Sports: The Vehicle of Marketing Success for Men

Yesterday in our e-Marketing class our professor, Sven, reminded us of the requirements for our blog project. I was one of the many students who realized, "son of a mother duck, I should probably post some blogs on the required content." Well timed my German instructor.

Considering the nerds who run the pro blogging sites never post about sports, athletes, or any kind of ball, I turn to the only blog at my disposal that does mention this realm, the blog of 3 of my classmates, CommercialsAreUs, all 3 are athletes. Soooooooo I check out their ish a lot.

Their blog looks at, you guessed it, commercials, but also the TV industry in general. I noticed that some of the ads they were mentioning used sports as a vehicle to a successful campaign.

The two ads I saw were for beer, and fast food (Burger King). Which got me to thinking, these are two categories wherein the majority of consumption comes from men. Which then led to my breakthrough, that isn't entirely a breakthrough, considering its stereotypical public knowledge, that running ads that employ sports as the vehicle for portraying your message is a great way to make men buy your product.


This got me to thinking...why is that?

Gentlemen, why do ads that employ sports appeal to you?

Ladies, do ads that employ sports appeal to you? Do you feel left out the the sports marketing inner circle?

Here are some to think about...

~Z

Cars. Mattresses. Cynicism. OH MY!

In the posts that I've done about the automotive industry, I've asked a lot more questions than anything else. I feel like this is because it is such a strange industry to nail down. Cars serve many different purposes, obviously. They have a functional purpose, they are status symbols, and there is a rich history of the automotive business in the growth (and recent demise) of the American economy.

I was watching TV the other day (a rarity, I assure you except for Mariners games) and one of those fun commercials for "The Mattress Ranch" came on. You know, the one where the guy in the Spongebob Squarepants tie is dancing around with money in his hands and telling you that you can "save more bucks at the Mattress Ranch." I got to thinking, "how do mattress companies even make money? Nobody regularly buys a mattress." Really, it's not just one of things you go out and get. Once you buy a mattress, you've got it for a while. The mattress companies recommend that you buy a new mattress every 5-7 years because in that time, mattresses go flat and are no longer usable, at least with a reasonable amount of comfort. This thought also got me thinking about the auto industry. It certainly doesn't seem like they'd be making a lot of money, considering that cars do in fact last a long time. I'm rollin' in a 1997 Mazda Protege... Just saying. Digging a little deeper, I found out that the average person changes cars every 5-7 years as well. But obviously this isn't because of loss of functionality (unless of course you drive a Pinto).

So what is it about cars that cause such a frequent turnover? Why is it that, even though we don't NEED a new car, is the average ownership of a vehicle 5-7 years? OK, I get that the life cycle of a car, if taken good care of, is probably longer than a mattress and is overall an issue of milage. So sure, that accounts for the similar ownership turnover. I'm questioning the necessity here. I really think that there is a lot of social pressure on Americans to have the best car available. They are symbols of wealth, power, and prestige. All of which I personally think are BS (this comment is not endorsed by the Dream Team as a whole). In a lot of ways I believe that a car is like a mattress; you don't need a new one all too often, and they are wonderful if you have one that fits your preferences. With that said, America seems to disagree with me.

When a person parts ways with a mattress, it's usually because it no longer can serve it's functional purpose. When a person parts ways with a car, in far less time (and at a far greater expense), it has to be for some other reason(s). Why is that we are willing to commit huge sums of money (and quite frequently according to the statistics) on something that we don't necessarily need to? I know we live in the land of overindulgence, but I don't really get this one. But then again, I often equate myself to a cynical old man... Help me understand, folks.

Enjoy some Ted Sadler!

NFL lockout is the best thing for college education

Does the NFL lockout have college professors rejoicing?


In a recent article from ESPN titled "Pac-10 announces ESPN/Fox TV deal" the Pac-10 -- soon to officially become the Pac-12 -- has agreed to a 12-year television contract with ESPN and Fox that will more than triple its media rights fees and be the most valuable for any conference in college sports.

The contract, which will begin with the 2012-13 season, will be worth more than $225 million per year -- or $2.7 billion over the life of the deal, Sports Business Daily and The Associated Press reported on Tuesday.

This got me to thinking...

With NFL owners using their billions of dollars to prohibit the happiness of the American people, NCAA football looks like the only football we will have for the 2011-2012 season.

This significantly drove up the price of media rights fees to televise these college conferences. With all that money going to college conferences, 3x more, this means that 3x more money is going to colleges than before.

How much of that money translates to the classroom is unknown, but it wouldn't be a far cry to say that after this deal was made public, chemistry professors in the Pac-10 probably got the OK from their university's president to put in orders for some beakers.



