Best Game Day Promotions
NAIA Member Institutions
Submitted by: Jim Abbott, Director of Athletics
Oklahoma City University
Title: “TFCU Shoot for the Stars Promotion”
Overview: I first heard about this promotion at the inaugural NAIA NACMA presentations in
Kansas City in March 2007. I came home and contacted Tinker Federal Credit Union (TFCU) who
was an existing sponsor that I was trying to get more marketing dollars from. The promotion
involves logo basketballs that fans can win at home basketball games and I was successful in
getting TFCU to pay for the balls.
Promotional Details: We ordered 400 rubber basketballs with the Oklahoma City University and
TFCU logo on them. During home basketball games we made announcements reminding fans to
come down on the court at the end of the game to participate in the TFCU Shoot for the Stars
promotion to win their very own OCU basketball. Immediately at the conclusion of home
basketball games we would wheel a large container with logo balls onto the court and invite fans
down to win a ball. Fans could purchase one shot for $2 or three shots for $5 from the free
throw line. If they made the shot they were allowed to keep the ball.
Results: This promotion was one of our biggest successes in 2008. We netted almost $2000
from people purchasing shots. At times there were lines of people waiting to take a shot and
there is no better memory of attending an OCU game than taking home your very own
basketball. Our sponsor was happy and we were happy because the logo balls have been very
visible in our community. The fact that the promotion happens at the end of the game insured
that folks didn’t leave early.
Submitted by: Jim Abbott, Director of Athletics
Oklahoma City University
Title: “Quizno’s Group of the Game”
Overview: We met with Quizno’s about the idea of bringing them in as a new athletic partner.
In our meeting, one of the things that we discovered was that Quizno’s really wanted to reach
out to our students to develop them as customers. We thought that the best thing we could do
was have them try a delicious Quizno’s sub sandwich and bring to students attention the fact that
Quizno’s is located just around the corner from our campus.
Promotional Details: We honor one campus student group at every home basketball game. At
the start of the year we send every student group a form that allows them to nominate
themselves as the group of the game. We select the winning groups and assign the game that
they will be honored at. The group of the game gets to sit in a leather couch and loveseat (and
surrounding bleachers if the group is large) in the front row of our student-section (courtside).
At the game, Quizno’s delivers a 5’ sub sandwich and sets it up on a table (we display a banner
hanging from the table with the Quizno’s logo) in front of the honored group. The group gets to
eat the free meal, sit in front row seats, and is acknowledged through a PA announcement at the
game as the “Quizno’s Group of the Game.” Fans passing by the section also get a look at
Quizno’s great product at every game.
Results: This promotion has worked well for us. Quizno’s is very happy and sees a good amount
of our student traffic in their store. We are happy because we’ve created one more promotion
that brings 10-50 more students to the game.
Submitted by: Cindy Fotti, Assistant Director of Athletics
Columbia College (Mo.)
Title: “Burchard’s Bomb for Books!”
One of Columbia College’s Game Day promotion is to pick a student out of the crowd…either by
the amount of noise they are making or if they answered a trivia question right or because they
are showing school spirit, and they get to take a half court shot. If they make the shot they get
$500 to the bookstore and if they don’t make it they get a ten dollar gift certificate to a local
restaurant. We call it “Burchard’s Bomb for Books!, named after the Athletics Director, Bob
Burchard. We used to advertise that we would pay for your books for a semester, but then that
eliminates seniors and others who may not have that many books to buy. This way they get
$500 to spend however they want.
Originally we didn’t give anything if they missed the shot, but we found that a lot of people
(especially girls) didn’t want to participate because they knew they would miss the shot. Now
people actually practice between classes at making their half court shot and they really get
excited when their name gets called to shoot!
Submitted by: John Creer, Dean of Intercollegiate Athletics
Lindenwood University (Mo.)
