Interviews & Articles
Millsport's senior sports business executives are available for interviews, commentary, and analysis on a number of sports marketing and sponsorship topics. To arrange an interview, please contact Chris Anderson at (214) 259-3290.
Millsport's Bob Basche on the evolution of sports marketing
Jan 3, 2008
Sports Marketing: Super Bowl, Olympics, Nascar Get 360 Degrees Of ActivationBRANDWEEK
Sports marketing is no longer a simple equation where initiatives plus athletes equals ad campaigns. What is now driving ROI for companies is a 360-degree marketing attack, encompassing consumers with a full circle of initiatives. Although traditional media will still account for a majority of the marketing dollars that companies are putting behind sports in 2008, more time and money are being diverted to sponsorships, experiential marketing, online initiatives and other nontraditional marketing efforts.
This will be a significant year to follow the shift in sports marketing dollars. Among the major events in 2008 will be Super Bowl XLII (Feb. 3), the 50th running of the Daytona 500 (Feb. 17), the MLB All-Star Game in New York (July 15) and the Summer Olympics (Beijing, Aug. 8-24). Also key to the mix in 2008: men's college basketball Final Four (San Antonio, Texas, April 7), Masters golf tournament (Augusta, Ga. April 10-13) and the U.S. Open golf tournament (San Diego, June 12-15), and the U.S. Open tennis tournament (Flushing, N.Y., Aug. 25-Sept. 7).
For the milestone running of the Daytona 500, for example, Unilever and many other marketers have teamed with supermarket chain Kroger to activate programs that have extended beyond traditional TV and print. "This has been a 360-degree activation," said Nancy Davis, program manager for Nascar at Unilever, Charlotte, N.C. "Internet, packaging and in-store activation. It's not just about getting our products into consumers hands, but developing brand loyalty. It's getting consumers to associate Nascar and, in this case, the 50th Daytona 500, with Unilever products and with Kroger."
This type of full-circle activation will become more evident during the Olympics and other events this year as companies vie for consumer attention and dollars. "There will be a continuing focus on brands searching for passion points of differentiation in sports sponsorships," said Bob Basché, president at marketing and sponsorship firm Millsport, Stamford, Conn. "Traditional media dollars will continue to shift to experiential marketing. And there will be fewer pure sports [request for proposals] in 2008, with a shift in emphasis to more integrated opportunities for agencies that include entertainment, promotional, cause, pr and media capabilities, as well as sports."
According to Doug Drotman, president at sports marketing firm Drotman Communications, Commack, N.Y., blogs and social networking will continue to grow and work their way into sports marketing budgets. "As sponsors are asked to prove ROI, they will expand their presence on the Internet where they can quantify leads and sales," said Drotman. "And experiential marketing will also grow. Sponsors realize it is vital to put their product into the hands of consumers and get real feedback."
As for the residual affects of the Mitchell Report on steroids in baseball, the strength of the game will override the report's impact. "The Mitchell Report will have little or no effect on the popularity and fan attendance at the ballpark for MLB in 2008," said Basché. In fact. marketers will continue to use baseball to test ways to reach consumers.
As Drotman offered, "The conversation viewers heard on Fox during the World Series between Boston Red Sox players Jacoby Ellsbury and Royce Clayton talking about Taco Bell's free taco promotion was just the tip of the iceberg."
