A sponsorship that fits like a glove

What sport sponsorships do well?  The ones that make sense.  The ones where there is congruity between the sponsor/product (think Pirelli tires and F1 racing), and where the ad fits with its delivery so that it sticks in the mind of the consumer.

Background

• For non-soccer fans:
  • Soccer is a game played to 90 minutes, but usually a few minutes are added on (due to injuries, etc).  To announce the amount of "Extra Time" added, an official holds up a lightboard with the number of additional minutes (aka "stoppage time").
• For non-followers of the prophylactic market:
  
  • The Durex Performa is a condom that desensitizes to help the man last longer.

With that in mind, gaze upon a perfect example of sponsorship fit:

HT: Deadspin via The Spoiler via Sport Wereld

So it's come to this - Fees for tailgating

One of the things I teach my sport marketing students is to look for new sources of revenue. If you are able to provide the consumer with something "extra" and extract additional income through doing so, you're on your way toward doing your job very well.  But there are times when my instructor/practitioner sides come in conflict with my personal views as a consumer.

Today's source of internal dissonance: a company is charging fans $5 to walk through the tailgating parking lot at Cleveland Browns games (HT: @emhuddell).

On the one hand, these individuals ARE using the services provided by the parking lot company. Failing to charge them passes the cost onto someone else, creating a negative externality. Why should those parking in the lot have to pay extra so that adequate services can be provided to accommodate all the freeloaders?

On the other hand, this just feels wrong. When you are a host of tailgate, you understand the situation is not financially fair. You buy food & drinks. You spent hundreds or thousands of dollars in gear. You spend all week preparing the food. You get up early to get to the parking lot. You pay a parking fee that covers the services used by you and your guests.

Attendees at a tailgate are guests of the host. You don't charge visitors to come to a party at your home (well, except the $5/cup college parties), and you wouldn't charge them to come to your tailgate. Hosting a tailgate party isn't about making money, it's about having fun with your family and friends.

If this company needs to recoup their costs, it should do so by charging the tailgate hosts. This is a situation where social norms should trump market norms. While it's not financially "fair" for tailgate hosts to pay more, it is a social expectation.

I should note my personal biases here: I love tailgating. My wife and I have hosted tailgates for many sports, including football (DI and DIII), lacrosse, and curling. Our wedding registry was half tailgating paraphernalia. Based on my experience, I feel competent to judge the mores that guide the tailgating social world. If anyone thinks otherwise, let's argue about for several hours in the parking lot some weekend.

Heineken guerrilla marketing

I just saw this thoroughly enjoyable guerrilla marketing effort by Heineken (YouTube link). This involves an immense amount of effort, but there is no doubt that it's unconventional and cuts through the clutter.

The marketing effort draws attention to the brand, but Heineken doesn't really need that (it already has a strong European presence). More importantly, it shows the brand as cool, fun, creative, and a little edgy. Congrats to the marketing team for pulling it off.

While on the subject of Heineken, I highly recommend visiting the Heineken brewery while in Amsterdam. The tour was enjoyable, and though I don't normally drink Heineken in America, I loved the version at the brewery. I haven't been there in 1999, but I'm sure it's still great.