What Sports Can Teach Us About Brand Collaboration

In sports we see a unique combination of passion, loyalty, community and branding that we can all learn from.

The Point of Passion

It’s become somewhat cliché to talk about leaning heavily on one’s passion for career guidance, but I believe it’s something worth exploring. When I speak with people who are unsure about their passions or their careers, I typically suggest they look back to their childhood for clues. There’s usually something in our early lives we can point to as evidence of why we pursued, or dreamed of pursuing, a particular path. Through that exploration I’ve uncovered that my interest in business, marketing and media was sparked by a passion for pop culture and, more specifically, music and sports. I’ve also realized that both of these industries are built upon layers of collaboration - and their creativity in using a collaborative approach can serve as a great source of inspiration for any business.

The Power of Sports

I was taught from a young age to be a fan. More specifically, a fan of the New York Yankees. I grew up in southeastern Connecticut, a place that was geographically and philosophically split between “The Bronx Bombers” (or the “Evil Empire” if you asked the other guys) and what would later be branded, “Red Sox Nation.” The Yankees and Red Sox make up one of the most heated rivalries in all of sports, and as a kid everyone I knew pledged their allegiance to one or the other. My father was a Yankees fan, and so, unlike some of my best friends and family members, I hated the Red Sox and I jumped at the chance to debate which team had the better squad (hat tip to the Sox for their recent win over the Yanks in the playoffs this year). I was truly passionate and took pride in being a part of that community - or, to borrow a term from my favorite marketer, Seth Godin - that tribe.

I’ll never forget the first time my father took me to Yankee Stadium, just as his father had done thirty years earlier. It was a true rite of passage in our family. That morning I proudly put on my New Era Yankees hat, a Starter Don Mattingly t-shirt (he was the team’s All Star first baseman at the time) and my Rawlings baseball mitt in case a foul ball came our way. We met up with a few friends and made the two-and-a-half hour pilgrimage to the Bronx.

Needless to say, the surroundings were a lot different than what we were used to in suburban Connecticut. The experience was amplified by an orchestra of honking horns, police sirens and street vendors. When we entered the Stadium, I was overwhelmed with emotion. The energy was palpable. It became even more intense as we walked through the tunnel and I saw the field for the first time in person. The grass was a shade of green I had never seen before. It simply didn’t translate through our 1980s TV. And while I’ve never felt the same rush walking into Fenway Park, I have many friends who do and I understand why. Not only is it a historic place, it’s a personal and emotional experience because of they are part of the Red Sox family, literally and figuratively.

Although visiting the the Stadium as a kid was thrilling, it was just a small part of being a fan. We only went to the Bronx once a year, but my support for the team was a year-round commitment. Back then we relied on a combination of print, television, and my favorite medium of all time, radio in order to stay connected.

As a Connecticut resident, my first exposure to sports radio commentary was provided by New York’s WFAN - the first all-sports station in the country. My daily ritual included listening to “The Fan” while getting ready for school in the morning and while falling asleep most nights. WFAN, however, only had the broadcast rights for the New York Mets games back then, so when it came to hearing the actual Yankees games we tuned into another station, WABC. I can remember lying in bed at night listening to the “voice of the Yankees,” John Sterling, calling the games. He had a classic, deep, announcer voice and became famous for his animated home run call: “It is high ... It is far ... It is … gone!” Unlike the ESPN and WFAN on-air personalities who mostly remained neutral, John regularly showed his Yankees bias. His passion for the team made it feel like we were in it together. This shared experience was based on a common set of values, and ultimately strengthened my connection to the Yankees brand.

At a time when there were no social media outlets through which the team could communicate, John really was the “voice” of the brand and the leader of the tribe. I remember being fascinated by this and, at the age of 13, I decided I wanted to be a broadcaster just like him.

Then came a day that I’ll remember for the rest of my life: I was outside playing ball — as I did almost every day — when my Dad yelled for me to come inside for a phone call. I figured it was a friend or one my grandparents, but instead when I picked up the phone I heard a man with a familiar deep voice say, “Hello, Brady.” It was none other than John Sterling.

Like many Yankees fans, my father felt a connection to John. He had even listened to him on a different radio station years before he started calling the Yankees games. After some time, my father decided to write him a letter explaining how he had followed and admired his career, thanking him for his passion towards the sport.

I don’t want to discount the contents of the letter, especially since my father happens to be a talented writer, but I’m guessing that John didn’t get a lot of fan mail at the time. So, he reached out to us personally as an incredible gesture, and not only did he make the phone call to thank my father for the letter, he invited us to visit him at Yankee Stadium for one of the upcoming games.

That next trip to the Bronx was unbelievable: we met up with John for a tour of the press box, where he introduced us to the other media personalities (including the legendary Phil Rizzuto) and gave us a tour of George Steinbrenner's office. George was the controversial owner of Yankees at the time, later portrayed as George Costanza's boss on Seinfeld. When we visited, he was in the middle of a league-imposed suspension which meant he was not allowed in the ballpark. I could tell that John got a kick out of walking us through George’s private office while “The Boss” was away.

