Confessions (and Learnings) of a First-Time Sponsorship Seeker

This is the fifth installment of a weekly Monday series called Confessions (and Learnings) of a First Time Sponsorship Seeker. Before reading other articles in the series, we'd suggest going back and reading Part I, Part II, Part III and Part IV in the series. Ah, the allure of sponsorship. To have a corporate partner spend a few of their marketing dollars on your passion; to take it to the n...

Can Twitter Help Prevent Olympic Ambush?

With loose regulation, no barriers to entry and an ever-widening conversation around live events, social platforms like Twitter, Facebook and newcomer, Pinterest, could become an ambushers best friend. With these platforms reaching mainstream and the Olympics less than six months away, it is no surprise that major sponsors would be concerned about keeping the conversation in their court. Market...

Just In Time For March Madness, UPS Debuts "Game Changers" Campaign

Silent partners when they do their job well are often easily forgotten. That's a problem for marketing folks. So UPS is making logistics interesting with this new spot, which breaks down one of the greatest moments in college basketball history. To give the integrated campaign some extra relevancy, the logistics giant has also teamed up with several big name brand ambassadors including broa...

Here's Why Sponsors Love NASCAR

SponsorPitch carried a post a couple weeks back about how Kenny Wallace was using his nearly 100,000 loyal followers to get the word out about his sponsor search to brands. Well, it seems to have paid off as @MAC_Tools last night announced a sponsorship deal with Kenny on Twitter unleashing a torrent of grateful fan tweets. Hundreds, if not thousands, from what we can gather. Here's a sampling....

USOC, Budweiser Extend Olympic Deal To 32nd Year

Anheuser-Busch and the U.S. Olympic Committee today announced that Budweiser will extend its exclusive malt beverage sponsorship and renewing its commitment to the USOC and Team USA through 2016. Budweiser's partnership with the USOC, which began in 1984, spans nearly three decades and includes 14 Olympic Games and Olympic Winter Games. "This is great news for Team USA,” said Scott Blackmun,...

Angry Birds Swoop Into F1 With Driver Deal

Rovio, the Finnish maker of the insanely popular social game Angry Birds, has agreed to sponsor Finnish driver Heikki Kovalainen at the Qantas Australian Grand Prix this weekend. As part of the deal, he'll be sporting this Angry Birds helmet at the event. The Angry Birds deal comes only two days after Kovalainen's Caterham F1 Team announced a more traditional multiyear deal with Visa, which ...

NCAA Tourney: Here Are The Brands Behind The Basket

One of the most visible pieces of sponsorship inventory in basketball is the basket stanchion. Via SRi, here's a look at which brands sponsor which team stanchions in the tournament:

Got Milk? Partners With Endurance Properties To Promote Chocolate Milk

As part of its new "got chocolate milk?" campaign, The Milk Processor Education Program (MilkPEP) is expanding its lineup of national partners in an effort to highlight the benefits of refueling with lowfat chocolate milk after strenuous exercise. As part of the new REFUEL | “got chocolate milk?™” Campaign, lowfat chocolate milk will become the Official Refuel Beverage of the Rock ‘n’ Roll Mar...

Check Out This NCAA Bracket By Team Apparel Sponsor

Yesterday, we posted a bracket by stanchion sponsor. Here's another great bracket from our friends at SRi, showcasing each tournament team's official apparel sponsor.

Ohio Looks At Raising $15M/Year With Highway Naming Rights

In a recent interview with The Columbus Dispatch, Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT) Director, Jerry Wray, told the paper that the department is exploring naming rights and sponsorships for 49,000 miles of Ohio highways. The concept, he says, could raise as much as $15 million a year. “Could it be the Downtown split brought to you by so-and-so? Yes,” ODOT spokesperson Steve Faulkner sai...