NCAA event marketing developed by hawkeye Sports and Entertainment designed to help the brand expand the fan base and grow sports.
The 2009 NCAA Pinnacle of Fitness challenge program has been a successful integrated event marketing developed by NCAA Agency of Record hawkeye sports and entertainment. The launch program promote the principles of the 103-year-old collegiate sports organization while building a relationship between middle school students and NCAA Women’s Basketball.
About the Pinnacle of Fitness challenge
The 2009 launch program includes 100 middle schools in 9 cities and 74,000 students. The Pinnacle of Fitness challenge invites students in grades 6, 7 and 8 to participate in a series of events that encourage fitness and sportsmanship. The events engage schools and individuals in spirited competitions that allow students, parents and faculty to engage with the NCAA brand and nurture the balance in competitive spirit and fair play that the brand seeks to promote.
Culminating in competitions during the week of the 2009 NCAA Women’s Final Four in St. Louis, the Pinnacle of Fitness crowns a national champion of physical fitness from among the qualifying middle schools. Throughout the events, the NCAA brand enjoys additional exposure among participants and spectators alike.
Entrusting the brand
The National Collegiate Athletic Association brand promotes several specific attributes, including learning, balance, spirit, community, fair play and character. Presenting this consistent image is important to the organization in many ways, supporting the overall ideology, purpose and values. The unique position of hawkeye Sports and Entertainment as the premier sports and event marketing agency in the U.S. made this Dallas-based firm an easy selection as a partner to develop and promote the fully integrated program created from an earnest desire to nurture these attributes among middle school students.
Event marketing synergy
Dovetailing the Pinnacle of Fitness challenge program with pre-existing NCAA programs was a natural direction in which hSE shepherded the youth development. By timing events to occur during halftimes of NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament games, hawkeye ensured maximum on-site exposure to the program, its execution and its goals.
Event marketing and execution
Naturally, event marketing that involves widespread participation on the scale of the NCAA Pinnacle of Fitness challenge requires impeccable organization, and hawkeye Sports and Entertainment has showcased its capabilities in a big way. Successfully engaging 100 schools and achieving total buy-in from administrators, faculty, parents and students was only the beginning. Preliminary events were held in nine cities and involved 74,000 students is a major challenge that was met with aplomb by the expert staff at hSE.
PR and event promotion
Working in seamless concert with strategic partners and stakeholders, hSE and the NCAA promoted the event marketing campaign to targeted audiences. The fan segmentation process is part of the hSE strategy to support the NCAA growth goals for NCAA Division 1 Women’s Basketball.
Event marketing sponsorship
One crucial element of program was to develop sponsor specific platforms that delivered value and ROI for existing NCAA partners. The pilot program included 1 national partner, Wilson Sporting Goods, as part of the rewards program for participating middle schools. The 2010 program is expected to integrate multiple NCAA event sponsors.
To learn more about the impact of the 2009 NCAA Pinnacle of Fitness event marketing campaign culminating during the 2009 NCAA Womens Final Four in St. Louis, or to explore event marketing avenues for your brand, contact hawkeye at (214) 451-1900, or by email.
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