How do you think the NFL lockout will effect education, or America in general?


~Z

Guiness: Passport to Greatness

Mobile Marketing is a growing aspect of advertising, with 4 out of 5 Americans having cell phones mobile marketing is one of the easiest ways to reach consumers at any time of the day. An example of a successful company on the leading edge of mobile marketing is Guinness, as mentioned by GrowSomethingBigger.com

Guinness is the official sponsor of Hong Kong Seven's 3 day rugby tournament. With many of the 20,000 overseas visitors not being able to communicate in Cantonese or knowing where to go after the games to drink a Guinness, they created a brilliant mobile event guide that spoke Cantonese! It contained match schedules, a city guide and useful Cantonese phrases.  Thousands of people downloaded the app, and Guinness sales were driven up by 30%! 

As the video shows, the phrases weren't general sayings but it also had ways to flirt! Now the voice is female so I don't know how successful it was in actually picking up women, but how awesome would it be to have your phone talk for you?? I would definitely want an app like this if I was going to be in a foreign country!

-Karina

NBA tweets its way to the top

The NBA has positioned itself as the top sports league in social media -- No. 1 on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube in terms of respective followers, likes and views.

As I was combing ESPN looking for anything related to e-marketing, I hit the jackpot when I found a link to an article titled "The NBA's social media explosion."


The NBA is in the midst of a record-setting season. It's generating its highest TV ratings across networks (ESPN, TNT and ABC) and an all-time high in traffic to NBA.com, 2 billion video views on its website, and has one of the most-trafficked YouTube channels.

This surge comes as the NBA experiences unprecedented growth among its social media platforms. The NBA just surpassed 100 million combined followers and likes on Twitter and Facebook. That number is up from 63 million at the start of the season.

Approximately half of the NBA's players (220 and counting) are on Twitter, including 2 who were named among Time magazine's top Twitter feeds: Shaquille O'Neal and Steve Nash.

The NBA has embraced social media more than any other sport, making it an integral part of their day-to-day operations. David Stern, the NBA's commissioner, encourages social media and sees it as a "digital watercooler."

This digital watercooler allows the league to closely engage with their fans, keeping them filled in on the latest news, and most importantly, allows them to listen to their fans' wants and needs and respond in real time.

Social media has brought NBA fans closer to the action than ever before. Yet it is what social media offers that is key to understanding the tie between an explosion in social media exposure and explosion in league profits.

Social media allows fans what they desire most, access to professional athletes' world. Any fan who  can set up a Twitter account can gain access to the world of these superheroes. Social media allows fans an opportunity we have never had, the opportunity for anybody to interact with professional athletes. 

The NBA understands that social media affords mere mortals the opportunity to gain entry to the world of the gods. This previously unattainable feat being made available to anyone is the reason why seemingly EVERYONE is tuning into the NBA.


~Z

Puppies and Beer

Currently in our e-Marketing class we are running a Google Adword campaign for a dog pet rescue.  While we have been running this campaign I became curious whether any beer companies use puppies or dogs in their advertising, because everyone likes to see cute dogs right??  Many companies use animals in their advertisements, as they know that cute animals can sell products or at least give you a warm fuzzy feeling about the brand.

One TV ad I found that I thought used puppies perfectly to demonstrate the stereotype that women will be attracted to a man who has a cute puppy, was the Jim Beam "Rent a Puppy":

Budweiser has consistently used dogs in their ads, most recently the Dog Sitter which aired during the Superbowl this year:

I also really like the Budweiser commercial that shows two dogs fetching beer for their masters:

As I was researching these ads, I came across a Korean beer  called "Happy Lager" that is actually made for dogs.  Kinda strange honestly, I don't know if it actually has any alcohol in it, but would you buy beer for your dog?  I'd rather buy it for myself!

What are your thoughts about using animals in advertisements?  Do you think they are successful?

-Karina

NIKE vs ADIDAS

 SWOOSH OR STRIPES?

Both Nike and adidas have two newish ads that are pretty cool and interestingly enough are emphasizing a common theme 

Nike's new ad is titled "NIKE THROWDOWN" wherein Nike consumers attempt to one-up each other, challenging consumers to join them and show they're in the club.

adidas' ad is titled "ADIDAS IS ALL IN" wherein adidas shows the myriad of top schools, athletes, and artists they endorse in a series of quick cuts where they show flashes of their performance that crescendos into roaring crowds and ends with adidas listing all their endorsee's who are all in. Like Nike's ad, adidas is challenging consumers to join the list of impressive individuals who are ALREADY ALL IN. They are urging consumers to join the club. 