Title: “Lights Out Lindenwood”
T-shirts were made with the Lights Out Lindenwood logo and sold them in the school cafeteria
beginning on a Monday for the Thursday night game. We had student leaders, selected athletes,
coaches and student activity staff wear the shirts each day to advertise the event. When
someone bought the t-shirt, they also received a raffle ticket. As the fans came into the arena,
they were given glow sticks and told to wait until the lights went out before starting the glow. At
half time, as soon as the teams left the court, the lights were turned off and everyone started
waving their glow sticks. The band played and the cheerleaders led the crowd in cheers. As the
lights started coming back on, we had the raffle at half court, giving out 5 IPODs to lucky
winners.
Submitted by: John Nelson, Director of Athletics
Corban College (Ore.)
Title: “Buzzer Beater”
Overview: The origin of this activity comes from a “fun” drill I used in summer basketball camps.
In thinking of something we could do that would involve more fans at halftime of our home
basketball games, we enhanced the activity into a halftime promotion that would be fun both for
the participant and the fans in the stands.
Activity Setup: Equipment needs are 4 cones, 4-5 basketballs, a referee shirt and whistle, the
shot clock, and whatever prize you want to give. Place cone 1 on the court baseline halfway
between the key and sideline. Place the other 3 cones in a zigzag arrangement out on the court.
We find it best that cone 2 is top of key extended about 5 feet from sideline. Cone 3 is upcourt
from cone 2 and placed more toward the middle of court. Cone 4 is place on halfcourt line again
about 5 feet from sideline (remember zigzag formation for cones 2,3,4). Earlier in the day, I’ll
get someone to give me a trial run so I know better where the cones should be placed. Placing
cone 3 more toward the middle of the court usually accounts for any adjustment necessary. The
basic rule of thumb is that the “average” fan can get a shot off after zigzagging around the cones
and before they would get to the opposite 3 point line.
Activity Procedure: Fans line up on the baseline under the basket and have 7 seconds to get a
shot off and make it to win a prize. Participant 1 (and succeeding participants) waits for the horn
or whistle to start. He/she must dribble around cones 2, 3, 4 by first going outside (sideline side)
cone 2 and then zigzagging around cone 3 and then back around cone 4. After rounding cone 4,
they must get a shot off before the buzzer in order for it to count. If they get the shot off and
make it before the buzzer, they win a prize. An outgoing faculty and/or staff member who is
willing to ham it up and have fun should be the referee, and can either wave off the shot or
count it as good. The shotclock buzzer works well as it is easily seen by the dribbler, does the
counting down of the 7 seconds, and has a buzzer. Quickly reset the shotclock and start the next
participant. It’s possible to get quite a number of participants involved.
Results: We have had a lot of fun with this halftime promotion. We get students, parents,
opponent’s fans, etc., to participate. The fans have almost as much fun watching in anticipation
of a shot that will be a buzzer beater. One time an athletic fan not only beat the buzzer, he
dunked it at the buzzer. That brought the house down, almost as if at a real game. Our prize
has been a concession coupon good for a soft drink and popcorn, as we anticipate having
multiple winners during the activity.
Submitted by: Embry-Riddle University (Fla.)
Title: “Single-Day Attendance Promotion: Olympic Sport”
Who:
What:
When:
Where:
Why:
Embry-Riddle (Daytona Beach) Women’s Soccer vs. Embry-Riddle (Prescott)
Orientation Week Soccer Kickoff
August 28th, 2004 at 7:00 pm – pre-game concert & student BBQ at 6:00 pm
Embry-Riddle Soccer Stadium - Daytona Beach, Fla.
Kick off soccer season as well as the school year and entire fall athletic season
Goals:
• Turn this soccer game into an EVENT by adding a complimentary BBQ, a live band and
promotional booths inside the stadium prior to the game
• Make positive first impressions with first semester students that will help our attendance
and image throughout the school year and in the future
• Break our single-game Women’s Soccer attendance record
• Use this event and the marketing process to create relationships/bonds with the 2004-05
campus leaders
• Bring new students to the first day of The Flock (student spirit organization) sign-ups,
supporting an Athletic Department initiative
The Event:
Through funding acquired from the University’s Orientation Services and Touch-N-Go Productions
(the entertainment branch of the Student Government Association), we secured a popular local
band (Yummy) to play inside the soccer stadium (adjacent to the field), from one hour prior to
the game until kickoff. These funds were also used to host a complimentary student cookout,
which coincided with the band, inside the stadium. Additionally, we utilized members of Touch-NGo to prepare and serve the food at the event.
