"NBA's All-Star Weekend Tweaks Are Step in Right Direction"

From Bleacher Report

Analysis by Jauan Latney in SRM 435 (section 1)

This article was all about increasing the fan experience in the all-star weekend contest for the NBA. The most anticipated was the new style of the dunk competition which added a freestyle round and is putting three western conference players against 3 eastern conference players. It goes into the changes to other invents like the skills competition being a two-man relay and the three point competition having one full rack of money balls placed wherever the shooter chooses. They also talk on how the young players get a chance to put their names out there during the all-star weekend and possibly get themselves some endorsements.

            The NBA has the best all-star event compared to the rest of the top professional sports. From a marketing standpoint, companies have their names on events that go on involved in all-star Saturday night as well as other events throughout the week. All the fans that are in town for the four day weekend are seeing ads and being involved with these sponsors of the NBA. They came out with a “JAM BAND” for this year at the Jam Session events where you sign in with the bracelet using your information and swipe in at different events. When people swipe in at these events/stations the sponsors of that station can see that and send them mail in the future. The bands can also compare the fans stats to their favorite NBA player in the “Draft Combine” drill. When you’re having events like this, social media is always good to have and you can post to social media with the use of the bands as well. When it comes to sales this was the cheapest all-star game in history to get into but they were also more focused on the whole fan experience this year. With the use of the many performances throughout the weekend and meeting all the players the experience was definitely boosted this year along with the JAM BANDS for Jam Session events.

            This is relevant to the course because it covers getting the experience that all fans crave and the way the NBA gets sponsors involved in their all-star weekend. It also is about reaching out to those fans after the event is over to reach them about sales in the future and to ask about their experiences from the weekend. The NBA all-star weekend is the ultimate example of any all-star event in the top professional sports, even greater than the NFL. They get into the marketing and promotion standpoint to make current and future sales and reaching out to obtain new customers due to their combination of being with the NBA. 

"Marketers Going Mad This March Over NCAA Tournament"

From Athletic Business

Analysis by Kevin Albright in KIN 501

I came across a marketing article Athletic Business Journal that I found really interesting regarding the NCAA Tournament and how big of a stage it is for marketers around the country. The article starts off by saying that the NCAA Tournament is not quite as attractive to marketers as maybe the Super Bowl or the most recent Olympics, however it is pretty close and especially this year is gaining a lot of attention from marketers. The tournament consists of over 60 basketball games which are all broadcasted over four popular TV stations (TBS,CBS,TNT, TruTV). Games go on for nearly 3 weeks and attract many viewers outside of basketball fans because of the size of the event and the instructiveness of filling out a bracket and competing against others for the better bracket. The article talks about the tournament being a marketers dream because of the large coverage as well as the fact that it’s live sports, they describe it as “TiVo proof”.

Last year it was said that the tournament generated over 1 billion dollars in ad revenue and they anticipate exceeding that this year. The growth of social media has helped the marketing of brands also because for three weeks social media is buzzing about everything relating to the NCAA Tournament. Also companies are sponsoring apps, hotels, contests, hosting concerts and running promotions during this time to grab the attention of their views and promote their product. I see it as a great way to market because of the reasons the article mentioned dealing with it being a 3 week event, live TV, tons of social media opportunities and the size of the spectators.

This topic is very relevant to class because determining where you are going to use your marketing resources is one of the most crucial parts to a successful marketing program. I also thought that it would spark and interesting discussion on how valuable some marketing may be and what kind of price tag can you put on it. For example Warren Buffet is teaming up with Quicken Loans to offer 1 billion dollars to anyone who can get a perfect bracket. Quicken Loans is gaining so much publicity from this contest and they are willing to risk a lot of money if someone wins the contest. Now the odds are very slim that someone gets a perfect bracket but it was the decision they had to make as to how valuable is that as a marketing scheme. The importance of studying trends and analyzing numbers and statistics can be critical to devising a strong marketing plan.

"Rays Tout New 'Flex Packs' Ticketing as Unique to MLB"

From Athletic Business

Video link

Analysis by Rick Reardon in KIN 501

The Tampa Bay Rays are unveiling a new marketing campaign that also couples with their new idea of how to sell single game tickets to fans. Their new campaign centers on the phrase “Rays Up”. This phrase is supposed to link the team with the fans by making it a joint effort to turn the season around. Mark Fernandez, senior vice president, said when referring to the new slogan, “Let’s do this thing together.” After finishing last in the MLB in attendance last year, the Rays are using a new ticket plan, called Flex Packs to improve home field attendance. Flex Packs are targeted at single game ticket buyers who usually just buy the one game. With Flex Packs, a fan can buy a three, six, or nine game pack. The fan can then use these Flex Packs to go to any game as long as it is not sold out. This includes marquee games such as the Yankees, Red Socks, or even the season opener with no up-charge on those certain games. The only catch is that they cannot redeem the Flex Pack for sold out games, which makes sense. Tampa Bay has already started their marketing campaign focused around these Flex Packs by displaying billboards all around the city featuring star players and manager Joe Madden that displays their slogan Rays Up. The three game Flex Packs start at $49 and they have already sold 10,000 Flex Packs (of all varieties).

From a marketing stand point I think this is a genius idea. A lot of the problem, I believe, with increasing attendance to home games especially in baseball is getting people to attend multiple games in a season. With the Flex Packs, it could save family money that is just coming in for the weekend and wants to go watch a weekend series or for a fan that lives in the city but is not sure which games they can attend. The only down side I could see with this would be that fans might start buying Flex Packs instead of season tickets. This way the fan could choose which games they want to go to without having to buy all the tickets to the home games. With that being said, I believe a team will still have their regular die-hard fans that will continuously buy season tickets. However for the fans on the fence deciding whether they want season tickets or not, I think this would be a good way to get their foot in the door and hopefully convert them to season ticket holders. If a fan buys the nine game Flex Pack and continually enjoys going to the game then eventually they might think it would save them some money just buying season tickets. Selling tickets is just one part of the equation though. If fans do not enjoy being at the game and are not leaving with a memorable experience then they will not be willing to come back or buy tickets later. So I do not know if the reason Tampa Bay was last in attendance last year was because of ticket prices or plans, or for the game day atmosphere. But both sides of the equation need to be looked at. I still believe that this is a great way to get new fans in the seats and it’s always good to try something fresh and new.

This relates to our course of when we talked about fans and creating fan loyalty. The best way to get a new fan is getting them out the games to watch and creating an identity with the team. With these Flex Packs, the team is getting more on the fence fans that cannot afford season tickets or that only usually come to one game. If you have a fan that usually only comes to one game you can try to push this ticket package on them by saying they can come to three more of their choice without any commitment up front. I think that this is a great way to establish new fans and also expand the loyalty of certain fans.