It's not surprising that these giant corporations would run ads that challenge the consumer to purchase their product. What I think IS interesting is that the first new ads of the year focus on identification. 

Within the first 3 months of the year adidas is running an ad that essentially says, "the cream of the crop is already all in...ARE YOU? This pushes the consumer to purchase their product so that they won't get left behind since these superheroes have already joined the club.

Nike is also conveying a don't get left behind message by showing that their consumers are currently involved in a widespread movement of one-upping each other, which urges viewers to quickly go out and join the club so they won't miss out on a movement that is already happening. 

I think it is brilliant that Nike and adidas chose this campaign strategy as their first ones of the year because as we set new year's resolutions and start getting comfy with 2011, Nike and adidas are quick to tell us that if we don't act now, we will miss out on the opportunity to be a part of the movement!

DOES URGENCY WORK?

WHICH AD MAKES YOU WANT TO JOIN THEIR CLUB MORE?

~Z

LeBron taking his talents to...Liverpool?

LeBron James is on his way to becoming the billion dollar name he has always desired to be.

Fenway Sports Marketing -- the sister company of the Red Sox -- said Wednesday it has signed James and the management company he helped create, LRMR, to a long-term deal to secure marketing and sponsorship opportunities. As part of the deal, James obtained a piece of Liverpool FC, one of the world's most famed soccer teams and a longtime marquee franchise in the English Premier League.

FSM handles the marketing for the Red Sox, Liverpool and Roush Fenway Racing, and now it will handle James, too.

"What FSM does for Roush Fenway, Liverpool and the Red Sox, we will now do for LeBron James," FSM President Sam Kennedy said. "We will aggressively pursue business opportunities for him."

The obvious goal of all parties involved with this deal is creating a GLOBAL BRAND

With the addition of LeBron James, FSM has essentially created a global marketing Holy Trinity in Liverpool FC, Boston Red Sox, and LeBron James, 3 HUGE globally recognized brands.

Haters may say LeBron has no business owning stock in soccer, and his avid love for the Yanks make his move to ink a deal with the Sox confusing. But in my opinion, the move is BRILLIANT.

WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT LEBRON'S NEW DEAL?

~Z

I Got a Feeling, WOOHOOO!

I am thoroughly convinced that marketers are more in the business of pitching an emotion and a feeling rather than presenting a product. Sure, in a car commercial you see the vehicle itself and hear of the features, but I think that the bells, whistles, lights and cityscapes in the background of said commercials are what the car companies are hoping stick with you.

Maybe I'm too simple for my own good, but in my mind, a car is a car. If it has four wheels, a motor and can get me safely and consistently from point A to point B, then I'm set. Okay, obviously there are certain very basic necessities that a reliable car has to have, but hold the in-dash navigation and DVD players, please... I digress. Feelings. Kia wants you to FEEL like you're getting a steal of a deal. Lexus wants you to FEEL luxurious. Jeep wants you to FEEL like you can depend on your vehicle in any environment. Hummer wants you to FEEL cool (I know they don't make Hummers anymore, but for a while there, you couldn't tan, have a tribal tattoo and drink Red Bull without too owning a Hummer). In the first commercial below, she even ADMITS it! It's not about the features anymore... It's about the emotions that you experience when you drive.

I think this idea of marketing feelings and emotions applies to every industry, but it is strongest in the auto industry because the market is so sharply divided in regard to class and quality. Here are some commercials that I think supports this theory perfectly... I just blowing smoke? Comment. What do you think? What are you FEELING?

PC=DEATH TO FREEDOM OF SPEECH?

First Amendment rights don't apply to marketers

This was the thought that ran through my head as I read Kelsey Johnston's post, Approved by YiaYia, which talked about Kraft's advertising of their new product Athenos (hummus).

Kraft's spokeswoman for this product is a cantankerous old Greek grandmother who blasts all of her family's life choices, except for their choice of hummus. These ads have created a bit of controversy in the Greek community as some are upset that it stereotypes Greek elders and is an unfair and unrealistic depiction. Other blogs like AdFreak ran this story with the headline, "Bitchy old women promoting Kraft hummus. The blog later said this in Kraft's defense...

Jill Baskin, director of advertising at Kraft, says the brand means no offense. "While these ads may be controversial, for the most part people will see them for the light-hearted fun they are having," she says. "Any Greek Americans we ran them by thought they were really funny."

HERE'S MY QUESTION

HAVE WE BECOME SO SENSITIVE TO BEING POLITICALLY CORRECT THAT WE INHIBIT MARKETER'S FREEDOM OF SPEECH?