The event also included our normal in-game promotions and half-time contests. One of our
sponsors served complimentary smoothies to the students in attendance. Various campus
organizations set up booths to promote their organizations. To increase their visibility, we asked
our cheerleading team to help run The Flock sign up booth.
Marketing Strategy:
Our strategy was to use a wide range of cost-efficient resources, including word-of-mouth,
fliers and multi-functional marketing tools (i.e. schedule magnets, Flock mail-out), to create an
on-campus buzz about the Women’s Soccer game held during new student orientation
Marketing Process:
A. Three-weeks prior to event:
Sent mail-out to all incoming students regarding The Flock, our student spirit group, which
included the first opportunity to sign up – at the Orientation Week Soccer Kickoff
B. Week of event:
Early in their college experience, most new Embry-Riddle students are highly likely to have
frequent contact with two student leaders: their Orientation Team (O-Team) leader and for
most, their Resident Advisors. Therefore, we decided to attempt to form bonds with these two
groups, Orientation Services and Residence Life, and utilize them as much as possible in planning
and promoting our event.
1. Orientation Services:
• Director of Athletics and marketing staff delivered smoothies to an O-Team meeting,
met the leaders and promoted our event
• During orientation, all incoming students watched an orientation video that included
information about Athletics and gave O-Team members the chance to pitch our
event
2. Residence Life:
• Our athletics staff provided, served and ate lunch with the entire Residence Life staff
(including all 55 RA’s) during RA training
• Worked to be part of the RA Scavenger Hunt where all 55 RA’s had to stop by the
athletics department with their group for 20 minutes, where we served them
smoothies and told them about our department and our event
• Through our relationship with Residence Life, we were able to have a fall sports
schedule magnet placed on every refrigerator in the dorms rooms prior to new
students moving in
• Additionally, through this enhanced relationship we were exclusively able to get fliers
about our event placed on every bed on campus one day prior to the arrival of new
students for dorm check-in
• The final group we utilized to promote the event was our student-athletes. Our fall
sports student-athletes were asked to help new students move in to their dorm
rooms. The student-athletes promoted our event while assisting with move-in
Word-of-mouth from the upper-classmen that the new students were meeting (O-Team, RA’s &
student-athletes) all promoted our event and was extremely valuable.
Results:
• A new single-game Women’s Soccer attendance record of 1,022 - including a record 849
students (20 % of student body – PRIOR to first day of classes)
•
New single-season records for student (341.7) and total (484.7) attendance per game
Indirect Results:
• New single-season student attendance records in volleyball, men’s soccer and basketball
•
Great relationships with this year’s O-Team Leaders, Housing staff, RA’s, and
Touch-N-G
Submitted by: Embry-Riddle University (Fla.)
Title: “Student Promotion”
Who:
What:
When:
Where:
Embry-Riddle University
The Flock’s Theme Nights
2004-05 school year
Embry-Riddle Athletics Events
Objective:
To turn our games into EVENTS on campus
To provide incentive students to attend our athletic events
To create an exciting atmosphere in order to bring fans back in the future
Background info:
Embry-Riddle’s official spirit organization, The Flock was established in the spring of 2001. Over
the past four years, The Flock has evolved from a small group of students looking to have fun at
athletic events to one of the largest student organizations on our campus. In the summer of
2001, Cingular Wireless became the official corporate sponsor of The Flock and has supported
the organization continuously ever since. The Flock initially started as a free student organization
and members received a free Flock membership t-shirt in exchange for their e-mail address.
Flock theme nights were introduced in the fall of 2001 and are a big reason for the popularity of
the Flock, not only with students, but also with other Eagle fans and our sponsor, Cingular
Wireless. The original Flock theme nights were successful, but only to the degree of motivation of
the students participating in them. In the fall of 2002, the first four Flock theme night t-shirts
were created in conjunction with Cingular Wireless, with the intention of giving students an extra
incentive to attend athletic events, while simultaneously giving them apparel to “fit in.”
