As the New Year is now upon us and the holiday season has come to a close, many Americans turn their attention to college football’s yearly time in the spotlight, bowl season. Each bowl for this three-week span has some form of sponsorship. Whether it be a title sponsor, a presenting sponsor, or both — each bowl has some tie back to Corporate America. Companies plaster their brand’s name everywhere possible — on the 50 yard line, tickets, TV, and apparel — in hopes of generating some sort of payback for the millions (in most cases) that they’re shelling out to sponsor one game as a part of what has become college football’s ‘postseason’ carousel. It seems that each year nearly every sponsorship changes. While the bowl locations and historical value to sports fans may stay the same, the corporate image affixed to that bowl’s name is ever-changing. And these are not just Fortune 1000 brands, but websites, restaurants, and other regional companies getting into the bowl sponsorship mix.
One example of this is the Belk Bowl held at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, North Carolina. This bowl has been in existence since 2002, but has held 5 different names, among 3 different sponsors — Meineke, Continental Tire, and now Belk.
What is Belk? It’s a chain of 305 department stores located entirely in 16 southern US states. Their sponsorship was effective in that it inspired me to look up the company and find out what they’re all about. But I thought it was slightly irrelevant and had to wonder: why is a southern-based department store chain sponsoring a nationally televised sporting event that received national attention for months leading up to the game?
It seems like an odd move and generally a giant waste of money. Targeting the south and their key consumer base is one thing, but at a time when efficiency is more important than ever, the sponsorship doesn’t make sense. There were millions who watched this game that will never once have the opportunity to engage with their brand. Ever.
Are brands really getting their money’s worth when they sign these major dollar deals for multi-year bowl sponsorships like Belk has done in Charlotte? Will the company recoup the money they’re throwing down in support of these sports sponsorships? The fact that these bowls seem to continuously be switching title and presenting sponsors as the wind blows from year to year may be a slight indication of the power of sponsoring college bowl games.
Sponsorship is a great opportunity for brands, but it must be used wisely. The product should be appropriate for the event and its audience, and dollars need to be spent as efficiently as possible.
Some food for thought as you whip out your event calendar and start planning the year away.