Are you looking to have a recognizable presence around town? Are you looking for new ways to capture consumer attention without disrupting their lifestyle?
Major League Baseball recently invested in a unique idea to spread awareness amongst citizens of New York City about the MLB All-Star Game. The league posted forty-two (42) 8.5-foot statues around the city, promoting each of the 30 teams in the league and All-Star specific history and events. The statues were featured throughout the city from June 19th until July 15th. MLB is supporting the statue initiative, referred to as Statues on Parade, with a number of consumer touchpoints:
- Online Support - MLB is providing information and a map of the statues on MLB.com for fans to reference and learn more. Major League baseball had a marathon runner document their experience running 26.2 miles to see all forty-two (42) statues across the city
- Promotional Support - Fans were encouraged via an online promotion to submit their favorite picture taken with a statue for a chance to win two (2) tickets to the MLB All-Star Game and the Home Run Derby
- Charitable Support: Major League Baseball is auctioning off each of the statues with a starting bid of $5,000 on the MLB.com Auction. All of the proceeds will benefit the Boys & Girls Club of America (a guaranteed contribution of $210K)
Many universities and professional organizations are now implementing similar initiatives. For example, officials at Auburn University and the University of Florida collaborated with local artists to design statues (Auburn - multi-colored tigers, Florida - Alligators) that were situated around town and then sold off to local businesses and consumers to generate money for a good cause... Costs will vary with such initiatives, but it serves as a great way to leave lasting stamp on the community and generate some great awareness and PR!