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    Friday
    19Mar2010

    Leverage Players to Promote Non-Profits

    Are you looking for new ways to promote non-profit organizations and charitable partners? Are you looking to new ways to create an enticing call-to-action for fans?

    FC Barcelona star Lionel Leo Messi recently teamed up with UNICEF, the team's jersey naming rights partner, to create a powerful viral piece designed to drive awareness and participation in support of a good cause. The 22-year old footballer recently signed a 2-year commitment with UNICEF to work on behalf of the world's most vunerable children and created the viral spot to encouage others to join him in his efforts.

    The piece is powerful and extremely well done. Check it out:

    Monday
    08Mar2010

    Nike Welcomes Action Sports Enthusiasts to "The Farm"

    Are you looking to feature action sports in non-traditional settings? Are you looking for new ways to incorporate action sports?

    Nike continues to revolutionize the action sports space by refurbishing non-traditional areas into ultimate attractions for skateboard/snowboard enthusiasts. Nike recently ventured to the German countryside to create its newest action sports spectacle, "The Farm".

    Once the project was complete, Nike invited some of the world's greatest action sports enthusiasts to try out all of the new toys it had to offer... Check out the viral piece below!

    Monday
    08Mar2010

    Nike Shows What it Takes to Bleed as One...

    Are you looking to create a viral campaign that emphasizes team unity and focus? Are you looking for new ways to engage fans on one united front?

    Nike recently released a powerful viral piece that demonstrates the things the Dutch National Team will need to effectively do during the 2010 World Cup to realize their full potential. The piece, entitled "Bleed as One" is very interesting because it uses some unusual imagery to demonstrate how the team will need to compete as a united front with with resolve and focus, not just their brilliant style of play.

    Check out the piece below:

    Sunday
    21Feb2010

    Billboard of the Week - Lotto (Soccer)

    Are you looking for new, creative ways to promote the game of soccer? Are you looking to feature a non-traditional outdoor campaign in select markets?

    Soccer properties looking for new ways to market their organization should consider benchmarking an outdoor marketing tactic Lotto used around the 2006 World Cup in Germany. The company creatively branded the side of an overpass to resemble a soccer goal that fans walked under towards one of the site locations where a World Cup match was being played.

    Check it out below:

    Sunday
    21Feb2010

    Red Bull Drives Interest with F1 on Ice Viral

    Are you looking for new ways to attract casual sports fans and non-traditional consumers to your sport? Are you looking for unique ways to promote motorsports?

    Red Bull recently unveiled a really cool viral piece that features the Red Bull Racing Formula 1 team testing the agility and speed of its cars in non-traditional, wintry conditions. The clip, created to celebrate the return of the Canadian Grand Prix, led Red Bull F1 driver Sebastien Buemi and his counterparts to Canada for a test run.

    The unique viral piece demonstrates the out-of-the-box thing that needs to become more prevalent in the sport of NASCAR. After all, who wouldn't want to see high-speed racing on ice in the Great North?

    Check out Red Bull's creative piece below:

    Sunday
    07Feb2010

    Target Brings Shaun White to New York City

    Are you looking for new ways to leverage athlete endorsers? Are you looking for ways to drive awareness without having rights to marks?

    Target, a longtime sponsor of Olympian gold medalist Shaun White, recently unveiled a terrific billboard messaging campaign in Times Square in anticipation of the 2010 Vancouver Oympics. The billboards, a creative collaboration between Target, White, and his brother Jesse, were unveiled on January 15th and are set to be changed as the Games near closer.

    Target's massive billboard campaign (a combination of nine (9) individual outdoor adverts) serves as a great way to provide Shaun White with a good-luck sendoff, drive awareness for the retailer's exclusive Shaun White 4 Target clothing line, and leverage consumer affinity for the Olympic Games without having rights to marks...

    Check out the campaign below:

     

    Source: BrandFreak, FreshnessMag.com 

    Thursday
    04Feb2010

    It's Time for the Dancin' Dawgs

    Are you looking for new ways to entertain your fan base? Are you looking for new ways to drive awareness for your organization's players?

    The folks at the University of Washington are constantly pushing the envelope with new, creative marketing and sales tactics. The UW marketing team recently created an entertaining "Dancin' Dawgs" piece that is played on the video board when the men's basketball team develops a sizeable lead in the final minutes of play.

    The clip is terrific in that it allows the athletes to demonstrate some of their personalities and it is a simple, yet very entertaining fan pleaser. Why not remind fans late in the game about how great their experience was?

    Check it out below:

    Source: Husky Men's Basketball Blog

    Thursday
    31Dec2009

    Bring Your Out-of-Home Campaigns to Life with Steam!

    Are you looking for new ways to leverage team partners? Are you looking for ways to bring the excitement of your games to life for fans during the work week?

    McDonald's recently teamed up with Cossette, an advertising agency based out of Vancouver, Canada to create a stimulating out-of-home campaign designed to drive awareness for the chain's coffee offerings. Cossette built a steam machine to fit inside a bus shelter that let off periodic bursts of steam, revealing a hidden message about a McDonald's free coffee promotion.

    The creative outdoor campaign, executed to perfection, offers some parallels for sports marketers looking for new ways to stimulate consumer awareness:

    • Teams can promote an upcoming season (and leverage a home improvement/grill partner) by featuring a branded miniature grill giving off steam that reveals the slogan, "It's Time to Kickoff the Season... Are You Ready?"
    • NASCAR (and/or participating teams/sponsors) can feature a visual of a car smoking with a captivating message
    • Teams can feature of a picture of players running out of the tunnel with smoke (e.g. steam) exploding from the visual (think of the Miami Hurricanes running out of the tunnel with the steam)
    • The Miami Heat (and teams with related fire monikers) could feature an outdoor ad with steam to show opponents cooling off
    • Teams can leverage coffee vendors (as seen in the ad) by touting exclusive season-long promotional offers
    Monday
    14Dec2009

    Join the EA Sports Blindfolded Keepie Uppie Challenge

    Are you looking to create a captivating viral campaign that will attract the attention of consumers from across the globe? Are you looking for new ways to leverage athlete endorsers?

    Wieden + Kennedy Amsterdam teamed up with EA Sports to create a sticky 'keepie uppie challenge' viral marketing campaign designed to promote the company's new game title FIFA10. The creative campaign features the world's greatest soccer players testing their juggling skills while blindfolded. The humorous campaign was designed to entertain and provides an influencial call-to-action for fans to submit videos of their own juggling talents on the promotional microsite.

    Check out W+K's creative Blindfolded Keepie Uppie Challenge below, which launched today (12/14/09):  

    Tuesday
    08Dec2009

    U.S. Soccer Tests the Skills of an NFL Kicker

    Are you looking for new ways to promote the athleticsm of your organization's athletes? Are you looking to cross-promote with another sports organization in your local marketplace?

    In July 2009, Philadelphia Eagles kicker David Akers made an appearance at the U.S. Men's National Soccer Team's practice as they prepared for a CONCACAF Gold Cup quarterfinals match at Lincoln Financial Field. Akers' appearance made for some quality footage for U.S. Soccer to feature in the viral space.

    Members of the U.S. Soccer team battled it out with Akers in a variety of kicking contests, using both footballs and soccer balls. The video below demonstrates how skillful soccer players and NFL kickers actually are, and serves as a great benchmark for:

    • Soccer organizations looking to align with other sports organizations in the local marketplace to promote their sport
    • College athletic departments looking to showcase a collection of their student-athletes
    • Professional organizations looking to showcase the skills of specialty players (kickers, punters, etc.)

    Check it out below: