Are you looking to create customized team products? Limited edition apparel/items that are uniquely designed for your organization? After all, these are the items that fans and season ticket holders are looking for...
If so, don't look past the work of Logan Real, an up-and-coming Miami artist who designs custom shoes and apparel for a range of celebrities; from the Miami Heat's DJ Irie to P Diddy to WWE Super Star John Cena. Real specializes in creating custom hand designed work, spanning a variety of items:
Shoes
Watchbands
Dress Belts
Photo Wallets
Blackberry Cases
Wallets
Briefcases
Vintrage Dress Watches/Bands
Purses / Swimsuits
Dog Collars
Logan Real's work has been featured in numerous editions of Ocean Drive magazine and Acclaim magazine and had his products showcased at Superbowl Weekend hosted by ESPN.
Real's hand painted design work is truly exceptional. If there is an artist to go to in the industry for customized work, he is it! Take a moment and check it out...
Chelsea and Manchester United recently competed in one of the greatest Premiership games ever (a game played in Moscow)... The two teams were competing for a $166MM prize, and if you failed to have the television tuned in to ESPN on a Wednesday afternoon, you likely missed it.
I have enclosed a short clip showing some coverage of the game to point out some of the game's branding elements:
Are you looking to capture the attention and interests of the aging baby boomer demographic? Are you looking to develop a platform that acknowledges senior citizens in your local marketplace?
Check out the Tampa Bay Rays' innovative "Golden Rays" program, a campaign developed to draw senior citizens in the Tampa marketplace to the ballpark. Golden Rays Plus Memberships are available for just $10 to all Rays fans 55 years of age or over...
Golden Rays Plus Members Receive:
One (1) ticket voucher to one of eight (8) select games (the dates vary)
One (1) ticket voucher to see either the Yankees or Red Sox play in Tampa
$2 off Outfield Tickets and $1 off Upper Deck tickets to Regular Games Monday through Thursday
Golden Rays T-Shirt
Invitation to attend Exclusive Seminars
Golden Rays Newsletter
To sign up, consumers can either fill out a quick information page on the team's website or call 727.342.4774.
By offering direct access to this membership base (or the group database), I would think that the Rays could effectively sell a presenting partnership for this group... As many companies look for new ways to target baby boomers, wouldn't an automobile/healthcare/eyecare/financial company be interested in tying in their business? Offering select discounts/rewards/plans for Golden Rays members? This serves as a great example of how teams can further segment their fanbases to show incremental value to potential partners...
A great initiative to mirror as the baby boomer demographic nears retirement!
With youth interests and sports participation figures fluxuating in the past decade, teams and brands alike have been devising new strategies to target this attractive demo... Youth now have more disposable income, influence on HHLD purchasing decisions, and freedom to speak their minds (through a variety of media channels).
How are figureheads in the sports world responding to this? Well, the WWE is on to something...
The World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) soon will be launching a web site strictly for kids. The site, WWEKids.com, will complement the recent launch of the organization's kids magazine, WWE kids. Both initiatives are geared towards youth 6-14 years of age. WWEKids.com will host content from the magazine and offer interactive puzzles, interviews, and games featuring the wrestlers as well as consumer products. WWE is sidestepping nervous parents by offering exercise suggestions, providing details on healthy eating, and promoting community involvement and self-esteem.
Geof Rochester, Executive Vice President of Marketing for WWE, commented, "We have seen a steady growth in younger viewers of our programs, and we have made a conscious decision to embrace this audience."
This is a GREAT initiative and serves as a model that I think many professional leagues will look to model. Look for more information to come on similar concepts as they develop...
What are some innovative ways that your team/brand has tried to connect with its fanbase on Facebook and Myspace?
While many marketers understand that social networking applications are the most effective means for targeting young consumers, many have not discovered effective ways to make use of these mediums.
The Cincinnati Bengals have discovered an easy solution for engraining their brand in the lives of their fans... The team created the "Bengal Widget", a transferable item that users can post on their social networking profiles.
