The big finale of the football season is coming to Minneapolis on February 4, 2018. The event is expected to draw 100,000+ visitors to the Minneapolis-St. Paul area. This will mean a boon of activity for downtown Minneapolis hospitality-related business and local restaurants and bars. However, even if your business doesn’t fit into a one of these categories, the big game still offers a once in a Twin Cities lifetime marketing opportunity. At just under 4 months away, now is the time to be thinking ahead to the big game on February 4 and how your business can tap into the excitement and hype surrounding the event.
Kick off your Marketing Planning with These Tips & Ideas
Don’t Let This Opportunity Pass You By
Come January you are going to feel the excitement and drama building as the event approaches. However, by then, it will be too late to execute a well-planned and strategic campaign. No matter what industry your company is in, don’t miss this chance to be part of the ‘big game’ conversation! If you haven’t already started, now is the time to start thinking and planning - how will your business use this event as a springboard to boost your winter profit margin? Those who think the most creatively and proactively will be rewarded. And, if your company has plans already in motion – congratulations!
Put Out Teasers
Although the big game is just one day, the months and weeks leading up to the event are when you should be laying down your groundwork. If you haven’t already, start putting out teasers to build interest as well as establish your business in the event conversation. No matter how you choose to market around the big game, whether it be an event, a promotion, a sale or some other avenue, teasers can come in many forms. Teasers such as a
direct mail piece to customers or new
signage to announce upcoming events will help your business build upon the growing excitement and capitalize on the event buzz.
Freshen up your look
[caption id="attachment_286" align="alignright" width="201"]
A sign we recently made for a downtown retail customer.[/caption]
Is your store
signage looking dated? Hundreds of thousands of out of town guests, not to mention tens of thousands of locals, will be canvasing the Twin Cities area in the ten days leading up to the big game. Even if your business is not located in downtown Minneapolis, you want to ensure that your company is making the best impression possible to anyone who passes by. You can bet tourists will be visiting the Mall of America and other prominent tourist attractions and locals will be attending events all over the metro leading up to the game. If you’ve been putting off updating your signage or other displays, now is the time to stop procrastinating.
Be Careful of Trademark and Logo Infringements
You may have noticed by now that other than in the title, we haven’t used that word that rhymes with ‘Hooper Soul’. That’s because the NFL trademarked the name to the annual football finale back in 1969. According to this helpful
article in the Star Tribune, local businesses need to be very careful about treading on the intellectual property of the NFL. Because of the large amount of money earned from licensing, the NFL is diligent about enforcing their trademarks which also include the league’s shield logo, team names and uniform design. So, for marketing materials, it’s best to use a general term like ‘Big Game’ or ‘Football’s Biggest Event’ or find another creative football theme to engage with customers.
Let Alphagraphics Minneapolis Help You Devise a Winning Strategy
This is a once-in-a-lifetime event. At a little under 4 months to go, it’s not too late to devise a marketing play-by-play strategy that will having your business yelling ‘Touchdown!’ (sorry, we couldn’t resist). If you haven’t started planning yet, don’t despair. Our team of
marketing and
print experts at Alphagraphics has the expertise and experience to help you devise a plan from strategy to implementation. If your plans are in place, you’ll want a business partner you can rely on to implement your ideas. Look no further than Alphagraphics in
Minneapolis &
Apple Valley. We pride ourselves on providing quality, speed and service. We will get your job done quickly and correctly, setting you up for a marketing win.
Contact our team of marketing and print experts at Alphagraphics Minneapolis.