Marketing Strategy:
Since the inception of Flock theme nights, a great deal of strategy and planning have gone into
determining what themes to have, as well as to when to have particular themes, what student
groups to target, decorations, music, t-shirt designs and even distribution of the t-shirts.
In the 2004-05 school year, there were seven Flock theme nights encompassing Women’s
Volleyball, Women’s Soccer, Men’s Soccer and Men’s Basketball. In conjunction with Cingular
Wireless, the Embry-Riddle Sports Marketing staff designed six Flock theme night t-shirts. These
six shirts included the membership shirt, which listed the Flock theme nights and dates on the
back and served as walking billboards/calendars. All theme night t-shirts were in batches of 144
shirts (except for the Flock membership/theme night checklist shirt).
What themes: This year’s themes included Beach Night*, Biker Night*, Costume Night, Greek
Night*, Camo Night*, Country & Western Night* and NASCAR Night
(* denotes Flock theme night t-shirt available at event).
Why themes: Themes have to be popular with students! It isn’t what you want to sell them it’s what they want to buy. Many of the themes we used this year are based on themes that were
popular in previous years, such as Beach Night and Camo Night. Other themes are based on
popular annual events in the Daytona Beach area (NASCAR Night, Biker Night). Other themes are
selected based upon the props and half-time contest that match the theme and create a great
atmosphere (i.e., Country & Western Night).
When themes: Timing is everything…or at least that is what we believe. We try to have
reasons for the timing of nearly every theme night.
• Beach Night was the first theme night of the year because it is so simple. Everyone has
beach attire in Daytona Beach, thus students are much more likely to participate in this
event, and also get excited about participating in other theme nights throughout the year
• Biker Night was on the first night of the popular “Biketoberfest” in Daytona Beach
• Costume Night was held on Halloween weekend
• Greek Night coincided with an annual Greek Night basketball event
• Camo Night was planned in conjunction with the popular semesterly event where the Air
Force, Army and Navy ROTC compete for the Embry-Riddle Athletics’ “Commander-inChief’s Trophy.”
• Country & Western Night took place on the night we played a new team to the
conference in which a rivalry had not developed and thus we needed a little extra
incentive for students
• NASCAR Night took place the week of the Daytona 500
Who themes targeted: Always students – all students! However, some theme nights targeted
specific student affinity groups (Greek Night targeted campus Greek organizations and Camo
Night targeted our large campus ROTC contingent – 16% of student body). Other themes did not
target specific groups, but we put a little extra effort in marketing towards particular affinities
(Beach Night to the Caribbean Student Association, Biker Night to the motorcycle club, and
Country & Western Night to the Embry-Riddle Equestrian Club).
How to supplement the theme (decorations, music, extras): No matter what you call it –
“bling-bling”, “pimping my ride”, etc. – students, like sponsors, love the extra details. Thus the
music, decorations and extras help enhance the atmosphere and keep students coming back!
• On Beach Night we cranked up Bob Marley, the Beach Boys, Jimmy Buffet, etc; at halftime we had a limbo contest; we handed out leis as students arrived at the game; and
the gymnasium looked like something out of Gilligan’s Island instead of a volleyball
match.
• Biker Night we had a contest for best bike (with a $50 dollar prize) and lined up all the
bikes outside the entrance to the soccer stadium (a la Biketoberfest & Bike Week).
• Costume Night include tons of Halloween candy, a costume contest at half-time of one
game and a long-goal contest run by five panda bears (five costumed Flock members)
during the second half-time.
• Greek Night’s half-time was a “Greek chariot” race between all fraternities and sororities.
• Camo Night included a free cookout sponsored by our three ROTC programs, free “high
& tight” military style haircuts in the lobby of the gym prior to the game, and the
competition for the right to take home the Embry-Riddle Commander-in-Chief’s Trophy
during the game and at half-time.
• Country & Western Night included Hank Williams Jr., Garth Brooks and friends for fans
listening pleasure, free cowboy hats for 50 students and a stick horse race at half-time.