The Bengals Widget offers the 2008 schedule, team videos, news updates, and related team events. Users can simply "own" the Widget by copying it directly from the team site to their social networking profile or copying and pasting the widget's HTML code directly into their website. All consumers have to do is hit the "Grab It button" on the widget, posted on the team webpage.
Look for more teams to discover and create unique widgets that fans can post on their fan profiles to show their team support! The sports applications on Facebook have already demonstrated the popularity of these types of widgets among users.
When was the last time that your organization considered making dramatic improvements to its concessions and bathroom facilities? We repeatedly here about teams upgrading their scoreboards, stadium seating, and suite levels, but too often we ignore some of our venue's most pivotal assets - restrooms and food concessions.
Consider the following guerilla tactic implemented by Kleenex... Have you considered bringing on a CPG/Home Improvement partner that can be leveraged to enhance your venue's facilities? This could serve as a great way to vastly improve your women's restrooms to say the least...
Are you looking for innovative ways to capture the attention of your consumers and fans during their every day lives? Nike walked a fine line with its guerilla marketing tactics in Prague, shown in the clip below... Nonetheless, an innovative tactic that definitely drove consumer awareness on the streets of the city!
Which teams and University athletic departments have emerged as "best-in-class" when it comes to grassroots efforts? The following pictures make a strong case for the Phoenix Coyotes, an organization that always seems to find innovative ways to leverage their product in the Phoenix marketplace.
Check out some of the Coyotes grassroots efforts and consider ways that you can implement similar ideas within your venue/market:
Unique Fan Photo Area Out-of-Venue:
Bathroom Activation (Team Branded Mirror)
Custom Shopping Cart Return
Faceoff Street Theatre (Street Corner Display)
Innovative Awareness Tactics
Not sure if the Coyotes actually did this... But this would be a great way to leverage your hockey organization at a local bowling alley!
The clip below details how Duke fans leveraged "Speedo Guy" to distract UNC shooters at the free throw line... A very interesting in-game tactic that seems to have worked! Off-the-wall sponsors (i.e. Axe, Trojan, etc.) should consider identifying similar personalities on college campuses to drive unique in-game guerilla marketing tactics...
What would you do for UNC-Duke tickets... arguably the hottest ticket in all of college sports? At the University of North Carolina, the Carolina Athletic Association (CAA) hosts a contest as part of "Beat Dook Week" that dangles four (4) riser tickets and four (4) lower-level tickets to the game for students who are willing to perform the greatest (craziest) stunts.
The contest is said to get bigger every year... and the 2007-08 season did not disappoint! The "What Would You Do For Dook Tickets" contest is held annually, with a Pokey-Stick eating contest and a soda-chugging contest complementing the promotion in the Pit in 2007-08.
This is a great tactic to drive student fan interest/demand for rivalry games... but most athletic departments would want to act with caution due to the potential legalities with being involved!
The March 2008 edition of Event Marketer features some great information on Word of Mouth (WOM) Marketing that I wanted to share... As sports marketers, we always hear about it, yet facts and results are rarely brought to the table. The goal of this article is to build your knowledge on word of mouth marketing - read up and spread the word!
What is Word-of-Mouth Marketing? Simply, it is getting people to talk about a brand by creating meaningful and direct interactions with consumers (usually through a brand ambassador communicating their experiences). WOM is an effort by an organization to encourage, facilitae, and amplify marketing-relevant messages among consumers
Where is Word-of-Mouth Marketing Happening? Everywhere. People are telling others about the brands they love and the experiences they take in. Turn brand engagements (stadium experiences) into stories worth telling to friends and colleagues... Capitalize on this! What is the story that your fans will tell their frends? Events get people charged up about brands like nothing else... What are you doing with your promotions/corporate sponsorship initiatives to agree with this statement?
