B-to-C Events

The only game in Major League Baseball that doesn’t really count is always the second biggest event in the sport. That makes All-Star week one of the best opportunities for MLB sponsors to connect with fans from all over the country. At this year’s All-Star Game held in St. Louis July 10-14 MLB and its brand partners teamed up to show fans a good time but help them out in hard times too. Here’s how three of the best gave back.

It’s easy to spot a typical attendee of the International Bicycle Expo. In knee-length shorts and a ragged t-shirt he wears Band-Aids as medals of honor and takes a comparative analysis of a new brake system more seriously than his stock options. Last September more than 1 200 brands engaged this die-hard crowd with the newest and latest in bicycle engineering sports nutrition gear and accessories at the annual Interbike Expo in Las Vegas. Sports celebrities were on hand to fuel the excitement. Demos including a two-day outdoor event kept the wheels spinning.

November/December 2005

Ameriquest

Back then: Brian Woods cmo was putting up his dukes as captain of EM’s third annual Marketing Dream Team. During his time at the mortgage lender he fine-tuned the marketing mix boosting activation around Major League Baseball to connect with consumers as well as sponsoring the Rolling Stones Tour Ameriquest Field and the Super Bowl Halftime Show.

February/March 2006

JetBlue

Back then: In early 2006 Andrea Spiegel vp-marketing was coming off a year filled with hundreds of events for the quirky friendly airline so many that she planned to tighten her seatbelt around fewer events and better activation for the same budget. Her flight plan: to find the common thread among programs to be consistent and adaptable. Oh and to capitalize on a company-wide database to track ticket purchases for a smooth landing to ROI.

May 2006

Toyota