Let me first say this...I am a white male, which means that in the Oppression Olympics, I always finish in last place. But being PC has gotten so ridiculous to me that I feel like marketer's today can't make ANY ad that doesn't piss SOMEONE off. 

When I see these ads, I don't see issues of race, I see the values of OLD PEOPLE. Am I the only person who had traditional Christian grandparents? That's who I think of when I see this...not racial stereotypes.

See for yourself

WHAT DO YOU THINK?

~Z

Happy St. Patty's Day!

St. Patrick's Day: the official holiday for corned beef, cabbage and beer!! This is the drinking holiday of the year, where beer is colored green and Irish beers are essential. One of the most popular Irish beers is of course Guinness. This dark beer has been enjoyed around the world for 250 years, and is a stable draft in almost every bar.

Here are some fun facts about Guinness:

• 10 million glasses of Guinness are enjoyed everyday!
• The Guinness product is sold in 150 countries worldwide
• Guinness on draft actually contains less alcohol and carbs than Budweiser
• Guinness is in fact responsible for starting the Guinness Book of World Records
• Arthur Guinness, the founder, signed a 9,000 year lease on the brewery property. Wow!

To celebrate St. Patty's day Guinness released a commercial that demonstrates the correct way for men to hug without being "gay".  Dark beer has traditionally been viewed as a "real man's" drink. However I know plenty of women who love drinking Guinness! And who is to say that drinking light beer makes you any less of a man? Check out the commercial, and let me know what you think:

One thing that I found was interesting when I was researching Guinness, is that they have a free app called the "Guinness Pub Finder".  You can download this app and find all the places in the area that serve Guinness! It also comes with a pub quiz, shows you how to pour the perfect pint, and even includes print and video ads. Way to be on top of the ever evolving marketing trends Guinness, I am impressed.

And apparently if you drink Guinness you are part of an elite crowd.  According to this commercial starring Bill Walton, only 1 in 10 men drink Guinness.

So enjoy yourself this St. Patty's day, eat some cabbage, drink Guinness and have an awesome time being Irish!!

-Karina

We Have The Car For YOU!

When a car company is advertising a new vehicle, they are selling more than just the car. They are selling an experience. However, in order for the commercial, magazine spot, or even web ad to be any bit effective, the experience must be relative to the target audience. Would you see commercial for a Chrysler 300 during the break of Jerry Springer? Probably no sooner than you'd see a Ford F150 ad on the Lifetime Network… Location, location, location.   

The whole idea of marketing is to identify what it is that your customer wants, then tell that customer that you have what they need, and then explain why your product is better than the competition. Your product can be the bee's knees, but if you market it by saying, "Buy my thing, it's good" the customer will be left with more questions than answers, so marketing to your customers needs is essential. 

Think about this… Nike never advertises their bottom-of-the-barrel shoes that anyone can afford. They don't market themselves as having a product that everyone is worthy of. No, they advertise their best products. The ones that make you fly higher, run faster, swing harder, and drain your bank account faster than you can say "Just Do It."

The auto industry takes a slightly different approach. Rather than market only the best products that make the customer feel like they are worse off without, car companies advertise to customer's wants and needs. Companies know where their customers are. Luxury cars will be advertised to the classy folks. Those looking to stretch a buck will most likely see a whole lot of Used Car lot commercials, or commercials that promote SUPER CLOSEOUT SAVINGS! 

Keep in mind that companies know who watches what... You don't see what you see on TV or in print by chance.

Next time you're watching the tube, take note of what type of commercials come on; specifically car commercials. Think about what type of audience those companies are trying to reach and consider whether or not you feel like you are part of that target audience. In the meantime, try to identify the audiences that these companies may be trying to appeal to... 

Favorite Sports Ads

We all have sports ads that appeal to us, whether that be banners, commercials, or viral videos. For me personally, my favorite sports ads employ either humor or swagger. These are a few of my favorites...

Nike's Ad with LeBron James that claims,"YOU WANT TO BE BETTER THAN ME," is one of my favorites because it sticks with you. LeBron is looking completely yoked in this pic, and he's about to throw down. This awesome pic coupled with the fact that he's one of the best in the league makes Nike's pitch that much more powerful.

By far one of my favorite ad campaigns of ALL-TIME is adidas' "IMPOSSIBLE IS NOTHING." I connect with it personally because my favorite Bible verse is Philippians 4:13, "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." 

The "Fast Don't Lie" viral music video is one of my favorites because it's absolutely ridiculous with a dash of swagger (get it? dash like as in cooking, but also cause it's a video about speed...ya...skills). From 1:31 on it's pure joy.

