connecting people,opportunities and ideas

I developed a sponsorship program for a real estate developer who provided “aspirational luxury” stores at his retail properties for consumers who “aspired” to a luxury lifestyle.

It worked in retail as consumers shop to feel better, using consumption as therapy.  We sold sponsorships leveraging access to the consumers when their guard was down (while shopping) from being inundated by brand messages that were sent through traditional media channels.

I found an interesting organization that is offering partnerships by rewarding future behavior – and inspiring that behavior.

What is an X PRIZE?

An X PRIZE is a $10 million+ award given to the first team to achieve a specific goal, set by the X PRIZE Foundation, which has the potential to benefit humanity. Rather than awarding money to honor past achievements or directly funding research, an X PRIZE incites innovation by tapping into our competitive and entrepreneurial spirits.

How enlightened.  Why be aspirational if you can be inspirational?

Summertime = heat, swimming to keep cool, relaxation and reflection (at least the last two weeks of August).  I recently read a couple of books – The Waxman Report and The Alchemist, by Paul Coelho.  I won’t review the Waxman Report in this space as it is probably too political for some of my readers.

However, The Alchemist got me to thinking a bit and how it relates to sponsorship.  Okay, full disclosure, I am always thinking about sponsorship!

According to Paul, in order to fulfill your Personal Legend, one must be also connected to the Soul of the World and know The Language of The World.  To get connected in this deep way, one must be committed to the journey and the process and facing the inherint challenges.  Wow, pretty deep.

In sponsorship, this means being an evangelist of the medium, truly and authetically building integrated platforms for brand promotion, through creatively leveraging the asset or property.  In order to do this, one needs training and understanding and of course, being connected.

A couple of interesting ways to train and get connected are coming up soon.

• LA Office is hosting their annual conference in Hollywood, CA.  They are offering free movie passes for brand representatives who want to take advantage of the special rate for our readers.  Just click on this link and type in the word SPONSORSHIP, when booking.
• IEG has expanded their training and are offering a couple of unique courses and a combined course which brings together many of the necessary tools for sponsorship success. Their next one is on Sponsorship Activation.  Click here to register and find out more information.

Both of these institutions have helped me learn, grow and get more connected.  I hope this is helpful and look forward to your feedback!

Lesa Ukman recently blogged about the importance of activating sponsorships with meaning and delivering value for the consumer.  As usual, she has her pulse on the beat of the industry.  Here is a link to the blog

Lesa’s Blog

Heat Launch New Technology in Sport Sponsorship, By SIG Intern, Tom Segal.

After much anticipation the Miami Heat recently launched their new MediaMesh clear LED system. In one word it is “amazing!” The Heat are the first sports organization in the United States to use this technology and have already attracted big players to advertise on their system including Bacardi, Miller Lite, Verizon, McDonalds, Gatorade and Adidas just to name a few.

The exposure the screen will generate facing the popular Biscayne Boulevard is immense with over 5.8 million people either passing by or attending an event at American Airlines Arena each year, but the location is not the only benefit making potential advertisers drool. The real attraction is how cool this thing looks! It is nearly impossible not to fixate your eyes on the objects practically floating across the front of the arena while passing by; so much so that I guarantee it will cause more than a few accidents on Biscayne.

Pricing for the ad spots are unavailable without inquiring with the Heat’s VP of Sales, but the structure for the advertising deals are based on 8 second increments that run for a combined 30 minutes a day.

With the increased attention the system has been getting from potential advertisers, other organizations such as the Orlando Magic, have already inquired about acquiring systems for their new stadiums.

In a time difficult to obtain sponsorships, something new and exciting had to be done, and I think the Heat had a “slam dunk” idea in incorporating this new technology into their arena. The organization is also using Twitter as a medium to get fans involved with the LED video board selecting fan “tweets” throughout the day to display across the screen.

Check out the video on the Heat website to see how ridiculously cool this new LED technology is. I would definitely crash on Biscayne Boulevard if something appealing was flashing across this thing.

Do others think this was a great idea by the Heat, and how quickly do you think this technology will grow among other sports franchises?  I also like how the Heat incorporated Twitter to get the fans involved.

http://www.nba.com/heat/news/aaa_unveils_media_mesh.html

Sports Sponsorships in a Troubled Economy, By SIG Intern, Greg Borzerelli.
Sports sponsorships have always been a popular vehicle for advertising and building a brand. This has proved to be a mutually beneficial relationship with sports teams and leagues raking in millions of dollars and sponsors receiving ad space on one of the nation’s most popular platforms. In fact, certain companies have become so (more…)

Featured Article by David Rachell of Pinpoint Marketing and Dan Beeman of Sponsorship Insights Group.

