Charles Schwab Connects with Consumers via Golf Pro

Are you looking for new ways to speak directly to high class, middle-aged consumers? Are you looking for new ways to leverage sports without spending large sums of money on official partnership agreements?

Charles Schwab, the Official Investment Firm of the PGA Tour and the Champions Tour, recently launched a creative messaging campaign that speaks directly to its middle-aged, affluent consumer base. The company created a "Talk to a Pro" campaign that enables consumers to receive a series of tips from Tiger Woods' swing coach Hank Haney.

Schwab is supporting the campaign with the messaging philosophy that states "Whether you need help with your investments or your golf game, sometimes it helps to talk to a pro."

The exclusive Hank Haney video series features five (5) vignettes detailing Haney's philosophies of golf and seven (7) videos offering exclusive tips for golfers. On the microsite, consumers can also take a Mental Game Assessment and experiment with a variety of investing tools. The firm is supporting the campaign with features on its official Facebook page.

Charles Schwab's partnership with Hank Haney serves as a great benchmark for companies looking for new ways to connect with avid sports fans/participants without paying large sums of rights fees. Although Schwab has a significant investment as an Official PGA Tour and Champions Tour sponsor, this effective PSA agreement could have likely been done without an Official affiliation.

Do Your Vignettes Feature Product Placement?

Are you looking for new ways to drive incremental value for corporate partners? Are you looking for ways to showcase a new product or brand?

Arizona State Athletics has done a tremendous job over the past years with the pre-game intro vignettes they feature on the videoboard at Sun Devil Stadium. The clip features the team's mascot stomping his way into the stadium, crushing a University of Arizona bus along the way.

However, take a moment to notice the creative Nike product placement throughout the vignette (Uniform :05-:08 / Shoes :44-46, :53-:55, :58-1:01, 1:10-1:11, 1:18-1:19, 1:21-1:22). The ASU Football vignette, providing a total of :18-:20 exposure, serves as a great way to drive some additional value/affiliation awareness for Nike in-game!

Check it out below:

The Green Man Delivers for HP and Warsaw

Keith Becker, UOSportsDude.comAre you looking for new icons to leverage at sporting events? Are you looking for new ways to drive awareness in a cluttered stadium environment?

In 2009, Two (2) Warsaw Sports Marketing Center students - Steven Strand and Daniel Cogan - were hired by a New York-based agency called Mr. Youth to serve as brand ambassadors for Hewlett Packard on the University of Oregon's campus. The role tasked the two (2) students with creating a captivating marketing campaign that effectively drove awareness for the HP brand on campus.

Strand and Cogan put their sports marketing expertise to work by identifying The Oregon Green Man as an icon on campus that they could leverage without having to purchase official marketing rights (HP is not an Official Sponsor of the University of Oregon Athletics Department) to drive awareness. The two (2) parties collaborated to create an exclusive HP tailgate prior to the team's home game versus Arizona State that featured an appearance by The Oregon Green Man.

To drive awareness for the event, The Oregon Green Man posted several updates on his Facebook account (with 3,000 followers), attracting the attention of the Oregon Daily Emerald, a student-run newspaper. The tailgate attracted 300+ students who visited the tailgate for a chance to have their picture with The Oregon Green man and check out the new HP computers on display. The Green Man also placed HP stickers on his "green suit" which was picked up several times on ESPN and DuckVision during the game (driving thousands of valuable impressions for the brand).

The initiative serves as a great example of the ways top sports graduate programs can drive value for brands and sports organizations. Check back for more related examples of this!

Source: BleacherReport.com

How is Social Media Impacting Our Lives?

Watch the video enclosed below and you may have a new outlook on how social media is rapidly changing the world that we live in.

For those operating/marketing sports organizations, time is of the essence - there isn't time to resist technology. Find ways that social media makes sense for your organization and can drive value for all stakeholders involved!

