Check Out IKEA's Manland Experiment

Everyone's favorite Scandinavian retailer recently came up with an inventive way to keep guys entertained while their wives and girlfriends shop. An IKEA Australia store launched a trial of something called "Manland" in September, complete with non-stop sports, a pinball machine and a foosball table. Wives and girlfriends got a buzzer like you might at a Chili's reminding them every 30 minutes that they must go back to Manland to pick up their significant other.

How's this relevant to sponsorship you ask? Certainly there are some events made for couples, but the fact is that very few properties relate the same across the entire spectrum of demographics. Yet the experience is all too often one size fits all. Smart marketers tailor the experience to create engagement with audiences that may not be core, but have influence nonetheless. As an unintended side effect, they often create sponsorship opportunities that might not have previously thought of. So, is it that much of a stretch to envision a Manland at major flower shows sponsored by say.. Coors Light? Maybe in the not too distant future.

Video courtesy of News.com.au