More Expensive Real Estate Up For Grabs For Brands? NFL and WNBA…

April 23, 2010 by Joe Favorito · Leave a Comment 

The continued quest for landing valuable real estate in the sports space got another nice pop this week, when Microsoft’s Bing became the latest brand to make its way to a WNBA uniform, landing a partnership with the Seattle Storm.  The jersey signage, especially for MLS and the WNBA, has been a boon to sponsorship, and last year patches made it on to the front of NFL and NBA practice jerseys as well, bringing some brands additional incremental value and teams some added revenue. While the four major team sports still are backing off from jersey signage which is common elsewhere, it is starting to seem more like an inevitability that the integration occurs, the question is porobably where, when and at what price.  Would it start with minor league baseball and hockey, like it already has for the UFL and the D-League?  And who would be the first to test the licensing waters?  All to be seen, but certainly the backlash from the WNBA and MLS has been minimal (although it is true neither has invested the millions in brand development that the four major leagues have over an extended period of time).

Beach Volleyball Gets A Collegiate Push Toward Building It’s Brand…

January 16, 2010 by Joe Favorito · Leave a Comment 

Beach volleyball is unquestionably the darling sport of the Olympic Games. Every four years the men’s, and especially the women’s competition, draws one of the largest windows for NBC and has helped make pop culture stars of athletes like Misty May Treanor, Holly McPeak, Karch Kiraly, Kerri Walsh, and many others.  More importantly, the AVP has used the Olympic platform to effectively build a North American tour that even in a slow economy has one of the best examples of sponsor activation and integration of any sport, from Barefoot wines and former title sponsor Crocs to Paul Mitchell hair products and KFC . One could spend a full day at any AVP event and literally move from sponsor to sponsor and never run out of activity until sundown.  Still, even with that platform every four years and a lifestyle sport that thrives in warm weather, the Tour, like any sport,  goes through cycles of high and low activity, and is currently looking to develop the next wave of crossover stars to keep sponsors happy, ticketsellers coing, and TV partners interested.  Also like most sports, the AVP needs a healthy developmental program to fuel that growth and interest, and last year got a much-needed boost when the NCAA approved sand volleyball as a sport starting in 2011.

Eastern Michigan Combines The Business of Sport, Creative Marketing To Bring Attention and Promotion…

December 5, 2009 by Joe Favorito · Leave a Comment 

It’s not a new idea, but it is another twist on a smart, cost efficient and creative practice. Eastern Michigan University announced this week they are working between the athletic department and their business school to have students create and compete against each other, American Idol style, to come up with an effective marketing and ticket selling campaign for their men’s and women’s hoops programs. now in past years schools like Slippery Rock University has taken over the marketing of a minor league baseball team for a season, and major brands have invested in competition amongst grad schools to develop and then implement branding campaigns, but EMU is giving it a little more glitz and a better reward (cash and other opportunities). Even without the prizes, the idea is a very smart one for a mid-major school in a state that is short on cash and is full of folks looking for a chance to be positive in these tough times. EMU can use the creative minds of the students…the first adopters, the passionate entrepreneurs looking to shape a brand…and put those ideas to work in a fun and creative marketing and branding exercise. The idol-like atmosphere will generate some buzz, as will the prizes. At the end of the day maybe none of the ideas will be earth-shattering, and the fact that the finals will be tested at halftime of a hoops game with fans giving their choice for best idea may make it a bit of a crapshoot. Perhaps the best idea will be a combination of several of the presentations or perhaps there will be a whole season full of worthwhile idea. Perhaps there will be none. The most important thing is that EMU is working with the resources they have, recognizing a need both in the community and in the athletic department to rally, and finding a creative solution that involves all parties. Whether it works to sell tickets or not is not the most important thing. What should be watched and copied is the creative spirit of the students involved and the staff that had the ability to implement the contest.

If Ya Gonna Be Bad, Be The Worst…

November 19, 2009 by Joe Favorito · Leave a Comment 

Sports is always a game of extremes…those who excel get the spoils, those who don’t get…well…nothing. However even worse than losing is mediocrity. In sports fans gravitate to the winner but can also tolerate the loser, and those who lose the most always have a sort of macabre curiosity. We never remember the 8-8 New York Jets…we remember the 0-14 Tampa Bay Bucs or the New Orleans ‘Aints. The 9-72 Philadelphia 76ers have reunions, the 41-41 Milwaukee Bucks don’t. The 1962 Mets are as celebrated as the ‘86 World Champions, but last years Mets are well, forgettable. So along those lines again come the New Jersey Nets, now 0-11 heading into their Saturday matchup with the Knicks. Always looking for a chance to get publicity, the Nets staged a whole series of promotions…featured in USA Today, AP, on radio and TV…going into their loss Tuesday night to Indiana. Even the New York Times, which does not staff the team regularly for games, gave the team and their 0-10 promotion sizable space, with all the detail going into the why of the event. So is the celebration of losing acceptable as a promotion? It certainly is not across the river, where the Knicks and their one win are not staging ticket and fan promotions, nor would it ever be for the Yankees, even in the darkest of days. Same for the Giants. Those three brands in particular still view themselves as gold standards not to be trifled with, and subsequently the acceptance or acknowledgment of losing as anything positive would never come into the mix. Is that denial and stickiness to brand effective in today’s challenged times? It depends and it does have some merit. People paying elite prices and brands looking for prime exposure, no matter how the onfield product is doing, do not want to be part of the sideshow. However that elite group in these tough times is dwindling and more and more elite brands will look to unique promotions or giveaways, once never considered, as acceptable to fill distressed inventory and satisfy ROI. There is also the way the promotion is presented. The Nets used it for a rally cry, not a way to cheapen the franchise value. Now if they approach the record of 0-17 and start throwing parties that’s another thing entirely. However to get some buzz in what would have been a dismal November weeknight, as well as move some tickets and get a few more fans to appreciate the fact that they are appreciated even in trying times, tells people that the team from a business standpoint continues to try and give some value. Losing is a brutal business, and rest assured continued losing won’t garner celebrations or sales. However for one night and for one shot at promotion, the Nets again proved that we love our extremes, and if you are gonna be bad, you might as well be the worst.

Toques and Beavers A Fun, Simple Fundrasing Idea Up North…

August 21, 2009 by Joe Favorito · Leave a Comment 

With all the high level, high tech, multi-tiered investment and brand building ideas that come along, sometimes its the simplest that can be both fun, generate buzz and create some easy fundraising and brand building ideas. One that is gaining interest and is assisting athletes in Canada as we move towards Vancouver 2010 is a site called Toques and Beavers. The site, with a simple and entertaining flash game, gives people of all ages the chance to play against others or by themselves and raise funds for Canadian athletes training to compete next year. No multi-media, high tech social media components with layered themes and glitz. It is easy to get, it is fun, it doesn’t crowd your desktop and it is easy to share. Maybe its too simple in this gadget age? Perhaps. But the game signifies what the Games used to be…no strings attached and a simple way to raise funds for non-sponsored athletes to train and compete for Canada. Almost a throwback idea, but a good one that falls under the “Keep it simple” banner. It is exactly what you think it is, and the low overhead makes the transfer of funds right to the athlete very simple. Good idea in a complex time.