storm sponsor handbook 2011-2012
DESCRIPTION
This handbook outlines many of the sponsorship opportunities available through the Grande Prairie Storm Junior A hockey team.TRANSCRIPT
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www.gpstorm.com
TEAM HISTORY
The Grande Prairie Storm is celebrating its 16th season in the Alberta Junior Hockey League in 2011-2012, but junior hockey in the city stretches back 45 years. The first junior team, formed in 1966, was named the Junior Athletics and played in the Peace Junior Hockey League. The team then became the North Stars and won several PJHL championships at the Junior B level and Peace Cariboo Junior Hockey League titles as a Junior A team. When Grande Prairie joined the Rocky Mountain Junior Hockey League, the name was changed to the Chiefs.
In the summer of 1995, fresh off the experience of hosting the 1995 Canada Winter Games, a group of local community-minded people – the Storm Founders - banded together to help the struggling junior franchise eliminate a $150,000 debt and get Junior A hockey back on
track in the Peace Country. The debt was wiped out and a new community, non-profit, volunteer-driven organization called the Storm, flying under the Swan City Hockey Association
banner, was formed.
Success both on and off the ice has been the tradition of the Storm since 1995. The team won the RMJHL league championship its first year and has been in the playoffs – including seven final four appearances and three championship finals – every year it has competed in the Alberta Junior Hockey League since joining the AJHL in 1996. The Storm also has one of the best win-loss records of all Canadian Junior A teams over the last 16 years. The
team owns every modern-day AJHL attendance record and had a per-game average attendance of almost 2,200 last season.
Players are given every opportunity to succeed – quality coaching; daily practices; access to off-ice training facilities; an experienced trainer; outstanding physiotherapy program; billet families who “adopt” Storm players; access to high school and college education; part-time jobs; a program that gets Storm players involved in the community; and many other things
that will enhance players’ on-ice and off-ice abilities.
MISSION STATEMENT “The Grande Prairie Storm Hockey Club exists to develop a quality junior hockey team made up of dedicated and talented hockey players who want to work together with the community, volunteers and administration. We constantly look for ways to improve our organization and
are proud to be an integral part of the Grande Prairie region. We encourage educational advancement and strive to achieve the highest possible results in pursuit of a National
Championship. ”
ATTENDANCE
Over the course of the last 16 years no team in Junior A hockey in Canada has drawn more fans than the Grande Prairie Storm. The average attendance per season is in the 2,200-
2,500 area and the team has had as many as 3,200 for playoff action.
The vast majority of Storm season ticket holders and walk-up ticket purchasers are in the 25 to 55 age category with children being the second largest segment followed by teens and senior citizens. While most season ticket holders are from Grande Prairie City and Grande Prairie County, many fans from throughout the Peace Country – to Fort St. John, B.C. in
the west; High Level to the north; Fox Creek to the east; and Grande Cache to the south – attend Storm games on a regular basis.
Games start at 7:30 p.m. and are over by 9:45 p.m. so you can bring the kids and still get them home for bedtime whether it’s a school night or not or you can take your game guests
out to one of the local clubs to continue the socializing!
STORM & SCHOOL
Dozens of Storm players have, through scholarship opportunities, advanced to American and Canadian universities and colleges since the team was formed in 1995.
Scott McCulloch, who attended Colorado College on scholarship, was the first Storm player drafted into the NHL. He was chosen by the Chicago Blackhawks in the sixth
round of the 2004 draft. He played last season in the American Hockey League.
Grant Stevenson (2000-2001) was the first Storm graduate to play in an NHL game. He joined the San Jose Sharks partway through the 2005-2006 season after
attending Minnesota-Mankato in the NCAA. He is now playing in Europe.
Storm players are able to attend one of the best colleges in Alberta – Grande Prairie Regional College – for part-time or fulltime classes while they’re playing for the Storm. Many Storm players have attended one of the three local high schools –
Composite, St. Joe’s and Peace Wapiti Academy – while toiling for the team.
The team has its own scholarship programs with several thousand dollars being available to Storm players on an annual basis including a Storm Founder’s Scholarship awarded annually and Storm players are eligible for a Royal Bank Cup Scholarship
through the Community Foundation.
The team is proud to be able to offer Storm players scholarship dollars annually. Education is a very important aspect of Storm Hockey.
