olympics

One of the most elusive searches for traditional sports and entertainment properties is the quest to get younger…to identify with and activate against that very active audience that may have already grown tired of the traditional and looks elsewhere for its thrills. For an audience more interested in the half pipe and BMX than baseball or football, the ways for brands to reach them have changed in some ways, but in many ways remain the same.

One of the most elusive searches for traditional sports and entertainment properties is the quest to get younger…to identify with and activate against that very active audience that may have already grown tired of the traditional and looks elsewhere for its thrills. For an audience more interested in the half pipe and BMX than baseball or football, the ways for brands to reach them have changed in some ways, but in many ways remain the same.

As everyone gets in a tizzy about which athletes and entertainers are on twitter, facebooking and breaking news on their own websites it is important to remember that the interraction between the media and those they are covering and reporting about…whether that reporting is on CNN or CNBC or the New York Times or blogtalk radio…is still pretty important. No matter how much people can crow about the use of social media, it remains just a part, and still a small part, of effective brand management and communication for fans and the companies associated with teams, entertainment properties and organizations.

It started with mic’ed up athletes and coaches, evolved to Helmet cam and driver cam and on and on until we get Tweets from Charlie Villanueva and others in the lockerroom all in the name of trying to give fans unprecedented access to the athlete in a time when the media are getting less and less access on a daily basis. So the ways brands have to look and think about what is still available and what is next remains a growing challenge for a demanding public, demanding brands and a shrinking traditional media field. The folks at Sprint, through their NASCAR Partnership, have come up with yet another piece of an insiders look, and found the perfect way to use their distribution methods to their subscribers to provide it.

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.

Sometimes on the surface the matchup of an athlete or celebrity with a brand may be a little quizzical, and such was the case when high-end shoe retailer Cole Haan announced its first-ever athlete endorsement deal with tennis star Maria Sharapova. Now Sharapova is already becoming the stuff of legend in the endorsement world, even in a down economy. Her deals with companies like Canon, Tiffany and the watch brand Tag Heuer pull in millions, almost as much for her ability to understand and deliver messages to a high end consumer as for her on court results and tennis pedigree. Still, matching Sharapova with Cole Haan still could be a stretch for a brand with little TV presence and no sports marketing background.

A few recent instances have come up which show when sports or entertainment brands can test the waters to see what is acceptable for their fans and more importantly, their business partners. First was the UFC. CEO Dana White has done a phenomonal job of building that property to as close to mainstream as MMA may ever get, especially in a down economy where discretionary dollars will still go to the main four team sports, as well as NASCAR and soccer, in North America. Still, the UFC, with their great TV partner in Spike, have carved a niche with sponsors like Bud Light and Harley Davidson among others. Not huge spends, but very smart ones to access the demo and the UFC experience.

Whether you are looking for a vasectomy or recreating a classic moment with the help of a popular energy drink, there will be no shortage of activation campaigns on all levels as Selection Sunday comes into view. Darren Rovell reports that last year’s promotion by an Oregon urologist for vasectomies has gained steam this year and may even be copycatted across the country, while Barry Janoff in his blog goes into great detail on Vitamin Water’s promo where fans can send in videos recreating great NCAA moments, as well as the programs by longtime partners like AT and T and Coke.

Any sports fan in North America looks excitedly to the NCAA Tournament in March, as there are few, if any, annual events which gives us more of a true sense of endless possibilities that can occur than March Madness. Partners, even in a slow economy, looking to capture that key demo will line up for collegiate activation programs and work through CBS to get their brands exposed to the mass audience, even if they “underdog” lasts only the 48 hours from first to second round. But we all love our brackets. In light of that, Major League Baseball, and now baseball on a more global scale, has sought to create its own version of March Madness with the World Baseball Classic.

Some of the biggest and best activations in sports, locally, regionally and nationally, come from fast food chains. Whether it is McDonald’s Olympic Partnerships, Free Chili for when the Dallas Mavs hit 100 points or Burger King activating in the high school market, the reach to consumer through sports by the burger and taco joints has always been successful and effective. Now chain Carl’s Jr. has taken the relationship a step further, partnering with skateboarder and TV personality Rob Dyrdek for a series of viral video’s an in-store commemorative cup and even extending into a sponsored safe skateboarding campaign in Southern California.

I will start this off by saying this was not my idea today, but it is a good one I had wondered about for a while. It is Vince Wladika, former head of PR for Fox and now a consultant with a number of solid clients, and a college baseball nut. Friday, according to the site http://www.d1baseball.com/ is the official “unofficial” start of the college baseball season in America. No less than 75 games are played across the South and the West, with many involving teams from the Northeast and the Midwest on Neutral sites or in tournaments. No less than 15 of the top 20 will be in action, and it is a great day to watch live baseball, after the Caribbean Series ends and before spring training games begin.

Wednesday’s New York Times had a very intriguing piece about the latest space to have edgy brands look for marketshare and buzz…on people’s shaven heads. The opportunities actually exist in sports for some type of guerilla opportunity that could also be fun and more than a little intriguing for the right brands. For several years, smart marketers have looked to golf and tennis to pick off players with patches and a temporary tattoo for select tournaments, getting some solid impressions for upsets or for playing top players. Boxing had its run with Golden Palace on the back of a boxer or too, only to see the fad fade (literally) in messy sweat.

One of the great lessons sports teaches is that many times political and social boundries can be overcome through play on the athletic field. baseball gave us Jackie Robinson to break the color barrier, and last year in an Olympic tuneup, four nations who have few political ties as a group…Chinese Taipei, China, Japan and Korea…met in baseball and opened the door for future positive relations.

Even as pitchers and catchers report in the States for Major League Baseball, our master marketers in the minors continue to be innovative and find ways to keep their local brands active, alive and relevant to the consumer, their partners and the media.

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.