Why is Word-of-Mouth Marketing a Growing Trend? Ad budgets are down, alternative media spending is up - yet 90% of consumers are talking to each other face-to-face about brands. Now, consumers are in control of the message. WOM spending topped $1BN in 2007, making it one of the fastest-growing alternative media segments (to give you an idea of the shift to non-traditional marketing/advertising methods: Nike spent just 1/3 of its $678MM ad budget on traditional media in 2006)
Is Word-of-Mouth Marketing Effective? A new research report released by The Event Marketing Institute revealed that 78% of event attendees told others about their on-site experience. Some 90% of these people talked up the event to others within 48 hours - a simple note that demonstrates that people are communicating about their experiences more now than ever...and are doing so across multiple channels
Is Word-of-Mouth-Marketing Cost-Effective? In most cases, yes. Companies that leverage buzz and influencer programs to increase reach lower their critical "cost-per-touch" measure. According to an EMI study, 77% of consumers say that their purchase decisions are influenced by others.
Sports Marketer Implications: Wait, what? 77% of consumers say that their purchase decisions are influenced by others. Here is the answer for persons selling tickets - focus your efforts on identifying brand ambassadors - create influencer programs (especially to drive group sales) where you identify one (1) brand fanatic and have them spread the message to others about their experience attending a game, etc. By creating these "customer-to-prospect" programs, you essentially want to reach out to a consumer who understands the brand and then takes it upon themselves to infect others on your behalf... Providing them with a VIP experience or some free gear/behind-the-scenes access couldn't hurt either...
How do you become a Word-of-Mouth Marketer? Start by asking yourself a few of these questions...
What is our marketing doing to encourage WOM and in particular WOM advocacy?
How do we drive buzz that stimulates trial and repeat purchase?
How can we make it easy in our messaging for consumers to really be able to share with each other the most relevant and important and exciting things about our brands?
How does our messaging bring that to the fore so it's easy for consumers to have the language to talk about our brand and what are the marketing mechanisms that make it easy for consumers to spread the word about our brand?
How can I take advantage of the fact that 90% of event attendees bring at least one other person with them? That more than 66% of persons travel to events in groups of 2-4 people? That 37% of people share their event experience with friends and family on the same day it took place?
Am I putting the consumer in charge of the message and letting them control it? What steps am I taking to have my brand weaved into their conversations and how can I influence this?
Have I identified my influencers/connectors - socially connected consumers that passionately love my brand and act as my best customers? Have I identified my core group of brand advocates? Have I taken measures to identify such a group of individuals in the stadium setting? Influencers, who make up just 10% of the world's population, wield their influence on everyone they meet.
Are you looking to target fans outside of your team's local market? Consider benchmarking the online tool that the New York Jets created for their fans across the globe.
The New York Jets feature an online portal called Out of Town Jets Fans. The online tool is so simple, yet it provides a very effective way for the Jets to connect their fans and increase their affinity for the organization.
The Out of Town Jets Fans is a user-friendly spreadsheet tool that lists:
Bar/Restaurant Location
Address
City
Phone
Specials
Users can post their own fan club pages, access existing fan pages, and update new bar listings. Users can search by state listings. This is a great tool to stay connected with fans out-of-market!
Are you looking to show season ticket holders incremental value? Are you looking to do so at a minimal cost? The New York Knicks may have the answer for you...
The New York Knicks created a "Business Alliance" for season ticket holders, and online forum that enables season ticket holders to post information about their business (Business Name, Contact Information, Address. Phone/Email, Website). The Knicks Business Alliance was designed to drive fellow season ticket holders and fans of the NBA to season ticket holders' place of business. The Knicks claim that the season ticket holder B2B directory will provide incremental value to all season ticket holders by providing discounts to local businesses. The Knicks send a printed guidebook (containing all B2B information) to all season subscribers.
