Sports marketing at all levels faces the challenge of competing with the ever improving broadcast experience and convenience of watching the game at home, in a bar or restaurant, or at a friend’s house. While we attempt to combat this with increased Jumbo Tron replays and additional hospitality areas in our venues, I believe the greatest opportunity to continue to fill the seats is highlighting the experience of actually being there. In short, while reliving a memorable moment at a sporting event, no good story starts with "I was sitting on my couch."
We all know nothing sells like a winner and fans love to talk about the big play or the game winning drive but that is up to our respective coaching staffs to field a competitive team. What we can do as marketers is utilize the platform we are given during media timeouts, quarter breaks, and halftime to create memorable moments that are impossible to duplicate outside the stadium. In my three years at Pitt producing football games I have had the pleasure of planning and executing some heartwarming and engaging moments.
Here at Pitt, some recognitions are held each game, such as recognizing a group of either active duty or military veterans on field or having a patient from Children’s Hospital serve as honorary captain for the coin toss. Some take months of planning, such as the retirement of a jersey as we did in 2015 for #75 Jimbo Covert (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I5qZvREdqPI). Others are done to celebrate the accomplishments of our other teams for a conference championship or NCAA Tournament Appearance. For example, last season we honored two of our divers, Meme Sharp and Dominic Giordano, for respective ACC and National Championships, as well as our diving coach, Julian Krug, for being named ACC Diving Coach of the Year (https://twitter.com/Pitt_SWIM_DIVE/status/782393028174643200). This is a great opportunity to shine a spotlight on programs that do not receive much exposure while educating our fans base on the achievements of our student-athletes across the board.
However, the most organic moments are often created by being prepared and ready for the opportunity to present itself and capitalizing on it when it does. Last season, we worked with the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC) to honor one of their Oncologists, Dr. Stanley Marks, who is a leader in the field of cancer research and recently had a two-million dollar endowed chair in his name. Dr. Marks also happened to treat our junior running back, James Conner, as he battled Hodgkin’s Lymphoma to make it back to the field for the 2016 season. While planning the recognition for Dr. Marks they asked if James could be a part of it. Seeing as he was playing in the game at the time, we could guarantee his participation. However, I communicated with the football staff the timeout this would take place and not only did James make his way over to Dr. Marks, but our Head Coach Pat Narduzzi did as well (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cZvHl4g4Cv0&feature=youtu.be). Being prepared and flexible made what would have been a nice moment into one that was talked about by our fans of all ages after the game.
Another example of being prepared for when the opportunity knocks is back in 2014 when we were able to reunite one of our band members with her father, who had been serving in Afghanistan for 10 months. One of the commanding officers in our Army ROTC program contacted me on Wednesday before our game on Saturday letting me know Army Captain Richard Siegel reached out to him asking to be on the field to surprise his daughter after the band’s pre-game performance. I immediately recognized the chance to make this a special moment for not only the Siegel family but our entire fan base, especially since that game was our annual “Hail to Heroes” promotion where we honor those who have served to protect our freedoms. With the assistance of our Band Director, we were able to plan to have Emily and her mother on the sideline under the guise of recognizing those currently deployed and then surprising them with a reunion they will never forget (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SuPKYHDycZM).
As the spring sports start to end and planning for the 2017 season is underway, I continue to challenge myself to raise the bar on the in-venue experience at our football games. What can be unique compared to watching at home? What moment will keep our fans talking about their game day experience? How can I make those not in attendance realize what they missed out on? In an ever-growing society with instant access to information, it is crucial we emphasize the act of actually being there.