D-League “Hoax” Gone Bad Not Bad For Publicity…

December 11, 2009 by Joe Favorito · Leave a Comment 

Into the “seemed like a good idea at time” file this week goes the D-League’s Utah Flash, who staged an elaborate and well attended hoax, luring thousands of fans to their game against Dakota with the thought they were going to see NBA legend Michael Jordan take on former Jazz nemesis Bryon Russell in a halftime exhibition that would recreate Jordan’s jumper over Russell in the NBA Finals, one of the greatest shots in NBA history. In retrospect, the idea was all about what makes minor league sports great…a larger than life promotion that lures fans to entertain them regardless of the outcome on the floor. It is something that D-League commish Dan Reed does better and better with his clubs each year and has helped slowly grow the D-League into an effective promotional tool in smaller markets for professional hoops. The challenge had a large price tag for the event ($100,000 offered up to Jordan) a solid viral campaign that had Jordan sightings all about town and all over radio and the digital space, a boastful owner in Brandt Andersen and a willing foil in Russell to go along with it. The only problem with the stunt was that there was never a big inkling of what was actually going on until the fake Jordan showed up on the court to a chorus of boos and disappointed fans, which cost Andersen some money in refunded tickets and Reed some issues with the public. Still to call the stunt a “fiasco” is unfair and untrue. It brought attention to the franchise, it was meant to be fun and lighthearted (and could have been a fun fake promo, although not to the tune of 7,000 fans probably), it showed how well digital media can drive rumors and innuendo and it had willing participants. Is it a problem that no one in the media caught on, (although Steve Luhm’s piece in the Salt Lake Tribune Sunday was full of innuenedo and disclaimer which left more than enough open that it was a stunt) or check with Jordan’s folks (or even the Bobcats, where he is a part owner) to see if it was true? No. Should the team have teased a bit more to lead people to believe it was a hoax? Probably. Still it was not Disco Demolition Night, it was not some of the poor taste promotions that ask people to show up to mimic celebrity criminals and at the end of the day the owner fixed a wrong by offering refunds. Was the intent exactly what the minors are supposed to be? Absolutely. Maybe it needed a bit of tweaking and a tad more honesty, but one has to give the franchise credit for pulling it off and understanding that sport is supposed to be fun, and at the D-league level all about promotion.

NBA Packages It’s Messages Home and Abroad…

November 29, 2009 by Joe Favorito · Leave a Comment 

As we move firmly into the winter season and toward the Olympics in Vancouver, NFL Post season, the BCS, and even pitchers and catchers in the distance, it is a good time to remind ourselves of the consistency of branding that is so important to deliver the correct message year round, and there is perhaps no brand that does that better than the NBA. Take a look at the last few weeks, as people start to think more and more about hoops. The NBA announces a larger push to grow the game of basketball globally by naming Heidi Uberroth the first President of NBA International, makes a splash with growing basketball in India, brings teams to London and international teams like Maccabi Tel Aviv to New York, ramps up its partnership with the NCAA to push playing hoops in the States and now rolls out a continued expansion into smaller markets with a revamped D-League (nice piece by Darren Rovell on the D-League this week). Across all those global platforms is the same message…basketball, no matter what level…is good business. It gets kids involved, it showcases products and brands, it is a great social event, it can bring large scale events to small markets and it is the same whether you are in Mumbai or Milwaukee. And there is one brand that is all things basketball…and that brand is the NBA. Are there issues in a challenged economy? Yes. The WNBA flagship Sacramento Monarchs folding this week is a problem. Attendance and sponsorship sales in some markets are a problem. However over all, the image that all partners are pulling in one direction to grow the sport and to use all the elements and power of the NBA to position that growth in so many places is very impressive and remains the model for all sports. That message is very clear…grow the game, and use teamwork to do it…and the brand grows with it.

A’s New Partnerships A Sign of “Money Ball” On The Business Side…

January 11, 2009 by Joe Favorito · Leave a Comment 

A few years ago Michael Lewis’ book Moneyball took baseball fans inside the different views that Oakland Athletics’ General Manager Billy Beane had about the salary situation in baseball, and how it could positively and negatively effect a team and on field success.  While the reviews were generally positive, and Lewis’ writing stellar as usual, many in the marketing community felt that the onfield persona of building stars and then watching them leave would hurt brand value for the team.  That of course was before the current financial crunch, where now the goal is always to do more with less, create more experiential value for fans and partners and find new ways to engage and grow the fan base.  Along those lines, the A’s continue to look to find new ways to expand their brand in a challenged marketplace…one where their stadium is not great and the Giants across the Bay remain king, despite the A’s increased success on the field under Beane’s guidance.  So this week the A’s announced a partnership with the Japanese League team the Rakuten Eagles, to train, share information and explore other ideas to share and learn.  For the A’s this is a very smart move as the ever-growing Asian community in the Bay Area may take another look at them with a stronger Japanese tie.  Also as baseball grows globally, having ties to a fan base BEFORE they arrive in this country will also help, and by finding a growing brand in Japan…not the established Yomiuri Giants but a team looking for opportunities…the A’s have a nice upside.  Like their partnerships with the Tottenham Hotspur of the Premier League and the San Jose Earthquakes, this may only help and not damage the brand.  Now have partships like this been tried before, like the Yankees and Manchester United?  Yes and they didn’t do well.  But the reason was you were talking about two mega-brands steeped in tradition and ways of doing business.  Here you have hungry brands looking to grow, and in baseball, the growing world marketplace for the game plays directly into what a hungry brand like the A’s is trying to do.  Good lesson with hopefully more MLB/non-American partnerships to come.    

MLB, Howard, Take Fans Behind The Scenes In The Video Game World

November 2, 2008 by Joe Favorito · Leave a Comment 

The Phillies Ryan Howard is probably still celebrating the Phils World Series title from this past week, but the folks at mlb.com gave fans an even better look at the star this past week, working with Playstation to create a great viral video that takes fans behind the scenes of the making of the video game.  The piece scored points on a number of levels for MLB…first it showcased a star coming out of the Series at a time when his casual value to the sports fan may be at its highest…it gives fans an inside, off the field look at one of its biggest stars in an unusal environment, it gave gamers a cool “inside” looks into game creation, and it married it all together on a great digital platform, combining the story with the video on mlb.com at a time when traffic coming off the Series may drop a bit.  Great timing, great opportunity, well hit piece that keeps the baseball beat going into the offseason.    

Quietly and Steadily NBA Winning The PR Race

January 25, 2008 by Joe Favorito · Leave a Comment 

As the NHL and the NBA move toward their All-Star showcases (we will do the NHL wrapup next week) we wanted to look at the NBA PR push over the last few weeks that is hitting on all areas “away from the game”…player development, new media, international growth, charity activation, athlete features, product marketing and integration…at a critical time as brands and fans look for even more ROI.  Now it’s not to say that market-by-market there are not bumps in the road, but in the macro, from Portland’s resurgence marketing their young players to the Nets pushing their brand activations and fan friendly programs, to Boston’s resurgence at the box office and on the court, the concerted and more cohesive efforts of the teams in lock step with the league PR and marketing staffs is moving more  smoothly and productively than ever, and unlike the NHL (Outdoor Game), the NFL (the Super Bowl) and NASCAR (Daytona’s 50th) they are doing it without a landmark event to build to.  Here are some key recent examples: