the elevator pitch

In conjunction with NBC, Coca-Cola has developed a brand new Olympic campaign set to launch for the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympic Games. The partnership between the US broadcasting giant and non-alcoholic beverage king will allow people from all over the US to follow US athletes during their foray into Vancouver over the next couple of weeks. The campaign focuses on US athletes expected to medal or at the very least do well enough to deserve a certain amount of press.

Known as the Coca-Cola Six-Pack, the mobile campaign in conjunction with the Open The Games, Open Happiness campaign,  ties together print media, television coverage and web updates all in the palm of hands. The hope is to gather a lot of national support for Olympic athletes, but at the same time show how companies like Coke and NBC are backing the games. Together with hand held updates, images, statistics and a custom built Coke WAP interface, the Six-Pack will also provide custom ring tones and phone sounds based on the games.

NBC and Coke see so much potential with the Coca-Cola Six-Pack that they have already signed a major deal to do the same in 2020 for the London Games.

Although it was never a question as to which companies would have a stranglehold on Olympic marketing, we can now safely say that Coke and NBC have gone beyond what we see on the streets.

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August was a gigantic month for the world of Track and Field. Not only did the World Track and Field Championships take center stage in Berlin, but sprinter Usain Bolt solidified his place in history by setting records in both 100 and 200 meter races. Bolt stormed onto the track and field scene last season during the Summer Olympics in Bejing China, and in true sprinter fashion, has never looked back. His stock is at an ultimate high with exclusive endorsement deals with companies like Gatorade and Puma and after his world record performance this month, there doesn’t seem to be any sign of a finish line for the Jamaican born athlete.

This week we were able to let everything soak in from a marketing perspective and look back at what Bolt represents and how powerful his symbol is. He is currently the epitome of athleticism, considered a world icon and with his training regime and work ethic, looks to be getting even better. In an interview with sports reporters in Germany this week Bolt went on record by stating,

I think I can go faster.

Bolt’s world record time in the 100 meters is 9.58 (a record he set this month by surpassing his own record of 9.69) and his record time in the 200 meters is 9.19 (again beating his own record of 9.30). Although these times are uncanny already, it is actually his top speed in 150 meter race that is turning heads… if they can keep up. Bolt’s time in the 150 meters totaled at 14.35 but after the initial 50 meters his speed seemed to increase and he completed the final 100 meters in 8.70 seconds. It seems as though his claims to be able to run even faster are true as Usain Bolt continues to re-write the record books without looking back.

Although the champion is sometimes considered over-confident, nobody can argue with his times and his performances in front a world audience. Keep a look out if you can for Bolt’s next event set for September 4th in Brussels. His events have not yet been confirmed.

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In breaking news from last evening it seems that LeBron “King” James has made a bit of a bone-headed move. During a pick-up game of basketball at LeBron’s own Skills Camp, the King himself was made the jester when Xavier University sophomore (and Indiana transfer) Jordan Crawford threw down a highlight-reel dunk right in the face of Nike basketball. Although people were shocked at the possibility of a college sophomore throwing down something vicious on LeBron, the news actually stems from the aftermath. Apparently the entire play was caught on tape by a few cameras. Knowing this, LeBron apparently whispered something in the ear of a Nike representative at the camp and all of a sudden the tapes and images disappeared. Cameramen were asked to hand over their footage of the event and it seems as though it was all orchestrated by LeBron himself.

Lets be honest here, everyone gets dunked on – even The King. Had he just let the play stay public people would post the video on their blogs, talk about it for a few days then forget about it within a matter of weeks. Now, because LeBron apparently asked Nike officials to confiscate the footage, it looks as though the young King of the NBA is showing his age. This is all mere speculation, but if there is any truth to the matter, The King could be made out to be an immature brat looking to preserve his image by any means necessary…

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Sporting events call for high global exposure. Each high-profile professional league, be it the Champions League, the UFC or in this case the NBA, looks for angles to play and ways to draw the audience beyond the actual event happening right before their eyes. As avid sports fans here at the Elevator Pitch, we’ve noticed some of the interesting tactics the NBA has been using throughout this year’s playoffs. In a joint effort with TNT, ESPN and ABC, the NBA has been on a basketball marketing rampage of late pushing everything from G (formerly known as Gatorade) to video games. This is a great way to show the potential of cross market promotion with regards to major events.

Here are some companies that are taking full advantage of the NBA Playoffs and how their campaigns are targeting the correct audiences:

G (Formerly Gatorade) went through a slight rebrand earlier this year. Instead of using the infamous Gatorade, the sports drink shortened their title simply to G. In doing so they decided to showcase all of the athletes / driven people they endorse and they’ve been using the NBA Playoffs as a place to show off their roster.

Nike – In a Jim Henson inspired concept, Nike created LeBron and Kobe puppets to strengthen their brand. These puppets have become so popular that they are making cameo appearances on Sportscenter. Nike not only knows their audience, they know how to communicate with them and what types of characters are the best fit to do so. If only LeBron made the finals…

Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare 2 – This was a bit of an interesting ad to run during the playoffs. It seems game developers Activision also know their audience quite well as they’ve been plugging a game that won’t even hit stores until November. The bottom line is that many NBA fans are at the very least aware of the game franchise, so exposing the latest through a highly watched event is a very keen move.

Video games, sports drinks and athletic shoes aside, the NBA Playoffs are tearing up the sports networks with the sheer drama already instilled. Leave it to companies like Nike, Activision and G to take advantage.

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When the Philadelphia Phillies face the Tampa Bay Rays in Game 1 of the World Series on Wednesday, it will mark the eighth time in 25 years a major sports team from the City of Brotherly Love will attempt to take the final step toward a league championship. The previous seven times resulted in failure, adding up to a quarter-century of gloom ever since the NBA’s 76ers brought home the last title to Philly. That was in 1983, with Julius Erving and Moses Malone leading the parade.

The odds of going 25 years without a championship in any of the four major North American sports leagues is four percent, according to a math professor at the University of Pennsylvania. The odds of going 0-for-7 when reaching the finals is only one percent.

“We’re really unlucky or inept, one or the other,” the professor, Dennis DeTurck, told the Philadelphia Inquirer earlier this year.

This time, slugger Ryan Howard, all-star shortstop Jimmy Rollins and ace pitcher Cole Hamels are aiming to say eight is enough. They will try to power the Phillies to their first championship since the days of Mike Schmidt and Tug McGraw in 1980.

Baseball, though, is a psychological game. In order to climb the final mountain, athletes need motivation. In this key area, the Phillies come up short compared to their opponent, the upstart Rays.

(more…)

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