Puma Challenges Runners to Take on the Dubai Vertical Marathon

GulfNews.comMarketers looking for new ideas to execute in the running space should take a close look at the Dubai Vertical Marathon, a terrific charity event that Puma recently hosted on May 28th.

Here's a quick breakdown of the event's festivities, which benefited Medecins Sans Frontieres:

• Puma outfitted 200+ participants with exclusive t-shirts and prepped them for the endurance event with organized group stretching exercises after the registration process began at 6:30am of the Godolphin Ballroom at the foot of the Emirates Towers in Dubai
• After the stretching exercise occurred, the participants scaled the 350 metre high tower (1,334 stairs - totaling 52 floors)
  • Puma placed shoes along the course up the tower and offered a free Puma bag to whichever participant could correctly guess the number of shoes along the way 
• Puma rewarded all of the participants with a party on the top floor, which included dancers, disco lights, and music

The results? The event raised over 29,486 euros for MSF... a terrific event! It would be really amazing to see the New York Road Runners or another running organization offer this in one of New York City's tallest skyscrapers!

Check out a video of the action below:

Source: Dubai City Guide

Nike Takes You Inside Their 2010 OOH World Cup Execution

With the 2010 World Cup in South Africa just a few days away, Nike recently released a really cool viral piece that demonstrates how they wrapped the side of the Southern Life building in Johannesburg with an inspiring campaign.

Check out the viral piece below... It does a terrific job providing an inside look at their behind-the-scenes execution!

Kevin Durant Takes You Along On His Journey to China

Kevin Durant truly understands what it takes to become a global icon. The superstar forward for the Oklahoma City Thunder recently toured China with the support of Nike basketball and chronicled his experiences along the way with a series of shorts that he recently featured on his Official YouTube Channel - OfficialKevinDurant. Durant also posted a collection of photos from his journey on Facebook here.

The short YouTube viral pieces help Durant demonstrate that he's more than just a superstar athlete that is touring the world for all of the fame and glory. The vignettes show Durant interacting with Chinese consumers 1-to-1 and via social media, playing pickup games of hoops with aspiring players, expressing his thoughts on the country of China as a whole, and visiting their traditional locales.

Durant's terrific viral  pieces will hopefully serve as a benchmark for sports marketers looking for new ways to take their organizations and brands global through true, personal interaction.

Check out the clips below:

adidas Generates World Cup Buzz in Hong Kong with Giant Soccer Playground

As an Official Sponsor of the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, adidas is using a variety of tactics in a number of major markets across the globe to generate buzz for the game of soccer and its brand. In Hong Kong, adidas created a massive soccer playground and featured some tremendous product displays in retail settings.

Check out a quick video that captures adidas' World Cup activation in Hong Kong below:

Nike Welcomes Rafael Nadal Fans to "The Club"

Nike recently celebrated the launch of its new tennis sportswear line by hosting an exclusive tennis exhibition featuring tennis star Rafael Nadal at the Piscine Molitor, an abandoned art deco swimming pool and leisure complex in Paris.

The event was held at "The Club", an area at the Piscine Molitor that served as a tennis club and social venue for fans attending the 2010 French Open at Roland Garros between May 20 - June 6. Nike showcases the unique setting of the venue by having the world's leading tennis stars, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer, pick up their new gear for the French Open there and spend a few moments teaching a group of aspiring tennis players a few tips and techniques.

Check out a video detailing the event below, at least for the intro video of "The Club's" setting, which is truly unique:

Click here to see a collection of photos from the event.

Bertucci's Hits a Home Run with Boston Billboard

Small businesses looking for ways to leverage local sports properties without owning rights to marks just need to think creatively to capitalize on fan affinity   

Bertucci's, a Northborough, MA company that runs a chain of Italian restaurants, recently found a unique way to capitalize on it's restaurants proximity to Fenway Park. The company is featuring a giant billboard under the iconic Citgo sign just two blocks behind Fenway Park that says, "Free Dinner for Everyone at the Ballpark If a Homerun Hits This Billboard (If Not, Distinctive Deals Start at Just $9.99)".

While the billboard's claim is outlandish (because a home run would never travel that far), it is an extremely relevant messaging piece to thousands of Red Sox fans passing by the sign to hop on the subway after taking in a game at Fenway. The piece demonstrates how local businesses can capitalize on professional/collegiate sports taking place nearby without owning rights to marks or mentioning affiliated terms (e.g. Red Sox, Fenway, etc.). Check out the creative billboard campaign below:

 

Whoever is behind Bertucci's outdoor campaigns is a pure marketing genius. In 2007, the chain featured a billboard that mirrored the look of the city's transit signs, subconsciously drawing the eye of consumers passing by. It was an extremely creative tactic that attracted the attention of several media outlets, including Adrants.com.

  

Source: PCE 2210 Flickr Page

Create Moments of Opportunity for Fans In-Game

Sports organizations looking for new ways to reward fans attending their games should consider creating "moments of opportunity" for fans. These moments, driven by corporate partner-led promotions, are terrific because they can generate excitement during dull moments in the action and can occur at any point during the game.

As teams look for new ways to generate interest and excitement amongst fans, more are turning to these type of rewarding moments. As an example, check out a "Bud Light Quench Time" promotion recently offered by the Idaho Steelheads of the ECHL. The Steelheads identified a three (3) minute period in the game where if the team scored, all fans in attendance would be treated to a discounted price on Anheuser-Busch products for the rest of the game.