Developing a "Business Alliance" is a great opportunity to show season ticket holders incremental value at minimal cost. The Knicks drive business for their season ticket holders, learn more about their businesses, and possibly open up the door for integration opportunities. This would be a great idea for University athletic departments to show incremental value to large donors and/or local businesses. Teams/organizations can support this online business forum through a partnership with CareerBuilder.com/GoDaddy.com/the Yellow Pages, executive hiring firms, etc.
Look for this practice to become implemented at organizations/Universities across the nation!
Are you looking to devise a strategy to target fans in neighboring/remote cities? Consider a recent strategy that the Seattle Mariners created to target consumers in Portland, OR, located 175 miles south of Seattle. The Mariners created a unique webpage designed solely for Portland consumers, which provides information on ticket offers, group events, promotions, transportation options, and local attractions. The dedicated webpage is titled, "Portland & The Mariners, You're Only 175 Miles Away from Blue Skies, Green Grass, and Mariners Baseball". The site even includes a sidebar that lists travel tips from select Mariners players.
The Mariners are complementing their targeted online efforts with television and radio ads in-market and an interesting outdoor marketing campaign. The team has erected two (2) billboards, one of which proclaims, "Mojo. Just 175 Miles North". The Mariners outreach efforts in Portland are considered the broadest initiatives the team has had in the past ten (10) years.
The majority of professional organizations and athletic departments stimulate the attention and interest of young fans through Kids Clubs. Teams usually support these initiatives by providing kids with a magazine subscription, a chance to receive premium items, and limited entertainment opportunities. However, sports representatives may want to consider making a greater effort to target and engage young fans using technology.
Recent results from a study conducted by The NPD Group reveal that kids are starting to use technological devices at earlier ages. The study analyzed the habits of children living in the U.S., Britain, Germany, and France and revealed insights into the average age that U.S. kids start using technology:
Desktop Computers - 5.5 years of age
Video Game Consoles - 5.9 years of age
Video Game Portable Systems - 6.2 years of age
Laptop Computers - 7.1 years of age
Digital Cameras - 7.9 years of age
American kids were the youngest of their global counterparts to use each of the items listed above. The popularity of technology among young consumers is directly seen through the recent rise of two companies, Webkinz and Build-A-Bear. As a sports property representative, why not take advantage of this?
Property representatives should consider:
Offering promotional items similar to Webkinz and Build-A-Bear to draw more families through the turnstiles
Incorporating Webkinz and/or Build-A-Bear products/shops into the venue experience (see Build-A-Bear's existing MLB presence below)
Creating brand extensions for existing merchandise that incorporates a virtual component
Enable consumers who purchase plush toys of players to interact with other users in a virtual environment (where they can develop profiles, play games, etc.)
Create a virtual environment where fans can become the team mascot and partake in virtual activities/games with the purchase of a mascot stuffed animal
About Webkinz - Webkinz are stuffed animals that come with a special code on their labels that allow consumers to access a "Webkinz World", offering users a virtual version of the pet that can be used to interact with others (there is a smaller version of Webkinz called Lil' Kinz). With two (2) million Webkinz products sold and one (1) million users registered in the "Webkinz World", the demand for this product has drawn comparisons to the Beanie Baby craze of the 1990s.
About Build-A-Bear - Build-A-Bear is an American retailer that sells customized teddy bears and other stuffed animals. The retailer recently created an online virtual town called "Build-A-Bearville" where users can play games and interact with one another in a safe environment. Like Webkinz, users can bring their purchased stuffed animals to life using a special code found on the bear's berth certificate.
Build-A-Bear has existing roots in baseball - "Make Your Own Mascot" stores are located in Citizens Bank Park (Phi), Jacobs Field (Cle), Great American Ballpark (Cin), AT&T Park (San Fran), Nationals Park (D.C.), Fenway Park (Boston), and Busch Stadium (St. Louis). From a premium standpoint, Build-A-Bear plush toys were distributed in McDonalds Happy Meals in 2006 and 2007.