Activation of the Day - Hershey's

When LSU hosted the University of Florida back in October, plenty of the nation's leading brands were on-hand to engage with college football fans prior to one of the season's most anticipated games. One of those sponsors was Hershey's, which featured a prominent display just outside Death Valley.

Check out some pictures of their activation below (courtesy of Sean O'Hara of the Ohio University Center for Sports Administration):

Trend Tracker: Gameday Housing

Are you looking for new ways to target the significant amount of fans out-of-venue? Is your brand looking for new "ownable" properties in the sports marketplace?

As reported in Entreprenuer magazine, three (3) Notre Dame alums recently started a venture called Gameday Housing that serves as a vacation rental marketplace for fans looking to rent a home (versus a hotel room) on a game day weekend in a college marketplace. The venture allows fans to quickly log on to GamedayHousing.com, choose which game they would like to attend, and see which houses they can rent to host an ultimate watch party.

After just six (6) months, Gameday Housing registered 100+ homeowners in college football towns who were willing to rent out their residences to visiting fans and the company is slated to generate $500K+ revenues next season (up from $100K in 2008). The revenue model is structured so Gameday Housing takes a 20% commission from each transaction, with homeowners pocketing the rest. A pretty nice (yet, a little risky) way to make some easy dollars if you are planning on being out of town on a game weekend!

Rates fluctuate based on demand per market/game day weekend. In 2008, a restored 1904 bungalow in Austin Texas went for $1,180 on the Texas-Kansas weekend while a two (2) night stay in a log cabin in Sevierville, Tennessee went for just $375 when Tennessee played Vanderbilt at home.

The Gameday Housing website, currently in a Beta stage, features 45 college markets for fans to choose housing options on game day weekends (as well as the National Championship, Sugar Bowl, and Rose Bowl). Homeowners looking to get started need to pay a $100 listing fee that is refunded after their first booking (not a bad deal).

Look for the businessmen behind Gameday Housing to make some serious money as college football rivalry weekends continue to rise in popularity and attract the minds (and wallets) of fans! 

Fans Shoot to Win Hams at ECHL Hockey Game

Are you looking for new ways to reward fans at games played during the holiday season? Are you looking to provide fans with a unique post-game opportunity?

The Reading Royals of the ECHL recently announced that all fans in attendance at the team's game against the Elmira Jackets on December 18th will have the chance to shoot to win a free ham courtesy of Berks Packing. As part of the Berks Packing Holiday Ham Shoot promotion, fans will be invited down to the ice after the game and will be given one chance to score a goal from a designated spot on the ice for a chance to win.

The unique promotion will be held in conjuction with a holiday food drive that the Royals and the Greater Berks Food Bank are hosting at the game on the 18th.  

Activation of the Day - The 100 Yard Shot

Prior to Super Bowl XLIII in Tampa, 225 football fans participated in a 100-yard long shot promotion courtesy of Shotsticks, Sobieski Vodka, and Bartender in the Box. The act served as a great publicity stunt for the brands and provides a benchmark for brands who are looking to engage fans in the tailgate lots prior to a major event.

U.S. Soccer Tests the Skills of an NFL Kicker

Are you looking for new ways to promote the athleticsm of your organization's athletes? Are you looking to cross-promote with another sports organization in your local marketplace?

In July 2009, Philadelphia Eagles kicker David Akers made an appearance at the U.S. Men's National Soccer Team's practice as they prepared for a CONCACAF Gold Cup quarterfinals match at Lincoln Financial Field. Akers' appearance made for some quality footage for U.S. Soccer to feature in the viral space.

