So it was asked by Felix Unger to his pal Oscar Madison in the great show The Odd Couple, when Osc told Feel he had to go to Canada to cover curling. So the late Tony Randall would be proud of his character asking the question and then picking up the papers today to see how the sport of curling is working to attract new fans to the nichest of the niche. First came a great story in today's Denver Post on the auction going on to have ones face put on the championship curling stone…that was followed by an extensive feature in the New York Times on the USA Curling-Brazilian Curling matchup, and its history. Both are prime examples of a sport trying to seize its moment in the sun…becoming creative, finding a story and the right outlet and then delivering the message. Even if it doesn’t bring one long-term eyeball to the sport, the internal and external messaging, not to mention the fact that the casual sports fan even hears about curling…is invaluable. Nice string of messages, well placed and well timed, even in the Super Bowl crunch.
Some other good reads…MLB.com has a good piece on thre Goldklang Group's interest in reviving the failed attempts at baseball in the Holy Land…great example of prime marketers from the minors looking for the right brand extension outside of their market. ..wsj.com has a good piece on Kraft's brand activation during the Super Bowl, focused around Velveeta cheese…and Bloomberg has a look at where the Red Sox are in sponsorship in a down economy.