Maxim Magazine, SportsClips, and Hooters were all founded on a simple, yet extremely effective formula to attract male customers:
Sex + Sports = Sales *Note: drink specials and great 80's music also serve as a complement.
Using this equation, turn college male students into repeat customers, serving as WOM brand ambassadors for your organization.
This formula is so simple, yet it seems that professional organizations continually struggle to generate creative ideas for to attract college students throughout the season. Keep it simple, they will come. The underlying message of this article is not for teams to exploit their assets, it is to LEVERAGE their assets.
Remember, be sure to capture footage of your college nights... from the student's point of view (by asking students to submit footage of their experience or position a staff member in that section with video). You need to sell the experience to prospective students, and the best way to do this is virally (through YouTube on the Internet/Facebook/Myspace) and/or video board segments promoting the events.
Brainstorming for ideas should always begin with thinking from the consumer's mindset. If you were a college male with endless Friday night entertainment options (local college sports, bars, parties, hanging out with friends, movies, road trips, etc.), what would drive you to spend a larger sum of money to attend a professional sporting event? What stadium activities would drive you to tell friends and colleagues about your experience?
Remember the "Sex + Sports = Success" equation:
COST-EFFECTIVE PROMOTIONS
Team Cheerleader/Dancer Poster Night (with post-game autographs)
Meet-n-Greet with Team Dancers/Cheerleaders Post-Game
A local attractive celebrity profiled on the scoreboard (In the past, the Miami Heat have profiled Anna Kournikova and Enrique Iglesias on the "Kiss Cam")
An affiliation through a special post-game party/concert with a local bar/club/entertainment provider (free admission to the event with ticket validation)
A sweepstakes opportunity to win a free trip with the team's cheerleaders/dancers for their annual calendar photoshoot
Green Screen opportunity (PictureU Promotions) where all college males can take a picture with the cheerleaders/dance team when they enter the arena doors (as a takeaway from the event)
Cheerleader/Dance Team Circulate the crowd (Before every game, the Minnesota Timberwolves have their dance team circulate throughout the crowd and engage in conversation with ticket holders)
Through a collaboration with Hooters, create a unique stadium section (chalet, suite, reserved designated upper bowl section) where college students are served by Hooters girls (a great brand extension for the restaurant)
Limited Edition Maxim/Sports Illustrated edition given to all college students in attendance (similar to SI on Campus)
The Atlanta Thrashers offer one of the best in-game experiences there is in sports. To generate crowd buzz during the third period, the team profiles a fan on the scoreboard who chugs a Guinness beer and runs up and bangs on the rink boards. Every time that I have been in attendance, the crowd has gone absolutely nuts. Pre-game, $8 64-oz beers are sold in Phillips Arena's neighboring CNN Center Food Court. Although this alcoholic drink special is not offered by the organization in any manner, the Thrashers benefit from having out-of-venue, independent vendors offer such great offers to target college students.
Think creatively to attract college students, but keep it simple. Remember, if the formula ain't broke, don't fix it.
"College Nights" are supposed to be fun:
The video featured above was captured by a UPenn student profiling his experience attending 'College Night' at a Philadelphia Phillies game. This is a great example of "indie video" created by fans to profile their experiences attending games. When watching this video, think about all the ways that you can target this "college fan" on their way to the stadium. What are ways that you can enhance his experience/journey to the game?
Eco-friendly fever has rapidly become mainstream, sweeping the nation by storm. You are either green or you aren't. Marketers have created programs that tout green products, donate money to global conservation efforts, and have even tried to make their processes and systems more eco-friendly along the way. Americans talk green, but do they act green? Do consumers really understand the eco-benefits that companies are claiming?
According to the Federal Trade Commission, consumers don't - a key reason for why the government agency is cracking down on its green guidelines and forcing companies to show reliable evidence of their efforts. In reality, few consumers understand how their dollars help the planet and companies lacking true messaging campaigns will begin to pay the price. The FTC will begin to mandate that companies explain to consumers exactly what benefits are derived from their environmental efforts through clear, understandable messaging.