The Lotte Giants' Mascots Gone Wild...

Sports organizations looking for new ways to incorporate music into their games should check out a tactic the Lotte Giants, a professional Korean Baseball team, recently implemented as a case study of what NOT to do.

The Lotte Giants organization allowed three of its mascots to get on the dugout and reenact the music video of a recent hit song in Korea. The only problem? The performance called for one of the mascots to strip out of his costume and serenade a female mascot laying on top of the dugout. While the performance was probably a hit amongst many in attendance, it's a wonder what was going through the minds of young fans watching on...

The team, which plays its games at Sajik Baseball Stadium, is one of the most popular teams in the Korean Baseball Organization, drawing 1.38MM fans per year.

Take a quick moment to watch the enclosed video... it will be one that you never forget!

Nike and Team England Give Mount Rushmore a New Look

Nike is celebrating Team England's 2010 World Cup run with one of the most unique outdoor billboard adverts seen to date. Nike recently unveiled a giant billboard emulating Mount Rushmore that featured the faces of four (4) of England's prominently known soccer players. The billboard, completely made of rock, is the largest billboard in the UK, measuring 75m x 16m x 2m. The massive billboard, which supports Nike's "Write the Future" campaign, is expected to be seen by an astounding six (6) million consumers.

The only issue?

Three (3) of the players featured in the billboard campaign - Wayne Rooney, James Milner, and Rio Ferdinand - made the England World Cup team. However the 4th - Theo Walcott - did not. Ironically, Walcott's face will be featured in the rock sculpture display next to the word's "Play to be Remembered", but he will actually not be playing in the World Cup at all.

Nonetheless, the billboard serves as one of the greatest outdoor spectacles in sports and will be forever remembered by many in England and across the world for years to come... Not bad for a non-Official World Cup sponsor!

Check out the billboard campaign below:

Source: EPL Talk

BMW Proves 3D Building Projections Are Here

Sports marketers operating stadium venues with vast blank facades are missing out on a golden opportunity to market to fans entering the stadium and consumers passing by on a daily basis during their morning and afternoon commutes.

With new advances in 3D projection technology (in addition to the LED outdoor marquee displayed by the Miami Heat), sports marketers can display powerful messages on the exterior walls of stadium venues to help drive ticket sales, promote corporate partners, drive awareness for team campaigns/slogans, and simply entertain fans.

While fixed costs are still relatively slightly steep for this messaging medium, they will lower in the coming years and can serve as an impactful way for teams to provide captivating messaging during key times during the season and offseason.

To help demonstrate how powerful 3D building projection messaging can be, take a look at a recent event showcased by BMW in Singapore. The campaign was produced by Publicis Asia and is truly powerful!

Real Madrid Wants You To Become a Part of the Club

Sports organizations looking to create new, captivating messaging campaigns with a call to action should take a close look at a nice piece that Real Madrid recently unveiled entitled, "Be Part of the Club, become Madrista!

The piece does a nice job telling a story that speaks to tradition, success, and perseverance and leaves the viewer with a rush of adrenaline. Why not create a simple piece like this to target casual fans of your sport around the world?

Check it out below:

Real Madrid is bringing its Madrista open call to fans campaign to life with a Madrista Planet initiative on its team website that encourages all of the team's fans outside of Spain to submit a photograph of themselves and a message to have it featured on RealMadrid.com. Thus far, over 3,000 fans from 50 countries have done so... a successful initiative that speaks to the breadth of Real Madrid fans across the globe!

A special thanks to Ash Read of FundSport.com for his insights and contributions to this column!

King Kong Invades Dodger Stadium to Promote 3D New Ride

Universal Studios recently teamed up with the Los Angeles Dodgers to create a viral piece designed to drive buzz for the opening of the park's new King Kong 3D attraction, which opens on July 4th. Universal Studios is releasing a series of viral pieces to drive awareness for the ride, which was designed by director Peter Jackson, and turned to its neighboring partners, the Los Angeles Dodgers, for some assistance with the first piece.

Universal Studios launched the first viral piece, a scene that appeared to be a catastrophe at Dodger Stadium, on May 25th. The video made it appear that King Kong left giant ape footprints near home plate and caused some destruction in deep center field.

Check out the video below and consider new ways that your sports organization can align with theme parks and movie producers to create similar viral pieces in the near future!

Hyundai is Set to Make Noise at the World Cup!

As an Official World Cup Sponsor, Hyundai is enhancing the experience of all fans attending games in South Africa with the construction of one of the nation's newest attractions.

Per KeenonCapetown.com, Hyundai built and mounted a massive 35m blue vuvuzela (an air horn commonly seen at soccer matches) on an unfinished highway in Cape Town. The giant vuvuzela, which set a Guinness World Record for the largest air horn ever built, will go off every time a goal is scored during the World Cup!

The vuvuzela was created in support of Hyundai's 'Bring the Gees' campaign. Check out the pictures of the giant vuvuzela below!

On a related note, check out some of Hyundai's retail activation in support of the World Cup:

The City of Chicago Has Stanley Cup Fever!

Here is a quick look at all of the support the City of Chicago has shown the Chicago Blackhawks during their 2010 Stanley Cup Playoff Run. The City has done a tremendous job outfitting famous exhibits and fixtures around the city to help generate buzz for the franchise.

Check out the deck below for some insights:

Chicago Has Stanley Cup Fever

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