You’ll Hit a Home Run with Sports Marketing

Submitted by Mitch Seigel on Wed, 06/28/2011

So when was the last time you were at a professional sporting event? If it’s been awhile you will be in for a shock when you arrive. No less than forty various exposures for companies are in your sightlines at any one stadium, and sometimes a lot more.

Do you think this is because the companies advertising want to make sure sports don’t die? Hardly. Each one is investing heavy because they know the return from sports is huge. And it goes well beyond the immediate return. Sponsoring sports gives the sponsor a lasting effect. A Dodger game without a Farmer John Dodger dog is like apple pie without ice cream, like Abbott without Costello, or like U2 without Bono.

So how do you get involved? Well it all depends on budget, like everything else. To have your name up in lights at a Laker’s game at Staples Center will run quite a bit more than a sponsorship of the Quakes in Rancho Cucamonga. Also, pricing packages may or may not include certain options for sponsorship. You may want signage inside the stadium and no media coverage, or possibly vice versa. Or you may be interested in sports which focus on certain market segments, such as tennis, golf or soccer. No matter what you are trying to achieve in your marketing plan, there is a sport that makes sense and applies.

How about action sports? From the mountains to the desert to the waves at Huntington, companies are lined up to get their names attached to the events and the athletes directly. Often a company gets lucky and puts their name on someone who has not performed at a high level, and that person takes off in their targeted sport. If the company started the relationship on the rising side of the athlete’s career is has often provided tremendous results and great return on their investment.

If you haven’t thought about sports marketing, start thinking. If you have already thought about it, give it a try. Crawl first, take baby steps, then stand up and move faster. Soon your products or services will be thought of as often as a Farmer John hotdog.

What are your challenges when it comes to sports marketing? I look forward to hearing your comments.

Until next time…