Syracuse as a football team has struggled to win games recently. As no surprise to anyone, they have also struggled to get fans into their stadium on game day. In an effort to build excitement around their new head coach, they are reaching out to their fans in a unique way.
Through this video, Syracuse head coach Doug Marrone gives the game ball to the Syracuse fans after their last second 37-34 win over Northwestern. I like this both from an advertising and a fans perspective.
As an Account Executive, I like the timeliness and relevance of the communication. I found this video, posted on the SU athletics YouTube page, two days after the game. This shows me they are actively planning and capturing natural, enthusiastic moments that come from within the brand. They don’t need to create a false story to gain interest.
As a fan (I mean the general fan, I don’t actually cheer for Syracuse athletics) this video shows me that Syracuse football is dedicated to and appreciative of the excitement their fans bring to a game. Especially in a smaller dome like the one Syracuse plays in, the fans can have an impact on the game. It’s refreshing for a fan to feel like they are a part of the team, instead of just being a money sign sitting in a seat.
What do you think about this video? What other brands use organic, exciting moments that come from within their organization to garner excitement?
Tiger Woods has been out of golf for the last eight months recovering from knee surgery. And now he’s back and advertisers want to make sure you know it.
Golf and the PGA Tour existed without him. They managed to hold everything together and put out a good product for the last eight months. I understand that golf was around way before Tiger, and it will be around way after Tiger. But never have golf and the PGA Tour been more popular. Tiger is such an integral part of golf and the PGA Tour that I found three different ads celebrating his return in the last two days.
The first is a TV spot from Nike showing all of the happy competitors celebrating their time to shine while Tiger is out. And then reality hits them as Tiger walks into the locker room and steals the glory from their grasp.
The third is a print layout in this week’s Sports Illustrated by Gatorade. Another simply stated phrase. “Welcome Back Tiger”. In the upper right hand corner is the Gatorade Tiger (his flavor) logo. This is probably a client directed add in. But notice even in this logo Tiger is bigger than Gatorade.
All three ads have one thing in common. They push their products aside to celebrate Tigers return. Of course these companies are looking at this as a chance to garner a little good will and do a little branding at the same time.
But what it really says to me is that golf needs Tiger Woods. It says these advertisers need Tiger Woods. It says that Tiger Woods is a very powerful marketing tool.
What do you think about these ads? Are they a waste of money for the advertiser? Does the branding and good will from these spots justify the costs?
NASCAR has gained a new sponsor this year in Ask.com. Outside of the usual car/team sponsorship, they’ve done something new to make their sponsorship dollars work extra hard for them.
Everyone knows the trivia questions that are asked during sporting events. They’re fun, interesting and break up slow sections of the sporting event. Usually, the announcers ask the question that is sponsored by so and so company. They wait a predetermined amount of time and then give the answer while mentioning the sponsor’s name again.
Ask.com has flipped the script on the traditional in game trivia question. During NASCAR races the announcers ask the typical trivia question sponsored by Ask.com. Instead of giving you the answer fifteen minutes later, you have to go to Ask.com to get the answer. This adds an interactive element to the trivia question for the viewer. It makes it more of a game.
For Ask.com, it drives traffic to their site. It gives the viewer incentive to go to the site and try out their unique format of search engine. Most of all it’s different. They found a way to take a mainstay of the sports television world and make it new and interesting.
Will this new sponsorship allow Ask.com to steal some market share from the big boys? What do you think about this new trick for an old dog?
