Just Because you Aren’t an Endemic Sponsor, Doesn’t Mean You Can’t Be Endemic to the Overall Sports Experience
Posted: 3/3/2010 5:11:27 PM by
Jon Kander | with 0 comments
In a down economy, companies are forced more and more to make their corporate sponsorships relevant and meaningful. Companies who are endemic to a particular sport are a natural fit for those particular sponsorship opportunities. However, for companies whose businesses do not naturally fit into the sports experience, they have to be a little more creative with how they activate their sponsorship platforms to make their presence meaningful to the fans and attendees. In particular, companies within the consumer and B2B technology and communications categories have done a great job of leveraging their sponsorship opportunities and made themselves largely endemic to the sports experience.
Cisco has used its league-level (e.g., NBA, NHL) and individual team sponsorships (e.g., New York Yankees, Dallas Cowboys) to showcase its relevance to consumers and its capabilities. For example, luxury suites in Yankee stadium contain touch-screen phones that allow fans to order concessions and merchandise for delivery to the suite. Additionally, Cisco made the stadium more wireless compatible allowing fans to order concessions or watch instant replays from their seat using their mobile phones. At the NBA All-Star game, Cisco showcased its video conferencing system, TelePresence, by giving attendees a chance to talk with current NBA players.
In addition, wireless service providers continue to use corporate sponsorship as their go-to marketing platform to gain one-on-one opportunities to showcase their latest products. T-Mobile has used its partnership with the NBA and endorsement deals with both current and former NBA players like Dwayne Wade, Yao Ming and Charles Barkley to promote their Fave Five network plan. In addition, most American professional leagues make their mobile content available across all platforms and providers so their fans can access out-of-market game broadcasts, video highlights, etc. at their convenience. By making league content available on fans’ mobile devices, wireless carriers have made it easier for fans to follow their favorite teams and watch sporting events.
Technology and communications companies have used their sponsorship platforms to truly enhance the overall gameday experience for their sponsored-teams’ and leagues’ fans. Text-to-win campaigns and video replays on giant billboards and jumbotrons are now commonplace at sports and entertainment events and have been for some time. Nowadays, fans can ask questions to their favorite NBA stars via Cisco’s Telepresence at the NBA All-Star and mobile video alerts and replays can be downloaded onto a fan’s mobile phone while at a ballgame. Much of this technology didn’t exist 24 months. However, now that these companies have the above-mentioned capabilities, they are able to use their corporate sponsorships to showcase them and improve the experience for sports fans at the same time.
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Filed under: pro sports, sports, trends, activation