Scoring Big With Sponsors | Banner ads at UConn sporting events may be outsourced to maximize revenues
Immediately after University of Connecticut top scorer Maya Moore made an incredible play on the court, television cameras focused in on a close-up of Coach Geno Auriemma to capture his reaction. Also caught by the cameras was a prominently displayed banner touting Bob’s Stores.
That banner helps rake in big bucks for UConn. Last year, some 30 sponsorship and marketing contracts — excluding licensing fees, such as logos that appear on sweatshirts and T-shirts — boosted UConn’s coffers by nearly $6.5 million.
UConn officials want to get an even bigger piece of the action by outsourcing its athletic marketing, media property and sponsorship rights. The sponsorship contracts allow companies to advertise at UConn sporting events and also tout its affiliation to the university in its own marketing campaigns.
With 30 sponsorship and marketing contracts ranging between $100,000 and $250,000 per year, the university’s multi-million dollar sports business is outgrowing the athletic department’s capacity. As a result, UConn is looking at its options and will consider hiring an outside firm to take control of its athletic marketing, media property and sponsorship rights for the first time.
A request for proposals was issued last month, with the bids to close on Feb. 29.
Signage, Broadcast Rights
“We’ve never done a request for proposals like this before,” said Michael Enright, UConn’s associate athletic director for communications. “It’s not really an issue of the work becoming too much for our staff. We will still have our own marketing department,” Enright said. “It’s more of an issue that we owe it to ourselves to see if we could do better with an outside company.”
Its contracts include WTIC’s contract for radio broadcast rights as well as sponsorships from local and national companies, such as Nerac in Tolland, Bridgeport-based People’s United Bank and Toyota.
In the 60-plus page RFP, 10 pages are devoted to marketing properties and sponsorships ranging from radio broadcasts to television broadcasts and programs. That does not include the signage available at any of UConn’s home arenas or stadium.
For example, businesses have ample opportunity to advertise at Gampel Pavilion: signage on the scoreboards, the scorer’s table, the façade and concourse and the video board.
Businesses understand the value of getting their name or message seen by approximately 10,000 at Gampel and 40,000 fans at a football game.
Nerac has enjoyed several tangible benefits from its association with UConn that began in 2003, according to its president and CEO Kevin Bouley.
“Our strategy to get involved with UConn was to increase the brand awareness,” he said. “We’ve become much more recognized with the juxtaposition of our logo at the arena. The brand rub was a good thing, and people would think that, ‘hey, this was a cool place to work.’”
Bouley also said the company is provided with tickets to sporting events that are raffled off to employees and make for “a great employee perk.”
“We enjoy being a partner with UConn,” said Bob’s Stores spokesman Renee Guida. She said company policy prevented her from commenting further on the relationship.
Exclusivity Preferred
Due to the popularity of the sponsorships, UConn’s athletic department has intentionally limited the number of sponsors. “We’ve found that it’s much easier to service 20 sponsors than to have 500 sponsors at a token level,” Enright said. “Companies are willing to pay for that exclusivity to say they are, for example, the ‘bank of UConn athletics.’”
If UConn does decide to outsource its marketing business, it will be following in the footsteps of what other university’s with nationally recognized sports programs are already doing, said John Justus, senior vice president of publishing for North Carolina-based ISP Sports, which provides marketing services for university athletic departments.
During the past five years, the number of universities outsourcing its sponsorship and marketing business has exploded, Justus said, adding, “It presents an opportunity for athletic departments to generate additional revenue.”
Founded in 1992, it now partners with 42 universities, two bowl games and five conferences — including the Big East Conference.
Part of the attraction of a professional marketing company to businesses is that it can offer advertising packages that include several schools. “What a company like ISP Sports can offer — and there are others out there — is a package deal to sponsors. When a company comes to ISP Sports, they can provide advertising opportunities for multiple schools and sports. When the UConn marketing department does the same, it can only pitch UConn. “We like to think we can bring a sales and marketing focus,” Justus said.
“An athletic department has many, many things it has to focus on as well as corporate functions,” he explained.
Firms responding to the request will be asked to list their bid of compensation to the university for at least the next five years, with an option for an additional five years. The university is anticipated to make a decision by June 1 and will make its selection based on a 100-point scale, with 45 percent of the decision based on financial compensation to UConn.
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