The global economic downturn has taken multiple shapes that adversely affect many industries. The wise sage, Benjamin Franklin, once said that out of adversity comes opportunity. Perhaps Ben’s statement could very well apply to the downturn being our opportunity to strengthen the North American sponsorship industry.

Most reports show that the industry is weathering the economic storm fairly well.  But, activity from a different type of storm has been brewing at the U.S. Capitol. This storm involves legislative regulation aimed at prohibiting some of the most prolific industry players from using sponsorship as a means to foster new business growth.

Imagine (more…)

I’ll start by saying – Thank you Jason Peck for always bailing me out of my technology vortex of darkness. It is Saturday and I am playing with my laptop and am considering using video on the front page to make it more dynamic.  I am thinking that not many people will be reading this, so I won’t embarrass myself too badly.  Here is the copy and the video. 

What do you think?

Sponsorship Insights Group is dedicated to connecting People, Opportunities and Ideas.

We help properties generate partnerships with appropriate brands.

We host the premier online sponsorship and marketing professionals group.

We partner with IEG, Marketing Sherpa, Teamwork Online, SponsorPitch and others to provide cutting-edge information, content job opportunities and more through our integrated website and blog.

We are pleased to offer an array of services through our alliance network, social media, OOH, marketing, specialty leasing, garage revenue enhancements, concierge options and more.

Our goal is to provide all properties and marketing professionals a one-stop location to gain efficiency and effectiveness in an unfiltered objective way.

How can we help you?

It is with great pleasure that I announce two new members of the LinkedIn, Sponsorship Insights Group Leadership Team.  Chris Hughes and Claire Ritchie will be working on a strategic plan to enhance the awareness of our group and capture both traditional and non-traditional media exposure.

Please let us know if and how you would like to contribute through discussion forums, job postings, recruitment, blogging or writing guest articles in our newsletter.

SINE QUA NON INTERNATIONAL: A BRIEF INTRODUCTION
•    Founded in 2001 by Claire Ritchie, Sine Qua Non creates opportunities for brands, whether for companies looking to develop revenues and relationships or for rights holder looking for exposure, we provide outstanding experiences with exceptional returns. From strategy to activation and implementation, SQN creates and manages brand connection for clients in a range of sports and other sponsorship areas which create equity and add value.
•    Our highly experienced team have held key marketing positions client and rights holder side giving us a 360° perspective enabling us to get under the skin of a brand. We make sure that projects are aligned to business objectives with a well thought out, targeted, strategic approach with measurable results that deliver a clear ROI.
•    We have a particular expertise in technology enabled sponsorships. (more…)

Today I am blogging about a blog that is featuring my success story on LinkedIn.  It is by Russell Scibetti on the Business of Sports.  He liked my story and wanted to feature it.  So, click here to read the blog that I am blogging about, which is about me!

Before the beginning of the current NHL season, the league created a unique partnership with Scotiabank and the Canadian Broadcasting Company (CBC). Together they founded the first ever NHL award to be chosen by and presented by the fans: the Scotiabank NHL Fan Fav Award. It will be awarded to the player the fans deem the best overall regular season performer.

“We are excited to work with Scotiabank on this innovative initiative that brings NHL fans together”, said Keith Wachtel, Senior Vice-President, Corporate Sales & Marketing for the NHL.

At the end of each week, fans are able to log onto NHL.com and choose the three best overall performers for the week. Those three players are revealed on both NHL.com and CBC’s Hockey Night in Canada every Saturday night.

When the regular season is over, several NHL experts will limit the long list of fans’ nominees to 10 players. Fans will then have a chance to vote for any of the 10 players in the same format as throughout the season. After the Stanley Cup playoffs, one of the voters will be randomly chosen to present the Scotiabank NHL Fan Fav Award to the winner at the NHL Awards live on CBS.

John Doig, the Senior Vice-President of Marketing for Scotiabank added, “Canadians are passionate about hockey and this is a brand new way for them to really get in the game.”

This project allows for fans to have an immediate personal connection with the league. What do you think?

Do you think we’ll be seeing any other leagues trying this approach?

With leagues like the NBA rebuilding their image, do you think instituting this award would result in more viewership and appreciation for the leagues?

Is the NHL graspng at straws or being innovative?