College Baseball A Lost Branding Opp.

So we reach the end of March Madness and now enter that long stretch where brands don’t access the college market enmasse, eventhough this is the time where the market may be the most wide open. The spring for the college market is devoid of football and hoops, and is a time of year which is crying out for a way to activate with the audience as students head back home for the summer and have time on their hands as they prep for exams and have less classes. The weather in nicer, more students are outside…so why has no one embraced the opportunity for college basebal. Some may say that the weather is a hindrance in the Northeast and that schools outside of the Sun Belt put little to no marketing and sales time behind baseball. Games are played in afternoons and crowds and facilities are sparse. Yet the interest in baseball overall at this time of year is at its highest, and the amount of schools that do play baseball on all levels…junior colleges included…is still very high in comparision to other spectator sports. Could a brand find a way to create a “college opening day” and activate around that program on campuses around the country…or maybe a “college baseball opening weekend. Maybe the program is tied to telling the stories of the student-atheletes and encompasses college softball as well. The activation could also be less abou. attendance at games and more of an experiential event on campus which keeps even casual sdports fans engaged through the baseball program. Maybe the program can also tie to an overall opening day with Little League and softball in a community, and rally the sport itself through the college experience. Colleges put a great deal of time through to drive revenue through football in the fall and basketball through the winter, it would make sense to tie and give added values to brands with a spring activation as well. College baseball is competitive, provides a good wrapup to a marketing plan, and is extremely affordable for brands to activate against with athletes that would welcome the exposure. Maybe its worth taking a look at on a regional level and giving the sport its due on the collegiate level.