubs until midnight the following night after the game.

While the promotion serves as a great way to reward fans, Sonic and the KC Royals cannot take credit for its originality. Taco Bell drew a significant amount of buzz during the 2007 and 2008 World Series with its "Steal a Base, Steal a Taco" offer, which resulted in the QSR distributing millions of free tacos to fans after Jacoby Ellsbury and Jason Bartlett stole bases.

The Red Sox Deliver Value with Fenway Family Hour...

Are you looking for new ways to deliver value for fans at the ballpark? Are you searching for ways to make your events more affordable for blue collar Americans?

With the '09 MLB season just around the corner, the Boston Red Sox have teamed up with Aramark to offer "Fenway Family Hour", a value-driven initiative for fans during the month of April at Fenway Park. The club's "Fenway Family Hour" promotion offers fans a month-long celebration of discounted concessions, souveniers, and special entertainment in an effort to drive more families to the ballpark.

During the first hour after the stadium gates open for games, theRed Soxwill offer a variety of value-add initiatives, including:

• Concessions stands around the stadium will feature nine (9) promotional food items at up to 50% off their standard price
  • Items include: Fenway Franks ($2.50), pizza slices ($2.25), pretzels ($2.00), popcorn ($2.00), cotton candy ($1.50), fruit cups ($2.50), veggie cups ($2.50), bags of burgers ($4.00), and Hoodsie Ice Cream Cups ($1.50)
• The Red Sox Team Store will offer select merchandise (t-shits, hats, etc.) at substantial discounts
• The team will host a series of special 30-minute sessions once per homestand where fans can meet and have their pictures taken with players and coaches (this will take place immediately after batting practice)

The Red Sox organization is also featuring a handful of othervalue-driven faninitiatives, including:

• Fenway "First Times" Initiative - All fans visiting Fenway Park for the first time can go to any Fan Information Booth to receive a special First-Timer sticker, a FanFoto voucher for a free personal/family photograph, and sign up for a free welcome message on the Fenway Park scoreboard
• Best Buy Players Club - The Red Sox teamed up with Best Buy to create a lounge in the Big Concourse behind the Bleachers for fans to seek shelter from the weather and enjoy watching the game on flat-screen televisions and play video games
• Red Sox Kid Nation - Official members of the Red Sox Kid Nation receive a $20 discount off the purchase of two (2) tickets to one (1) eligible Kid Nation Red Sox game during the 2009 season

Source: Flickr photos courtesy of BostonCityWalk

The Knicks Specialize in Showcasing Their Celebrity Fans...

Are you looking for new ways to drive fan excitement for coming to the game? Are you capitalizing on ALL of the personalities in your building?

Sports organizations looking to showcase their most recognized fans (celebrities) should consider benchmarking the practices of the New York Knicks organization. The Knicks and MSG have created a "Celebrity Crowd Cam" feature that interviews recognizable celebrities sitting courtside and asks them to share their love for the Knicks, what theyenjoy about their experiences at Madison Square Garden, and what their favorite moments are in team history.

The "Celebrity Crowd Cam" feature blends a series of celebrity interview questions in with a random collection of celeb spottings at Madison Square Garden. The vignettes are humorous and provide fans with yet another reason to want to come to the game (to be seen where they favorite icons are seen).

Events in New York City (along with Los Angeles and Miami) are magnets for attracting celebrities. What if you don't have any willing to come to your events? Consider aligning with a local costume shop to create a booth in the concourse level that lets fans dress up their favorite celebrities and create vignettes of their own (the best of which would be featured on the video board). Teams can alsoconsider makingmore of concerted effort to drive celebrities totheir games by offering exclusive behind-the-scenes experiences and other amenities.

Celebrities feel so comfortable attending games atMadison SquareGarden thatsome even put on a show of their own for the fans (as seen below with Anthony Anderson of Law &Order'srecent old school dance performance):

Here are some of the Knicks' "Celebrity Crowd Cam" features:

The Thunder Play Mascot Pranks on Employees...

Are you looking to create original video board vignettes? Are you looking for new ways to integrate team employees and mascots in-game?

The Oklahoma City Thunder recently featured an excellent video board vignette during one of their home games that involved their mascot, Rumble, waking up the team's employees as they headed into work during the early morning hours. The clip does a great job providing fans a humorous, behind-the-scenes look at some of the mascot's antics outside outside of the arena and enables team employees to enjoy some humor of their own.

What's unique about this piece is that the team finds a way to incorporate its employees in its fan entertainment, something that is not too common in the sports landscape. The vignette serves as a nice way to reward/humor all of the individuals behind the scenes who are working long hours to maximize the team's ticket sales, sponsorship revenue, community relations efforts, fan entertainment, etc.

Check out the creative vignette piece, entitled "Wake Up with Rumble the Bison"here.

A special thanks to David Yu of the University of Oregon Warsaw Sports Marketing Center for his insights and contributions to this column!

Golfsmith Offers Free Drivers if Sergio Wins the Masters...

Are you looking to create a captivating golf promotion? Are you searching for new ways to drive product sales?

With sports enthusiasts eagerly anticipating the 2009 Masters, Golfsmith recently announced a captivating promotion that is sure to drive a lot of attention. The golf retailer is offering all consumers who purchase a new Taylormade R9, r7 Limited, or '09 Burner driver through April 11th a chance to receive a free refund of their purchase if Sergio Garcia wins the Masters.

After purchasing one of the three (3) aforementioned clubs either in-store or online at Golfsmith.com, consumers are asked to send ina refund promotion form that they receive with their purchase. If Sergio Garcia wins the Masters, Golfsmith will refund consumers' full Taylormade driver purchase.

Golfsmith is taking a huge risk with the promotion (the clubs retail between $299-$399), but with Sergio's 0-41 record in the majors, it is a risk they are willing to take. Advertising Age states that for every 3,000 drivers it sells through the promotion, it stands at the risk of having to shell out $1MM.