GAME SPONSORSHIP
A Game Sponsorship is a unique opportunity to become part of a Storm hockey game. But the exposure does not begin and end at the Canada Games Arena. Well before your
sponsored game, you will receive 60 game tickets with your company name printed on them. On your game night, you will receive 15 pre-game dinners at a local restaurant/lounge. You will also have access to the Storm Shelter Hospitality Room, where you can entertain your 60 guests. Game sponsors also have the option of purchasing additional tickets for their
game at half price. Bar service and hot and cold hors d’oeuvers are available in the Storm Shelter. Game sponsors will be mentioned on Q99, ROCK 97.7, FREE-FM, Big Country XX,
SHINE-FM and YL Country in game radio promotions and included in ads in the Daily Herald-Tribune on the days leading up to your sponsored game. Prior to the start of the
game you, or whomever you designate, will be introduced at centre ice and a member of the Storm executive will present your company with a memento of the game. Your company will be promoted on the big screen throughout the game as well as on the message board on the score clock. Your company also has the option of having promotional material inserted in the Storm game program for your game as well as handed out at the door. You also have the
option of using the foyer to set up a promotional booth as well as tossing T-shirts or other souvenirs from the ice surface during an intermission (if available) or from the mezzanine
area either between periods or during the game. We can also set up a draw or some other type of giveaway in your name for a prize you provide. Each period there will be a PA announcement promoting your company and you can hang posters, banners and other
promotional material in the foyer area and arena where there is available space. An added feature is the ability to have a youngster you know – 12 and under – be the Storm Honorary
Captain at your sponsored game. It’s your game – have some fun!
60 game tickets
Big screen promotion Message board promotion PA announcements Interactive involvement Centre ice intro and gift
Ads in local media Hospitality room (holds 60) 15 pre-game meals at local restaurant Media recognition Signage in building Storm Honorary Captain
Cost: $1,500
GAME SPONSOR PACKAGE
PANTS SPONSORSHIP
This sponsorship gives a company exposure not only in the Canada Games Arena, but in every other rink in the Alberta Junior Hockey League.
The pants “billboard” is not only seen at all regular season and playoff games, it has exposure on the cover of the Storm game program when action shots of players appear there; it is exposed to Daily Herald-Tribune readers on an almost daily basis; and on television – Storm games are on pay-per-view on the internet and broadcast on local
station Eastlink TV. The Pants Sponsorship also includes two reserved seat season tickets and means a two-year commitment at $5,500 for each season for a logo on the front right leg of the pants and $4,500
for a logo on the back left leg (not including the cost of having your logo patch created).
MAJOR SPONSORSHIP
Storm sponsors have a choice of a variety of major sponsorships including The MVP, The All-Star and The First Line. All three packages include a Storm Shelter
Hospitality Room component as part of a game sponsorship that comes with each of the majors. The Storm Shelter is located inside the Canada Games Arena and has
windows that look out onto the ice surface. The room holds 60 people and is a great way for you to entertain clients, customers or staff by treating them to some great hockey in a fun atmosphere. You and your guests can remain in the Storm Shelter for the entire game or sit in the 60 reserved seats right beside the Storm Shelter.
The Storm Shelter can be set up to include a bar as well as hot and cold hors d’oeuvers. Included in all the major sponsorships are a season ticket package as well as signage, big screen promotion, the Storm internet program and one of the player website pages. MVP and All Star packages also include 30-second spots on all of
the Storm internet broadcast. That’s 60 regular season games plus the playoffs - a value alone of over $3,500! With the largest Junior A crowds in Canada looking on, a Storm sponsorship offers many returns – and for major sponsors, major returns!
MVP
Eight reserved seat season tickets; two Game Day Banners; Game Sponsorship; Big Screen; full page Program Ad; Storm Tracker; 30 second radio spots on all Storm
radio/internet Post Game Show broadcasts (60 games plus playoffs) and Player Website page
- $9,500
ALL STAR Four reserved seat season tickets; Game Day Banner; Game Sponsorship; Big
Screen; full page Program Ad; Storm Tracker; 30 second radio spots on all Storm radio/internet Post Game Show broadcasts (60 games plus playoffs) and Player
Website Page - $8,500
FIRST LINE
Four reserved seat season tickets; Game Day Banner; Game Sponsorship; Big Screen; full page Program Ad; and Storm Tracker
- $5,000
ICE LOGO SPONSORSHIP
Why is an ice logo a good buy? Because for the majority of a game a fan’s eyes are looking at the ice . . . and at the various logos. Logos can be as wide as 18 feet
and as deep as 10 feet, depending on the shape of your company logo. Cost for the ice logo spot on the ice is $3,500 for the season, including the cost of having the
logo painted.