The K-Swiss Tubes ads with Kenny Power are genius. Kenny Powers oozes cockiness, and his trashing of actual world class athletes is hilarious...translation, best spokesperson ever.

Lastly, Nike's "My Better is Better Than Your Better." I love this campaign. Having people tell me they're better than my best makes me want to work harder to eclipse them.

All in all, the most important duty each of these ads have is they have to actually motivate consumers to buy what they're pitching. So here's my question to you...

DO THESE ADS WORK?

~Z

Beer, Football, and Social Media...?

What do these three have in common? Well if you were watching the Super Bowl this year, you saw aspects of them all. Obviously you saw football, unless you are part of the group who just watch the big game for the commercials. And in that case, you saw lots of beer ads as well! But what about social media?

Almost every commercial played mentioned a Facebook page or website, however as the Online Marketing Blog mentions, social media was very much underutilized. Social media has quickly become a huge market to to capture costumers, and companies are scrambling to use to their advantage. Brands can use social media to create hype about their commercials before they air them, as well as involve their clientele in the process. Only a few managed to do this.

With a cost of $3 million per 30 second spot, companies need to make use of all the tools they can. Just putting web addresses at the end of commercials doesn't work if you want consumers to take the next step and explore what you have to offer.

What were your favorite commercials from the game? There were plenty of good ones this year, but personally I have to go with one of the classics. The infamous "Lamb Streaker". Enjoy!

-Karina

The Future is Mobile

GO MOBILE

The future of marketing can be summed up in those two words. According a post yesterday by Search Engine Watch Blog, Google has announced that it's 2011 strategic initiatives are "all about mobile."In a keynote speech on the 27th at the Interactive Advertising Bureau's annual leadership meeting, Google's CEO, Dr. Eric Schmidt, said mobile is taking off faster than predicted and that, "This is the future and everyone will adapt." To prove his point Schmidt offered some statistics displaying how rapid mobile is growing. These were the ones that stuck out to me most...

• There are more than 200 million YouTube mobile playbacks per day.
• 78 percent of smartphone users shop on their device.
• Schmidt predicted that digital display advertising could become a $200 billion a year business

So how does this relate to sports advertising?

$$$BIG MONEY$$$

Look back at the statistics I just listed above, courtesy of Dr. Schmidt. MORE THAN 200 million YouTube mobile playbacks per day, PLUS, 78% of smartphone users shop on their device. These numbers indicate that people are watching lots of YouTube videos on their mobile devices AND most of these people are also using their smartphones to shop. THEREFORE, companies like Nike, adidas, etc. can theoretically made a fortune from successful VIRAL MARKETING campaigns.

Nike had an incredibly successful viral marketing campaign in 2008 when they launched this viral video of Kobe Bryant jumping over a speeding Aston Martin to promote their launch of his new signature shoe, Hyperdunks. The shoe went on to become one of the hottest selling and popular basketball shoes of all time.

If athletic apparel companies utilize this viral marketing venue more, that means more mobile hits of their videos on YouTube, which translates to a possibility of millions of mobile sales from these same viewers.

Viral marketing is just one example. If you think about it, mobile marketing/advertising is absolutely the way to go. As smartphones are becoming ordinary, more emphasis is put on mobile web browsing. And what better way to reach consumers?! My Droid is ALWAYS by my side. As more people acquire smartphones as their mobile phones, that means there is a rapidly expanding population of people that can be accessed wherever, and whenever. Thus effective mobile marketing can lead to ENORMOUS profits for any company. But I see the opportunity for astronomical profits from the athletic apparel industries due to their reliance on web browsing, viral advertising, and their ability to constantly inform people of new sales or products, directly to their mobile devices. Being able to reach millions of people all the time, anywhere, is why mobile is absolutely the future of marketing and advertising. Mobile's future looks bright...and lucrative.

~Z

"THIS IS HOW WE DO IT"

So what is the point of this blog? Over the next few months each of our three members will analyze the marketing behaviors of a particular industry. The three industries whose marketing we are analyzing are sports, beer, and auto.

Karina Shelton will cover beer advertising

Patrick Smith will cover auto advertising

Zachary Pearson will cover sports advertising

We are...DREAM TEAM

Imagine a one stop shop for all your favorite ads, a world filled with humor, that keeps you on the cutting edge of marketing and entertainment, and does all your thinking for you. Welcome to Dream Team Analytics. How can this be you may ask? We are a group of business students from Pacific Lutheran University trained in the fields of marketing. We have assembled a 3-member team that possesses what we believe to be the perfect trifecta of skills to create a "Dream Team."