KAT SHAFER & JASON LANGWELL

UNITED STATES OF SPORTS: PART 3

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TRENDS IN SPORTS MARKETING

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TECHNOLOGY

iBEACON - WEARABLE TECH - SMALLER APP COMMUNITIES

iBEACON

• Apple’s technology marketers can push messages to you, on locations, without you having to download a separate app

• Benefits not only the properties but the sponsors

• Ex: MLB

‣ In theory,  you could send out a message saying, here’s where your seats are located, here are the concession stands, we’re having a deal on hot dogs at this stand, here are the bathroom lines, etc.

• Ex: SB48

‣ During the game MetLife and Times Square were using that technology as well, on a smaller scale.

WEARABLE TECHNOLOGY

• It’s going to become more commonplace

• Properties and sponsors are going to want to use it to give you that behind-the-scenes additional content and enhance your experience

• Products like Google glass, and soon similar products from competitors, will be readily available and more affordable for the normal consumer

SMALLER APP COMMUNITIES

• Teams are wanting to create their own personal apps, so people feel like they have a closer connection to their team

• It’s smaller, more customizable and makes you feel like you’re an insider to that sport or game

Generation HD?  Generation Heads Down.  The millenials.

• They’re dividing their attention between their TV, their laptop and their mobile device

• The 3rd screen had become the 1st screen

• It’s a challenge when you’re trying to convert a fan into a customer, because they’re not looking up, they’re not paying attention.

SECOND SCREEN

Coca-Cola has developed a solution for Generation HD – generation Heads Down. To combat the obsession with our smartphones we now have the Social Media Guard. This Coke-branded red funnel “takes the social out of media and puts in back in your life.” Now people experience the ah-ha moment and raise their heads, realizing they’ve been missing out on priceless moments. “Share a real moment with Coca-Cola.”

TWITTER

• 95% of live TV conversations happen on Twitter

• 1/2 of the SB ads this year had hashtags in them

• You can’t even turn on the news any more without hearing about hashtags

• Twitter worked with 5 MLB teams last year to do some tests on different approaches, to see what gained the most traction with Twitter followers

- People love media

- People really love to get close to the action

- People love that behind-the-scenes, insider information

TWITTER’S NEW REVENUE MODEL

• The NFL developed a 365-day program and then sold ads back to Verizon. That allowed Verizon to embed a clip into every video tweet that the NFL posted. 

• Ex. ESPN and Ford Fusion, Instant Replays in College Football Bowl games. March Madness followed suit.

• 2013 NBA Finals – NBA + Sony + Sprint + Taco Bell. NFL + Verizon

@NBARoy Hibbert's BIG block. One of the nicest you'll see #NBARapidReplay - http://on.nba.com/Z4vJmb

AMBUSH MARKETING

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• When a brand wants to associate themselves with an event, without paying a sponsorship fee

• And it takes clever timing, some ingenious ideas, and sometimes it’s a little bit crazy what they do, but it can be effective

Subway is one that’s scrutinized for the way they do it, and they do it for every major event.  They feature a variety of athletes, but you’ll notice they’ll never feature an Olympic athlete that’s performing in the Olympics at that time, that’s against IOC regulations.  They’ve made an impression because people really do see Subway and they associate that with the Olympics. 

Panasonic was the sponsor of the 2012 Olympics, but Beats by Dr. Dre sent headphones to all the athletes to wear while they were there.  Any coverage you saw of athletes on their downtime, they were all wearing these headphones, and that translated into lots of sales.

EXAMPLES

Nike was not a sponsor of the 2012 Olympics (Adidas was). But, Nike got more coverage and people talked more about their green volt shoes than anybody else. Plus they earned a lot of extra dollars because people were running out to get those green shoes that all the track stars had.

“LARGEST HUMAN DORITOS CHIP” AT THE SUPER BOWL

At MetLife Stadium, in the Denver Broncos, endzone there was a bright orange Doritos shaped figure in the crowd. Not a coincidence. Doritos awarded 50 lucky, patient fans tickets to the game after enduring hilarious hidden camera encounters.

“50 tickets given to 50 BOLD people.” They were provided bright orange jackets to wear and strategically placed in seats to form the Doritos shape for all the world to see.

Content marketing is a technique for creating and distributing relevant and valuable content to attract, acquire, and engage a clearly defined and understood target audience.

Sports teams and organizations continue to invest in original content creation. It drives more traffic to their sites, it drives more engagement and it drives people back to retail for their sponsors.

EARNED MEDIA

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Not earned media, that’s paid, $4M just for the media buy. 

Cheerios Super Bowl spot

To put it in perspective. This was not earned media, it was paid – $4M just for the media buy.

We are in a culture that’s consumed with celebrities, and athletes are no exception. Some people actually look at athletes as heroes. 

A product or service endorsement by an athlete offers substantial competitive advantages:

• Creates both brand and product awareness

• “Cool factor”

• Attribute Awareness

CELEBRITIES

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Who is Leon Sandastle? A persona of Hall of Fame cornerback Deion Sanders that was used on the NFL Network. In the commercial Sanders was convinced he could make a comeback and come in at a higher level than the rookies in the 2013 NFL draft, in disguise.

CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY

NFL’s initiative encouraging  kids to get out and be active for 60 minutes a day. Cam Newton was featured in an entertaining, award-winning spot, where the young boy steals the show – and makes remarks about taking Newton’s job.

FEMALE FANS

40%

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In the past sponsors and brands have had a hard time communicating to the female fan base without seeming condensing or stereotypical. Verizon took a different approach in their :15 second spots and brought in female fans in a positive way. #FOMOF – Fear of Missing Out on Football.

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