BIZ CARD/TICKETS SPONSORSHIP
This sponsorship is a perfect opportunity for a new Storm sponsor to join the team, and enjoy some great hockey action, for a nominal price. For just $900 the sponsor receives a business card style ad in the Storm game program valued at $450 as well
as two reserved seat season tickets valued at almost $600. That represents a savings of almost $150. And, if the client would like more than two tickets, the
other tickets will also be made available at a discounted rate. The ticket packages can be either reserved seats or 30-paks or a combination of both.
ALL GAME TICKETS HAVE THE SPONSOR/TICKET HOLDER NAME ON THEM
THE AD APPEARS IN FULL COLOR IN ALL PROGRAMS DURING THE REGULAR SEASON AND PLAYOFFS
STORM TRACKER Daily Herald-Tribune Display Ad Program Thanks to our partner, the Daily Herald-Tribune, we are able to offer an
outstanding value to Storm sponsors with the Storm Tracker Program. You can have a presence in our daily newspaper every Friday of the season from September until
the playoffs are over in the spring. The ad is one column by 1.75 inch inches and appears in the Storm Tracker feature on the Daily Herald-Tribune website 24 hours a day, seven days a week as well as in the
newspaper each Friday. Any sponsors wanting just the Storm Tracker Package can get it for just $1,000 through the Storm. It is available for an even more reduced rate if included with
another Storm sponsorship. There are a limited number of these sponsorships available!
STEP SIGN SPONSORSHIP
Watch where you’re walking! And when you do, you can’t miss the Step Signage. In fact, walking or not, it’s hard not to see this signage on both sides of the arena.
Step signage is permanent signage that could give the sponsor coverage in every area of the Canada Games Arena. The signage is in place for all events in the Canada
Games Arena including Storm games, concerts, ice shows, etc. Cost is $95 per step sign.
BIG SCREEN SHOW The Big Screen Show includes a lights-out pre-game presentation as well as screen presence during the game on the 20 by 20 foot electronically-controlled screen in
the Canada Games Arena. The screen operates all game long with video commercials working best during lights-out pre-game and between periods while the static spots are on the screen during lights-on playing time as well as pre-game and between
periods. Cost for Big Screen Show presence is calculated on how many times during the game you want your “commercial” to appear. A 15-second “commercial” that
appears once during the pre-game and once during each period for a total of three spots per game is $2,000 for the season. A static display (your logo and company
information) that appears three times per game with each spot being 10 seconds, is $1,500 for the season. All video commercials and static displays can be changed on
a game-by-game basis.
SPOTLIGHT SPONSORSHIP
Your company could become part of the pre-game show as well as the game
activities with this unique sponsorship. Your company logo would be turned into a gobo and installed into one of the four rotating spotlights in the rafters of the
Canada Games Arena. The logo is then projected onto the ice during the lights-out pre-game show as well as on the ice during intermissions. Only four sponsor logos will
be used for the 2011-2012 season. Price is $1,750, including cost of having the gobo created.
PROGRAM ADS The Grande Prairie Storm program is considered one of the best in Junior A hockey in Canada. The articles are interesting and informative. A 16-page
program insert is updated every game and the cover of the program is changed several times during the season along with some inside pages. The program is
full color front to back so your ad, no matter what page it is on, will be in full color. Unlike many publications that get tossed in the recycle bin right after the event, Storm souvenir programs tend to hang around the home for months and are read again and again by many different people. If you purchase an ad it will remain part of the program throughout the regular season and playoffs.
Color Covers Back Page: $2,500
Inside Back: $2,000 Inside Front: $2,000
Insert Color Full Page: $2,500 Half Page: $1,500
Lineup Banner: $1,000 Half Banner: $600
Inside Pages
Full: $1,200 Half: $750
Quarter: $550 Biz Card: $450
BANNER SPONSORSHIP
One of the most high profile sponsorships offered by the Grande Prairie Storm Hockey Club is the Banner Sponsorship. For just $999, Game Day Banner Sponsors
can get their message across to the one of the largest number of fans in all of Junior A hockey in Canada during the course of the season. Banners will be hung on the
railings on the north and south sides of the arena. Sponsors are responsible for the cost of having their banner logo created. The banner material is supplied.
BIG BANNER SPONSORSHIP
The Big Banner Sponsorship gets your company on a wall in the Canada Games Arena for the entire season and more. Big Banners are permanent signage that stay in place for all events in the Canada Games Arena (unless a venue renter wants it
covered – which has yet to happen). Big Banners are 60 square feet. They can be either 10 feet wide and six feet deep or 10 feet deep and six feet wide. Cost for a
banner for a season is $2,750. For three-year sponsors the Storm pays for the cost of having the banner created while on one-year deals the sponsor pays
production costs.
BOARD SIGN PACKAGE
The Board Sign Package gives you space on the Canada Games Arena boards for the entire season and more. Cost for a board sign is $2,500 for one season. Sponsors
are responsible for the cost of having their board sign created and the signs can be changed on a regular basis during the season. You can switch it up with two, three
or more different signs during the year.
MESSAGE BOARD The Message Board, located on all four sides of the main score clock hanging from centre ice, is a great way to get your company logo and message across to almost 100,000 fans during the hockey season. Your logo or message would be displayed repeatedly for the hour before the start of the game; during the game; during
intermissions and even during many non-Storm events in the facility. The Message Board is left on 24-7 and would only be turned off for a concert or other lights-out show. Your message could be in the form of your logo (horizontal logos are better
than vertical logos) or whatever message you want to convey. Cost to have your logo or message on the Message Board for the season is $1,500.
PENALTY BOX SIGNAGE
Board signs are great, but the Penalty Box Signage is even more high-profile. The
Penalty Box sign is 10 feet wide by 30 inches deep and remains in place for all events in the Canada Games Arena throughout the entire year. Cost for the Penalty
Box Signage is $2,750. The sponsor is responsible for having the sign created.
BUS WRAP The Grande Prairie Storm Junior A Hockey Club has been given the opportunity to have its team bus wrapped with sponsor promotional material. Our bus is owned by Golden Arrow Buses and is used throughout the hockey season - September to the end of April - to transport the Grande Prairie Storm Junior A team to games across Alberta. Other centres in our league include - Drayton Valley, St. Albert, Sherwood Park, Bonnyville, Fort McMurray, Lloydminster, Spruce Grove, Camrose, Olds, Calgary (Canucks and Royals), Canmore, Drumheller, Okotoks and Brooks. The Storm Junior A team has first priority for the bus, but it is also used by many other teams and organizations. The bus is on the road constantly. It is used by other teams and organizations to travel to the three western provinces in the winter and throughout North America during the late-spring and summer. A wrapped bus is a mobile billboard that will be seen by thousands and thousands of people across Alberta, B.C. and Saskatchewan during the hockey season and across North America in the off season when it is used for tours. The full bus wrap, including windows, would be available from September to April, but we would not be able to wrap the windows during the May to August period. Apparently tour groups like the windows to be clear while they do their sight-seeing across North America. You would have the option of wrapping the bus entirely for September to April and then doing another wrap for May to August or just doing one non-window wrap for the entire year. The sponsor would be responsible for the creation and installation of the wrap and would have the ability to be as creative as they want. We do ask, however, that included in the wrap is Storm logo and our www.gpstorm.com website address. We would also provide Storm photos if you choose to use them. We are looking for a minimum three-year agreement at $10,000 per year not including your cost for creation and installation. The creation and installation cost would be a one-time cost, unless you wanted to change the wrap from year to year.
SCHEDULE MAGNETS
A fridge magnet has a lifetime of many years . . . and that has to be good news for the Grande Prairie Storm Schedule Fridge Magnet sponsor. The great thing about this fridge magnet is it’s not going to be one of those that’s stuck and forgotten. The magnets are 7 3/8 by five inches and will display your logo and
company information prominently. They are also large enough to hold up your child’s latest artwork, important papers or other documents you need quick access to. Cost of the magnets would be approximately 60 cents each for 2,500 or more as well as a $1,500 Storm sponsorship fee and shipping costs ($200 for each 2,500). You can take as many of those as you want for your own distribution, but the Storm will also distribute them in the community, to season ticket holders when they purchase and at the gate at all Storm home games early in the season. You can also have as many additional magnets created beyond the 2.500 at the price the Storm pays for having
the magnets produced.
