Sponsorship has gone beyond just asking big brands to bankroll your football club or tournament in exchange to plaster their logos on team shirt, banners, flags... everywhere in sight around the stadium.
Such concept is long outdated. Sponsors now insist on driving brand engagement and creating unforgettable experiences for fans. Brands set their sponsorship or partnership objectives with a club or a tournament and seek for innovative ways to achieve their goals in measurable terms.
That’s why a new Innovative model of sponsorship has taken the place of logos. It is now about brand activations that add to the experience. In fact, 82% of football fans who attend four or more games a year are actively excited to experience the sponsorship activations there at the stadium or at the fans fest.
To curate a better fan experience and make sponsors shell out the big bucks, you need to lean into the types of brand activations that fans love. Here are three Innovative ways brands are using their resources to create memorable experiences fans won’t forget.
3 types of sponsorship activations that drive brand engagement at Stadiums
1. Immersive, experiential brand moments
Stadiums are a great environment for experiential brand activations. Fans wander around the arena looking for surprises and fun activities. And the engaging nature of these activations means brands can make a bigger impact on fans’ memories.
Experiential means just what it sounds like: fans don’t just see a brand, but actually have an experience with the brand. Interactive art installations are a great example. Samsung has funded one such installation that featured a sculpture made entirely like a Smartphone, which lit up to the beat of a fan’s heart.
“People are curious and playful,” says Ben Cooper, who designed the installation. “You can really engage them with their senses.”
A Samsung Smartphone installation might seem whimsical, but it invokes an experience that fans will remember. Touching and interacting with art is much more memorable than seeing a logo flash on a screen or a team shirt. As Cooper says, “Giving people experiences is the new way of advertising.”
2. Technology that wows: livestreaming + VR
Live streaming and live football go hand in hand. Sponsors love them because they can reach a larger audience than attendees alone. And when a sponsor funds a livestream, it creates strong brand affinity with viewers.
Add virtual reality (VR) to the mix, and you get a chance to bring the experience to life for fans way beyond the game itself. That’s why VR is such a big buzz for football and music festival sponsors these days. “VR is probably the biggest thing we get... asked to come up with ideas on,” says Adam Cohen of creative lifestyle marketing agency Cornestone.
These activations are also extremely versatile forms of marketing, because the experience can be shared and teased across social media platforms.
3. Above-and-beyond basics
Of course, some sponsorship tactics will never go out of style. Think about basic elements of the experience that sponsors can take to the next level.
Today, those basics include things like food, drinks, lounges, and, of course, Wi-Fi and cell-phone charging stations. Cover those bases, and sponsors will be in fans’ good graces.
It’s low-hanging fruit, to an extent, but there’s still a way to do it right. The more you can make your contribution seem organically intertwined with the event, the higher the chances fans will remember your brand long after the games become memories.
Sponsorship has gone beyond the bounds of mere advertising. Today, it’s bringing football games and venues alive with imaginative experiences fans love. To learn more about how brand activations are evolving at football stadiums and other fans arena, consult with us at GreenHunters Sports International. Call to book an appointment: +234(0)809 877 2556