During the day, we were able to rent a secure a horse and a small pig to have on
campus outside the campus student center to help promote that night’s events
• NASCAR Night was full of giveaways from Flock sponsor, Cingular Wireless (sponsor of
the #31 car). In addition, with all the NASCAR fans in Daytona Beach for the Daytona
500, we encouraged fans to come dressed to support their favorite driver
What t-shirts designs look like: Theme night t-shirts have to sell the theme and at the same
time, sell our brand and the brand of Cingular Wireless. Theme t-shirts have to be trendy enough
for students to want to fight over them. All Flock theme night shirts have basic info about the
event, and a humorous saying from Cingular’s mascot, Jack Cingular ( enclosed).
How to distribute: We always have 144 t-shirts for each event available to all students – Flock
members and non-Flock members alike. Roughly 25-30 of those shirts are used for pre-event
promotion on campus - worn leading up to the event by cheerleaders, select Flock members,
game night staff and other campus leaders. The majority of these shirts are worn again at the
event. Other shirts are used for giveaways to contest competitors and saved for thank you gifts.
The other 100 shirts are given away to students at the event. For some events, we use the shirts
to promote participation in our theme and thus you can only get the theme night shirt by
participating in the theme (first 100 in beach attire at Beach Night, first 100 in black at Biker
Night, those in camouflage gear Camo Night, etc.). At other events, the cheerleaders throw the
shirts into the student section during timeouts or breaks in the action to keep students at the
game and on their toes. Regardless of how we distribute the shirts, it is always well planned.
Results:
• Increased student attendance on Flock theme nights (69% higher student attendance on
Flock theme nights compared to non-theme night events)
• Greatly enhanced atmosphere at athletic events
• Anticipation by students of what upcoming theme nights will entail
• Increased sponsorship connection with Cingular Wireless
• Four years and nearly 3,000 members later, the Flock is now able to charge a $10
membership fee, which allows for additional theme night promotions, giveaways, BBQs,
etc.
• Bright future for the Flock and Flock theme nights
Submitted by: Embry-Riddle University (Fla.)
Title: “Targeted Group Promotion”
Who:
What:
When:
Where:
Embry-Riddle University ROTC Cadets
Competition for the Embry-Riddle Commander-in-Chief’s Trophy
One Embry-Riddle Athletics event per semester during the ‘04-‘05 school year
Embry-Riddle Athletics Events
Objective:
• Develop a program that will reach Embry-Riddle’s large ROTC contingent (16% of all
students – over 700 students total)
• Use this event and the marketing process to build relationships with Air Force, Army and
Navy ROTC leaders on campus
• Build school spirit amongst the members of the three ROTC programs on campus
• Help promote the individual ROTC programs
• Encourage the ROTC programs to support the University athletic program
• Provide an on-campus event that promotes a combination of competitiveness and
camaraderie amongst the ROTC programs
Background info:
During the 2002-03 school year, the Embry-Riddle sports marketing staff came up with a concept
to have a competition between our the large ROTC programs on campus and conduct the
competition at an athletic event. The concept was primarily based on the national competition for
the Commander-in-Chief’s Trophy in college football (between the Air Force Academy, Naval
Academy and West Point). We presented the idea to our two ROTC programs, and along with a
sponsor, jointly purchased a traveling trophy, which would serve as the prize for the competition.
The competition was agreed upon to take place at least once a year and would always revolve
around an Embry-Riddle Athletic event.
After several months of collaborative planning with the University’s Air Force and Army ROTC
programs, the first Competition for the Embry-Riddle Commander-in-Chief’s Trophy – Camo Night
2003 – was held at an Embry-Riddle basketball game. The event was held again the following
year, with the addition of Navy ROTC. Both events were extremely successful.
This year we wanted to further develop the competition in order to meet the above listed
objectives.