Members of the U.S. Soccer team battled it out with Akers in a variety of kicking contests, using both footballs and soccer balls. The video below demonstrates how skillful soccer players and NFL kickers actually are, and serves as a great benchmark for:

• Soccer organizations looking to align with other sports organizations in the local marketplace to promote their sport
• College athletic departments looking to showcase a collection of their student-athletes
• Professional organizations looking to showcase the skills of specialty players (kickers, punters, etc.)
• Brands looking to promote multiple athlete endorsers

Check it out below:

Activation of the Day - adidas

With the 2010 World Cup officially 183 days away, adidas displayed a collection of giant replica soccer balls from past World Cup events. The display is located adjacent to a main route along the waterfront in Cape Town, South Africa. Check it out below:

The Checkers Let You Check Out Their "Cribs"

Are you looking for new ways to leverage housing/realtor partners? Are you looking for ways to help build the identity of your organization's players outside of the stadium/arena? 

The ECHL's Charlotte Checkers recently promoted their partnership with the Park at Steele Creek living community by creating a humorous "Cribs" vignette that features the apartment of defenseman Ethan Graham. The 8:31 feature does a tremendous job profiling "The Official Off-Ice Home of the Charlotte Checkers" and provide fans with an inside look at the lifestyle of a minor league hockey player. It's refreshing to see teams work so closely with their players to provide unique content for fans (even if we aren't dealing with mansions and luxury automobiles behind the scenes)...

The Checkers feature the Cribs vignette along with a collection of other videos on the team's official YouTube Channel (check it out - a nice benchmark for other minor league organizations). 

Check out the Checkers' Cribs segment below:

Hats off to Thomas Smith and Patrick Stack for continuing to do some great things for the Checkers organization... keep up the great work!

SUBWAY Unveils A Fresh Promotion in Columbus

Are you looking for new ways to leverage QSR partners? Are you looking for ways to tie ticket sales drivers into partnership agreements?

The Columbus Blue Jackets recently announced a partnership agreement with SUBWAY Restaurants offering the team's fans an incredible promotional offer. SUBWAY and the Blue Jackets organization are teaming up to offer a "4 Subs, 4 Stubs" promotion that enables fans who purchase four (4) foot-long subs in one (1) transaction to receive a voucher for:

• (4) select Blue Jackets tickets for just $5 each (in the SUBWAY Fresh Seats)
• (4) Blue Jackets/Subway co-branded shirts

The Blue Jackets have designated 250 SUBWAY Fresh Seats for five (5) select games during the 2009-10 season. When the allotted tickets are gone, fans can use the voucher as a $5 discount on select area tickets. Consumers may take advantage of the SUBWAY Fresh Seats at the following games:

• December 14th vs. Nashville
• January 18th vs. St. Louis
• February 4th vs. Dallas
• March 2nd vs. Vancouver
• March 15 vs. Edmonton

The Blue Jackets organization did a terrific job concepting the "Subway Fresh Seats" section - an idea that will most likely be replicated in many other venues. Check back for additional "fresh" ideas from the Blue Jackets soon!

Chick-fil-A - Activation of the Day

adidas Makes a World Cup Splash in South Africa

Are you looking for new ways to activate around premier events? Are you looking to create a national campaign around a soccer property?

As the world prepares for an exciting 2010 World Cup showdown in South Africa, adidas is already capturing the marketplace with a creative mobile marketing program that is uniting citizens of South Africa by having them sign a giant jersey. To drive awareness for the initiative, adidas is creating a video series that chronicles the jersey tour's jersey and capturing consumer engagement along the way.

Check out a preview below:

Consider Branding that Moves Consumers...

Is your organization looking for new ways to drive awareness in the local marketplace? Are you looking for ways to leverage modes of transportation to promote an upcoming event?

To drive awareness for the 2009 NBA All-Star festivities taking place in Phoenix, AZ, the National Basketball Assocation (NBA) teamed up with bluemedia and league sponsor Hewlett Packard to wrap two (2) METRO light rail trains in the Phoenix marketplace. The NBA called on bluemedia to print the images of six (6) 2009 NBA All-Stars on the light rail trains using HP digital printing technology.

The final product made a huge splash in the community and generated plenty of media impressions. Check out the full production process below: