The entrance to the Cleveland Indians Collection Auto Club! Continue reading to find out how the
Indians put together a special sponsorship package to make the club a reality!
Dear Faithful Readers,
Sponsorship serves an important and fundamental role within any sports franchise. By identifying key local resources and getting creative, teams can create new assets custom for any local sponsor. Although the benefits of sponsorship seem boundless, finding the perfect fit for a specific resource can be an intricate process. Continue reading to see how the Cleveland Indians used a creative approach to create a new network of partners.
Enjoy the feature,
Chantelle Neep
[email protected]
P.S. - Want even more revenue generating ideas? Follow @NatlSportsForum on Twitter to get more helpful insights on #sportsbiz, #sponsorship and more!
PROGRAM TITLE
Cleveland Indians: The Collection Auto Club
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OBJECTIVES
Teams are always looking for ways to expand their brand and generate new business. Corporate partnerships offer great opportunities for an organization to reach out and gather interest from local businesses. Often two sides can’t agree on the economics and the partnership never has a chance to come to fruition. However, with some creative thinking, an organization can reach out to a potential partner and work together to find other entities to help get the deal done. This is exactly what the Cleveland Indians did when looking to find a sponsor for their new Premium Club. By teaming up with The Collection Auto Group, the Indians were able to tap into their resources, generate new relationships and increase their incremental revenue stream.
PROGRAM DESCRIPTION
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In July of 2012, preliminary drawings for a new Premium club, a 5,000 square foot space featuring 120 seats for season ticket holders, were introduced to the Indians Corporate Sponsorship team. Looking for a title sponsor, they immediately thought of The Collection Auto Group, a partner up for renewal who wanted to highlight their twenty-eight auto brands. However, after several back and forth conversations between Bernie Moreno, President of The Collection Auto Group, and the Indians, it was apparent the two sides would be unable to agree on financials. This is where most teams would've walked away, but Dominic Polito, Account Executive and Vic Gregovits, Senior VP of Sales and Business Development for the Indians, saw an opportunity to create an innovative partnership using an experience they both underwent pitching the Club to a high-end real estate property developer months prior. Knowing The Collection Auto Group had become a sought after and well-respected organization within their community, Polito knew that there would be other companies in the region that would want to align with the group. Polito approached Moreno with the question, “Are there three entities that you are connected with that may join you in presenting the club?” This is where the unique partnership opportunities began.
Moreno identified four potential suitors to round out the team that would back the Premium Club platform: his law firm Frantz Ward LLP, accountant Cohen & Company, builder Panzica Construction, and financial planner UBS. Instantly the Indians recognized the potential of this deal. Gregovits adds, “Our ears immediately perked up because these entities were non-traditional prospects for the Indians. We would be hard-pressed to secure their advertising dollars in a traditional platform.”
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Bernie Moreno was able to introduce the Indians to these companies and over the next few months individual meetings were set up to pitch the idea of the new Premium Club. The process involved a private meet and greet with new Indians manager Terry Francona, meetings at the individual companies with Polito and Gregovits, all while Moreno led the recruiting efforts behind the scenes.
Frantz Ward LLP was the first to commit. Next to jump on board was Thogus Products, a plastic injection molding company, who received a referral from UBS once they decided to decline the offer. Lastly, Cohen & Company rounded out the group which became known as the three ‘founding partners.’ The new corporate partners would fund half of the three-year partnership along with The Collection Auto Group which would be known as The Collection Auto Club at Progressive Field.
In any other circumstances, it is very unlikely the Indians would have been able to acquire these founding entities with a stand-alone partnership of marketing inventory. Polito adds, “Moreno’s relationship with each of them and the uniqueness of the opportunity proved to be the difference.” Ultimately, the true innovation lies behind the ability of the Indians to leverage the network of an existing relationship as a way to create a unique new partnership.
The inside of The Collection Auto Club! Click the image above to learn more!
MEDIA
The Indians sent out a press release highlighting the new Premium Club and advertised the new feature to existing club seat holders. Also, Bernie Moreno of The Collection Auto Group used his connected database to promote the new club. In addition, The Collection Auto Club at Progressive Field was featured with a cover story in Crain’s Cleveland magazine. The Collection Auto Club was the site for the team's annual "What's New" event prior to Opening Day, which also included a "tweetup" with local social media influencers.
Furthermore, the Indians relocated a LED board, which had previously gone unused, near the club to feature each of the founding partners. They were also activated on TVs throughout the club as well as other forms of signage.
RESULTS
The Collection Auto Club at Progressive Field has seen tremendous results. The partners have been blown away by the club and what it represents. According to the Indians, the feedback from all parties involved has been nothing but positive. Gregovits believes, “the new Premium Club addresses a product or niche that had previously been unavailable to the fan base.”
LOOKING AHEAD
The Cleveland Indians have high hopes for the future based on the relationships formed during this process. Dominic Polito states, “We hope the founding partners are able to mature from The Collection Auto Club. In the future, we are optimistic that each founding member will procure additional assets offered by our organization to enhance their partnership."
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