Marketing Strategy:
We wanted to continue the successful Camo Night event, which had previously been held at
men’s basketball games, and add a second event at a men’s soccer game. After proposing the
addition of a second event to each ROTC program, a committee, which included our marketing
team and student leaders from the Air Force, Army and Navy ROTC, was formed to plan both
events. The fall event was called the Patriot Games and fittingly was planned to take place on
Election Day during a men’s soccer game. The Camo Night event was again planned to take
place in the spring semester during a conference basketball game.
The following expectations for both the fall and spring events were presented to each ROTC
program by the committee: (1) promote Competition for the Embry-Riddle Commander-in-Chief’s
Trophy within your organization and on campus; (2) attain as many attendees as possible; (3)
provide competitors for physical competitions; (4) provide adequate man-power to help manage
the check-in process at the events; (5) provide man-power to help conduct the complimentary
student BBQ prior to the events; (6) fund one-quarter of BBQ (split equally amongst Athletics and
the three ROTC programs; (7) compete to win.
Pre-Event Promotion:
The sports marketing staff designed fliers, posters and banners for the event that would connect
with ROTC cadets as well as the general student body (enclosed). The focus of the Patriot Games
marketing campaign was patriotic symbols (flags, eagles, etc.). The Como Night marketing
campaign highlighted a likeness of the Embry-Riddle Commander-in-Chief's Trophy and the tshirt available at the event. The hype created by these marketing tools, along with the enormous
competitive nature between the three ROTC programs, created a huge buzz on campus leading
up to both the fall and spring events. Additionally, many students wore specially designed Camo
Night t-shirts on campus the day of the Camo Night event to help raise awareness about the
event.
The Events:
Patriot Games – November 2nd, 2004 – Men’s Soccer game
*Pre-game BBQ:
• Free student BBQ inside the soccer stadium for the Embry-Riddle community starting
one-hour prior to game and lasting until kickoff
• Cadets from each ROTC program were assigned to conduct the BBQ and work as one
unit (number based on the total number of cadets in each ROTC program)
*Competition:
Multi-facetted competition between the Air Force, Army and Navy ROTC programs for the Embry-
Riddle Commander-in-Chief's Trophy (“The Cup”) throughout the night.
The four categories in which points are awarded:
• pushup competition (during half-time)
• tug-o-war competition (during half-time)
• percentage of attendance (based on the number of cadets in each respective ROTC
program divided by the total number of cadets attending the event through half-time)
• school spirit (judged by non-biased committee)
The winning team is awarded one point for first place in each category, with exception of school
spirit, which is worth 1.1 points (in order to avoid ties).
The ROTC program with the most points gets their program name engraved in Embry-Riddle
Commander-in-Chief's Trophy and will keep The Cup until the following semester’s competition
Camo Night – January 22nd, 2005 – Men’s Basketball game
As with the Patriot Games, the event included a pre-game BBQ and the same four-pronged
competition for the Embry-Riddle Commander-in-Chief's Trophy (with minor fine-tuning of the
competitions to make the events easier to manage)
*Camo Night t-shirts:
We planned the event in conjunction with our student spirit group’s Camo Night theme. Cingular
Wireless funded Camo Night t-shirts designed for the event, which in addition to pre-event
promotion, were given out to over 100 lucky students at the game who were wearing camouflage
attire.
*Free “High & Tight” military haircuts:
One additional highlight of the event entailed our local sponsor, Hair Cuttery, setting up a makeshift barber shop in the lobby of our gymnasium. Eight hair stylists were on hand to give free
“high & tight” military style haircuts during the hour leading up to the game to willing
participants. This was extremely popular due to the requirements of the ROTC programs for
cadets to maintain a certain hair style
Results:
• Student attendance at the Patriot Games event was 558 compared to the Men’s Soccer
season-average of 271.7 students per game (205% increase)
• Camo Night attendance was 298% higher than the season-average for basketball
• Additional sponsorship opportunities for the event and for Embry-Riddle Athletics as a
result of the Competition for Embry-Riddle Commander-in-Chief's Trophy
• Stronger relationship with the University’s Air Force, Army and Navy ROTC programs
• The Commander-in-Chief’s Trophy has become a highly coveted item on campus
• A great tradition has been started for competition between our ROTC programs