STORM WEBSITE SPONSORSHIP
Over the course of a season the Storm website takes hundreds of thousands of hits.
That’s great exposure for your company if you have your logo on the Storm homepage. Also, each Storm player gets his own page on the website and on that page will appear sponsor logos and whatever message the sponsor would like shown.
The player pages will include updated action photos as well as video – a great reason for people to “hit” the page game after game. You select the player you would like to sponsor and your logo, with a link to your website, goes on his player website. The sponsor also has the option, if the player is available, to create a relationship with the player for visits, public events, etc. Cost for this sponsorship is $1,000
for a homepage logo and just $500 for a logo on a player page.
MASCOT SPONSORSHIP The Mascot Sponsorship includes your company logo prominently displayed on the mascot
front and back; the mascot being named after your company (i.e. Northgate Honda Storm Mascot Slapshot); PA announcements at all home games; two 30-paks of Storm tickets;
and four visits by the mascot to your business. Besides having a big presence at all Storm games, the mascot is also seen around the community at parades, schools, the hospital and other events year-round. The mascot would also be available to your company beyond the four visits throughout the year at non-Storm events for a cost of $25 per visit – paid to the person inside the mascot. Cost of this sponsorship is $3,000 per year for one year
or, if you commit for two years, $2,750 annually.
TOP OF BOARDS This new signage gives you coverage on the north, south and east ends of the arena
along the top of the boards facing the fans. The signage can be about two feet deep. Cost for all three sides is $10,000 while just the north or south side would
be $5,000 and the east end $3,000.
STORM VIDEO
For the coming season the Storm Hockey Club will be enhancing its video presentation on the team website and the big screen at home games. The team will be producing every week new video footage including pre-game
interviews with the players, coaching staff and others; post-game interviews with the coach and players; and video highlights from each game. These videos
will be posted on the Storm website and will be preceded by a sponsor “commercial” at the beginning of each video. At each home game a video
package will also appear on the big screen preceded by the sponsor commercial. During interviews by the team a backdrop that includes the
sponsor and Storm logos will be used. Sponsors have the option of changing their “commercial” at any time. On the homepage of the Storm website will be
an icon that includes the sponsor logo that will direct viewers to a special video archive of all videos shot during the season. After each game the video from that game will appear as part of the game report and pre-game video reports will be included in the pre-game website story. The Storm website receives more hits than any other website in the league. Cost for the video sponsorship is $7,500 for the season and the “commercial” video must be
supplied by the sponsor.
STORM BROADCASTS
Again this year FREE FM is doing Storm broadcasts – and those broadcasts reach far beyond the boundaries of the FREE FM radio signal. The broadcasts are also simulcast on the Alberta Junior Hockey League website through audio and Pay Per View broadcasts and are also part of the Eastlink local live TV
production of Storm Hockey! There will be 15 regular season games broadcast on Eastlink TV and all games (60 regular season and playoffs) are broadcast
on FREE FM and simulcast on the AJHL audio and Pay Per View packages. The Post Game Show package includes two produced 30-second spots post-game as
well a produced spot pre-game and produced spots each period during the game. As well, the Storm Post Game Radio Show will be promoted at Storm
games on the big screen, PA and with a game-day banner. Cost for this program for the entire season is just $8,500. There are also other radio
spots – one pre-game and three during the game – available at $1,500 (pre-game) and $4,500 (three during broadcast).
4 SCORE CLOCK CORNERS
Want THE MOST HIGH PROFILE SIGNAGE in the Canada Games Arena? If you do, the four corners of the score clock are for you. This
signage extends from the top of the score clock to the bottom and is clearly seen by every seat in the building – year-round for all events! It also comes with a full page color program ad, your message on the big screen at every
Storm home game and four season tickets. Cost for a season is $10,000 and it is our hope to lock you in for a minimum three seasons at that cost.
Sponsor is responsible for the production cost of their four signs.
Storm Contacts
BUSINESS MANAGER DON MOON
538-4919 (office) 505-0020 (cell) 513-2232 (fax)
e-mail: [email protected]
OFFICE MANAGER LORI HODDINOTT
538-4919 (office) 513-2232 (fax)
e-mail: [email protected]