Deal Flow 8-27-2009

Puma has announced a global partnership with Microsoft XBOX for the release of their upcoming title, Forza Motorsport 3. The Killers will play their debut South African shows in Johannesburg and Cape Town, sponsored by Heineken in December. The Buffalo Bills have signed a new sponsorship agreement with the Adam’s Mark Hotel, which will provide the hotel with exclusive advertising in the ...

Pricing Your Sponsorship Opportunity

At some point you have to put a price to the proposal. Pricing is so subjective and relative to the specific market. Furthermore, many organizations struggle with sponsorship pricing because many traditional pricing methods simply don’t apply in the non-profit, collegiate and/or high school athletic world. Bluntly speaking, pricing is more art than science. Accordingly, my experience tells me ...

The New American Pastime – College Football

If you are in the same boat with a huge percentage of American sport fans, you are already well aware that the college football season officially kicks off on September 3. As the sports media shifts its focus away from baseball and toward the gridiron, it’s not too late to get off of the sidelines and into the game. I know what you brand marketers are thinking, “Can I really afford to be i...

Activation Tactic of the Week: Billboards

Are you looking for new ways to capitalize on team affiliation? Are you looking for creative tactics to promote a partnership in the local marketplace? Brand managers looking to capitalize on team affinity should consider modeling the Dunkin' Donuts guerrilla billboard strategy detailed below. With more sports organizations turning to outdoor media to promote ticket sales, community initiati...

Sponsorship for Authors

Okay – we just finished covering sponsorship for those of you in the speaking business – now to switch gears and focus on those of you in the newsletter and e-zine business. In today's age of specialization, we're finding more and more niche authors out there – and believe me, it's true what they say: "There’s riches in niches"! Especially where securing sponsorship is concerned. Speciali...

Deal Flow 8-28-2009

Autodesk has joined WorldSkills Calgary 2009 as a Platinum Sponsor and the Presenting Sponsor of the Mechanical Engineering Design (MED) competition. Cash4Gold today announced that it is sponsoring Randy Couture in a pair of upcoming fights, including his battle with Antonio Rodrigo "Minotauro" Nogueira as the main event during UFC 102 on August 29th. The South Jersey Building and Const...

Help Your Favorite Non-Profit Net a $20K Sponsorship

Call it the American Idolization of sponsorship. Allowing consumers to have a hand in the sponsorship selection process is a relatively new trend. Last week, we looked at Monster's crowdsourced band sponsorship and Okanagan Spring's crowdsourced value-in-kind promotion. In response to those stories, we got an email about Tom's of Maine, which is doing a similar promotion for community pro...

A-B College Beer Cans – Great Idea, Poor Execution

A-B’s campaign to brand beer cans with local college colors was a simple, yet brilliant product marketing idea. They have successfully rebranded bottles and cans in the past and fans have exhibited a definitive affinity to purchase school branded products. Sometimes, the best ideas simply reinvent the wheel. However, A-B fell asleep at the wheel when trying to roll this out, and not only blew t...

Virgin Mobile and Kyocera Send a Message with FreeFest

For Virgin Mobile, which was acquired by Sprint Nextel earlier this year, reducing churn and preaching affordable pricing plans are key staples of the company's marketing strategy. So what better way to do that, with one of it's handset partners on board, then to launch a free music festival that rewards loyal customers with VIP benefits and exclusive experiences? For four years the Virgin...

For Sponsors, 3 Steps Towards Transparency

Earlier this year, politicians, the media, and just about everyone with an opinion, it seemed, publicly flogged Northern Trust Bank for proceeding with the second year of its five-year commitment to PGA Golf because it received TARP funds. According to the bank's CEO, no public dollars funded the sponsorship, and fiscally sound, doing quite well, the bank went forth with a sponsorship program i...