In other words, if you are going to create a green initiative for your team/sports organization, act with sincerity and in doing so, explain exactly what you are doing to consumers. Has the sports marketplace been slow to adapt to the green movement? Not necessarily. Recognizing how highly consumers "say" they value the eco-friendly initiatives, more teams and corporate sponsors than ever are responding:
The Buffalo Sabres recently announced a "Blue & Gold Make Green Initiative" where the team is aligning with National Fuel Gas Co. to become environmentally friendly and hand out 5,000 conservation kits to fans that attended their Feb. 17th home contest.
Gas and energy companies are using green messaging to make a social connection with fans through their sports partnerships.
The Washington Nationals are creating the first big league sports facility with a green roof; the ballpark will feature a 6,300 square foot roof that is covered with plant grass and other plants. The green roof is designed to absorb the sun's rays and reduce the amount of reflected heat.
NBC's Sunday Night Football has demonstrated numerous "energy conservation efforts", including a feature where the network aired its halftime coverage in the dark to save electricity.
The Pepsi Center become the first sports arena in the United States to claim "100 percent Green" status by announcing it will buy enough renewable energy to offset all electricity used at the arena. Arena officials also announced a program to encourage fan involvement in environmental issues, a package of improvements to the 9-year-old facility, and the arena's involvement in the Environmental Protection Agency's "Climate Leaders" program -- again, the first in the United States by a sports arena (3/17, Newswire)
The Cleveland Indians announced an environmental campaign termed, "Our Tribe Is Green... Are You In The Tribe?". The campaign is supported with "green concessions efforts" - recycable paper, corn starch cups, and recycable containers (SBJ 3.24.07)
The Pittsburgh Pirates launched "Let's Go Bucs. Let's Go Green." to stimulate green initiatives, business practices, and educational outreach (SBJ 3.24.07)
However, when going green act with caution. Mike Lawrence, EVP of Cone LLC in Boston, said it best, "Green marketing is a minefield and a fertile field at the same time. Marketers see the polls and want to take advantage of the green movement. In the process they may be shooting themselves in the foot."
On a side note: Starbucks' current "Green Slogan" for its paper products is pretty good:
Less Napkins. More Plants. More Planet. Less Napkins.
The Columbus Blue Jackets created a unique vignette to target neighboring college students at Ohio State University. The Blue Jackets developed "Rush CBJ", a campaign that uses a theme from the movie Old School to drive home select messaging to college students, offering discounts on ticket prices before each Blue Jackets home game ($15 Upper Level ($41 value), $25 lower level).
Note: The Blue Jackets track fans down in a van referred to as the "Fanboni" ... pretty creative! Here is the clip:
As sports marketers, we need to be thinking like mobile marketers. Why? Because mobile marketing is the next revolution for targeting our fanbase and operating our stadiums (see: ticketless entry).
Mobile ad spending will reach $1.6BN in 2008 and will jump to $4.8BN in 2011 (there are 243 MM cell phone subscribers). While consumers have been slow to adopt some forms of technology, mobile marketers have learned that kids are willing to pay a dollar or two to engage with their favorite band (affinity which translates to sports teams). How many? Marketing analysts figure approximately 15-25% of people in an arena (although this figure seems relatively high).
For some quick mobile activation ideas with applications to sport, read more here.
When are consumers most receptive to corporate messaging? Have you ever considered the 2-3 minute period when people are filling up their tank at the gas pump? These questions have led marketers to believe that targeting consumers at the gas pump is an effective means. But how does this apply to you as a sports marketer?
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Thursday, May 29, 2008 at 07:21PM 
Are you looking to create customized team products? Limited edition apparel/items that are uniquely designed for your organization? After all, these are the items that fans and season ticket holders are looking for... 
Shoes
Briefcases