For a couple of years after this initial connection, visiting John became a part of our Stadium ritual and I’ll be forever grateful for those priceless experiences While I decided not to personally pursue broadcasting, I can still see a clear connection between my work in sports, marketing, media and now podcasting and what I experienced when listening to John on the radio and visiting him in person. I actually reconnected with him recently - he remains the voice of the Yankees, and has not missed a single game in 30 years - but stay tuned for more that story in an upcoming post ; )

The Sports Brand Ecosystem

What makes the sports industry so dynamic is its iconic blend of stories, personalities, history, heritage, traditions and experiences. While my experience at the Stadium with John was unique, all pro teams provide endless opportunities for fans to engage, including a wide array of content to view and comment on, merchandise to purchase, and events to attend. Perhaps most importantly, sports provide a platform for connection, emotion, and local pride: It’s an opportunity to be part of a community. And, all of these communities revolve around brands. As a kid I interacted with the media brands that covered the games and those who sponsored the broadcasts. The brands that advertised in the ballpark and those that sponsored the giveaways (I’m still not sure “Bat Day” was a great idea since the Stadium could get rowdy, but someone sponsored it). The brands that made the uniforms, equipment, hats and other merchandise that enabled us to rep our favorite teams. The brands of baseball cards my friends and I tracked, traded and sold as if we were stock brokers. And last but not least, there were the players, who sat in the middle of everything with their own complex personal brands.

From Sponsorship to Collaboration

Today sports fans, especially the younger demographic, are rapidly moving to new platforms beyond the traditional media, and leagues, teams, and networks have been forced to adapt their content to mobile and social broadcasting as a result. Online communities have also grown exponentially, with fantasy leagues and betting sites bringing in enormous revenue. Fans can catch the game - and expect to do so - almost anywhere, whether at work, at home, on the road, or out to dinner. And with the added layer of social media and player-led media platforms like Lebron James’ Uninterrupted and Derek Jeter's’ Players Tribune, fans are connecting with players in a more immediate and direct manner than ever before.

With all these factors in mind, sports marketers have had to innovate rapidly, thinking of ways to attract, maintain, and grow viewership and engagement that are simultaneously immersive and authentic. At the same time, they’ve had to figure out ways to continue delivering value for brand sponsors.

One tactic that has been especially successful in recent years is what we now can call “collaboration marketing.” Defined loosely, it’s the process of aligning your brand’s resources, values, and goals with that of other like-minded companies or individuals to merge assets, potentially create a new product, service or experience, and reap the mutual benefits.

While brand collaboration is a strategy we’ve seen in use for decades, it’s evolved to become an essential element of successful marketing. As illustrated above, sports is an emotionally driven experience that inspires passion, loyalty, community and much more, so when a team or player collaborates with a brand in a way that truly fits (shared values, goals and audiences) and takes into consideration the modern media landscape, the likelihood of a fan paying attention, receiving a message, and possibly acting on it increases significantly.

Now based in Boston, Massachusetts, I’m surrounded by a community of some of the most passionate sports fans in the country. In turn, I’ve seen tons of different examples of collaborative sports marketing in action. For example, when GE announced that Boston would be the home of their new corporate headquarters in early 2016, city officials celebrated. Not only was this expected to boost to the economy, it added to the evolving story that Boston was a great place to do business. This kind of economic development is critical, and just like every marketing effort, it revolves around a brand.

Beyond its rich history as one of the birthplaces of the nation, the city is perhaps best known for its competitiveness in sports. That’s one reason GE opted to sponsor the Boston Celtics jerseys in the first year that this high-profile sponsorship was ever offered. Unlike NASCAR and soccer, up until 2017 the NBA jerseys were off-limits to brand sponsors. Now, the GE logo patch sits on the jersey alongside the Nike swoosh (who won the bid to be the official uniform provider), the team name, the player name and the NBA logo.

Supporting the hometown team is a great way to show your loyalty to the local community. But that surface level branding speaks to just one piece of the collaboration. Looking a little closer unveils details that make the collaboration even more valuable: GE will provide technology to the Celtics in the form of data analytics to drive on- and off-court decision making, as well as energy-efficient lighting for the team’s practice facility and medical equipment to help take care of players. On the flip side, the Celtics benefit from the perception created by aligning with a forward-thinking company, which is important in the “moneyball” era where data and tech directly impact wins and losses. All told, GE has become not only a sponsor but a marketable ingredient partner for Celtics. That said, like any business or brand endeavor, collaboration comes with inherent risk. One that I’d argue is worth taking, but risk nonetheless. While GE has earned some negative press over the past year, one has to wonder how closely most fans are paying attention to these recent financial challenges. Especially when you consider the positive long-term reputation of the GE brand.

Collaboration Takes One More Step

Although I’ll never root for the Red Sox, when it comes to marketing, I have a healthy respect for all of the Boston teams. Just as GE and the Celtics demonstrated, sponsorships must go beyond surface-level signage to add value for everyone involved, including the fans. That’s exactly what the Red Sox demonstrated when they teamed up with L. L. Bean in 2012 - our second success story in Boston sports collaboration.

Before planning their collaborative future, L.L.Bean and the Sox began by looking back on their history for important clues. Beyond their shared geography in New England, they discovered that L.L.Bean had been founded the same year that Fenway Park opened. This led them to pursue both traditional signage for the brand in the ballpark as well as another more unique approach: The L.L.Bean logo was placed on the Red Sox rain tarp, used to protect the field and keep it dry during inclement weather. This was an ideal way to demonstrate the utility of the actual L.L.Bean brand while providing exposure to a passionate fan base. Even better, the two brands took things another step by literally weaving this collaboration into L.L.Bean products.

Rather than throwing away the tarp at the end of the season, L.L.Bean cleaned it and used the material to make commemorative tote bags. The limited offering sold out and raised the profile of the partnership. It also empowered fans of both brands to become walking billboards by arming them with not only a product but a story. It would have been easy to stop with just the logo on the tarp, or its placement on the Green Monster, but the brands instead chose to build a winning collaboration around shared geography, history and culture.

Collaboration on Ice

To learn more about the power of collaboration in the sports industry, and here in Boston, I connected with my good friend, former client partner, and Director of Marketing for The Boston Bruins, Chris DiPierro. Here’s an excerpt from our conversation:

Chris, why do you think collaborations are so powerful?

Brand collaborations are an incredible marketing tool because when done well, they can be extremely versatile and provide much more impact than your standard impression metric. Collaborations can allow a brand to show a different side of themselves, gain credibility in a new marketplace and reach greater and potentially more engaged audiences. In sports marketing specifically, partnerships allow brand marketers to join a very passionate conversation that is constantly taking place among hyper-interested groups of people across different demographics.

Do you have a favorite endorsement deal you've been a part of or simply observed where a brand and player collaborated in way that made their partnership more impactful?

I'm a big fan of everything Dunkin Donuts does in the sports marketing space. They have used the power of regional sports brands (both in their home base of New England and beyond) to build incredible brand consideration. In recent years, while their competitors were taking ad dollars out of local sports and putting greater emphasis on national TV buys, Dunkin' doubled down on their tie to local communities through team partnerships and player endorsements engendering even more brand affinity in a very competitive QSR landscape.

In New England, Dunkin' is a cultural phenomenon similar to the teams and athletes themselves and they've done an incredible job leveraging that to their audience using sports. Programs such as free coffee after Patriots wins to drive app usage and great sports-centered creative (Sox slugger David Ortiz and Patriots Tight End Rob Gronkowski singing in commercials and Bruins ads that featured fans, players and team personalities drinking Dunkin' Iced Coffee come to mind) have allowed the brand to tap into the passion that New Englanders have for their teams and favorite athletes while driving their own brand objectives.

Any advice for marketers to help make the most of their sponsorships with a team or endorsements of a player so that it's truly a collaboration? How should they approach these discussions?

The biggest mistake I see is when marketers approach a sponsorship like they would any other piece of advertising. When you partner with a property, I think the first thing to realize is the audience you're reaching is engaging with the team, league or player first. That's why they are there in the stadium or engaging within the digital environment. The key to unlocking the incredible potential of your partnership is to build an integrated program that is in line with your brand's KPIs while authentically tapping directly into the passion and loyalty the audience feels for their favorite teams and athletes. That is the sweet spot.

What do you do when you are looking for creative inspiration?

I watch a lot of sports (all the North American major sports, golf, horse racing, the top European soccer leagues, NASCAR, college sports, minor leagues—really anything and everything!) but my primary focus is rarely on the game being played. I love to see what other teams, leagues and athletes are doing with brands and how fans react to those activations for inspiration (social media is an incredible way to instantly gauge interest and engagement.) Plus, when I'm able to get out-of-market to attend events at other stadiums and arenas, I find that it opens my mind and my creative approach to activation ideas. I rarely find that I'm interested in ripping an idea directly, rather in using elements and nuances that I see in different partnerships to build great integrated promotions for the brands we're working with at the Bruins.

What successful collaborations have you experienced with your favorite sports teams? Any particular elements that stood out, differentiating one brand partner from other more typical sponsors? Take a minute or two to think it over, and maybe you’ll find something you can apply to your own brand or business.

The above was adapted from the book, Collaboration is King: How Game-Changers Create Marketing Partnerships That Build Brands and Grow Businesses, now available for purchase on Amazon, Audible, and Barnes & Noble. Read the first chapter and download a free Collaboration Playbook to help map out your strategy at CollaborationIsKing.com.