NHL

Steve Ross is a billionaire or has made the Related Companies into one of the most successful commercial real estate companies in the world. He has purchased the Miami Dolphins, has shown savvy to find a way to keep Bill Parcells around, has let the team continue to grow after a surprising playoff season a year ago, and has a host of minority partners who he will tap into, including the legendary Jimmy Buffett. So this week the team announced a short-term deal to rename Dolphins Stadium after A-B’s Land Shark Beer, a Buffet brand.

The have had proposals on air, the signature blue field, amazing comebacks and challenges to the BCS…now Boise State is looking to use aggressive social media tactics to grow its brands and expose its athletes to the widest grassroots audience possible in an attempt to market outside its nice audience. The Broncos plans for the summer were discussed in detail in this weekend’s Idaho Statesman, and though not unique as one off’s. they show a solid unified plan for a midmajor school looking to invest in its brand and get exposure where traditional media is limited.

For as long as we have had promotions in sports, teams have worked with franchises for “special prizes” when teams hit milestones in games. Free fries for a 100 points, double chili for six goals etc. etc. have always been a get something for nothing mantra that drives foot traffic as the added bonus for a team partnership for many retailers and franchisees. In February Quiznos took in one step further by using many of its sports platforms to promote its one million free sub giveaway, which generated a countless amount of foot traffic and publicity even with some of its snafus with demand outreaching supply.

That’s right folks, there are at least hundreds of thousands of you out there, that care about hockey (pronounced “ockey” i think.  I was told that the “H” is silent).

Versus, over 16 games through April 22, averaged a 0.4 rating, a 33% rise from 0.3 mark during the corresponding period in the NHL’s 2008 post-season, according to Nielsen Media Research.

All told, the Comcast-owned service delivered 449,379 viewers on average, a 50% jump from 300,033 through 16 opening-round contests last year.

On the demo front, the competition channel registered a 39% gain among men 18 to 49 and a 52% advance among guys 25 to 54, according to Versus officials.

As one season starts for a star-crossed franchise (the Washington Nationals) and one ended (The New York Islanders) it is interesting to look at the messages sent to fans by the actions of the team. This weekend, the Nats benched and fined one of their young, marketable players, Elijah Dukes, for showing up a few minutes late after attending a team-sponsored community relations appearance. While the question of zero tolerance for deadlines is left to management, the question of what message it sends to fans and to players is another issue.

The NHL postseason begins in earnest this week, falling at a good time after the Masters, just ahead of the NBA playoffs, before the NFL Draft and following the hype of opening day for baseball. It also helps to have many of the major markets where hockey has a strong brand presence…New York, Chicago, Boston, Washington, Detroit and Philly especially…all playing with intriguing matchups. The new digital platforms the NHL has pushed so hard to create and offer to fans (as reported in Sports Business Journal this week) also draw more brand attention, so the opportunity to capture the casual fan, especially in major markets seems to all be in place.

As we see many “niche” brands from the AFL to NLL struggle with the economy and being able to justify brand spends, the NHL has gone the opposite way and seems to be doing all the right things to build marketshare, buzz and connect with fans on a national and international level. Now in no way is the NHL a niche..it remains one of the five largest sports brands in North America and arguably in the world, and it should stand for all things hockey. However as recently as a few years ago, many were questioning hockey’s plans and marketability.

How does a brand which is not necessarily always top of mind find ways to remain relevant in a very crowded marketplace?

In these economically challenged times for the auto industry, even those brands perceived as “doing well” are looking to refresh, remind and build brand.  Such is the case with Honda, as Karl Greenburg points out in Media Post.  The brand has reluanched its successful camapign which used to look at more futuristic endearvors, and will now use its racing platform and its engineers looking not just at success but how they built success through failure.  The brand will use digital to push longer vignettes that may appeal to a younger buyer, while looking to engage the casual fan through traditional advertsing tieing in their auto racing platforms t

Matt Futterman in Friday’s Wall Street Journal had an interesting look at what happens when the ownership groups of franchises have their primary business suffer large losses, and how it can effect their secondary business…which in many cases can be a franchise.  The crazy situation with the San Diego Padres sell off due to a divorce settlement, is one of the more extreme problems that can arise when owners financial issues off the field effect performance and brand of the franchise.  The bottom line is that franchises and those who run and sell them, should always look to how the brand can best fit the assets of the owner, whether that is creating more ROI for the local car business th

With three teams moving very quickly with front office changes on Monday, the Lions, Browns and Jets all sent messages to their fans and business partners that changes need to be made to improve the image of the team, and by doing so the day after the season, immediately avoided the twisting in the wind and distractions that often come with “evaluations” after poor seasons.  Especially in New York, fans have seen coaches dangle while decisions are made, so the Jets move yesterday was probably the smartest one for the franchise at this point.  However now that the smoke clears, it appears the Browns may have the most on one page as they look for direction going forward. 

Appealing to the core fan is always important and pretty simple for brand and fan development.  Yet at this time of year it always seems that most teams will do Christmas or overall holiday promotions and will overlook those of the Jewish faith celebrating Hanukah.  Now it wouldn’t make sense to do Hanukah promotions in arears where there is not a group that would be able to appreciate or support the effort, but in most major cities Hanukah promotions would seem to be a natural, especially since the celebration takes place of a series of days and nights.  Last year the Portland Trailblazers, as they rebuilt their relationships in their community, introduced Hanukah night to moderate success.  This

Now it may have happened by accident, but an interesting development this past week for the Washington Capitals actually gave a front office staffer a few seconds of a lifetime on ice close to game time, and could unleash a new round of experiential marketing for teams and fans going forward, especially for the minors.  An injury and a late arriving backup forced the Caps to petition the NHL to have a third goalie, that being web programmer Brett Leonhardt, off his computer and into uniform for warmups until Simeon Varlamov could arrive from minor league Hershey.  Now Leonhardt had played in college and had actually worked out with the Caps in some

While the Red Sox today announced a ticket freeze, both the Nets and the Blues have looked to those in job and financial difficulty this past week to try and find a promotion that gets buzz, puts butts in seats and maybe, just maybe, brightens the outlook of those casual fans struggling with the current times.  Dave Waldstein in the Newark Star-Ledger touches on both promos, with the Nets looking to exchange tickets for those supplying a resume to a job bank they have created,  while the Blues go one further by actually offering up financial assistance for those in home owner hell on select Saturday nights through a l

With Sara Palin set for Saturday’s puck drop in Philly, and NBA players like LeBron James, Greg Oden and Alonzo Mourning all speaking publicly in support of Senator Barack Obama this past week, it was interesting and noteworthy see the way the Cleveland Browns addressed the issue and opportunity of athletes in a football-crazed and swing state stepping up to support some candidates.  This week Brady Quinn and Joe Thomas took the big step to address the crowd in support of Senators McCain and Palin at an Ohio rally, and the opportunity th