Women’s sports had a lot going on Tuesday.
The activity on the playing surfaces was actually a bit limited. The WNBA played three games. FIBA held a couple of Eurobasket group stage contests. The WTA’s grass court season continued with early round matches. The National Women's Soccer League and Athletes Unlimited had offdays.
The action occurred in my inbox and LinkedIn feed.
Alyssa Meyers reported in Morning Brew's Marketing Brew Newsletter how Disney Advertising had announced a new initiative called Level Up. It invites advertisers to make a blanket buy across women’s sports content on ESPN platforms. Disney Advertising President Rita Ferro’s department is looking for a minimum spend of $5 million for an advertiser to participate (though they will offer some flexibility in the total dollars and allocations). In order for that size of expenditure guarantee to make sense for the client, it strikes me that they’ll need to see some value beyond just getting a bunch of 30-second spots in game telecasts. At least two additional components might need to be present.
One is that advertisers might want Level Up to act as a “Women’s Sports Upfront,” in which brands commit a certain amount of dollars all at once because they can get favorable rates and placements. One thing I heard a lot about at SXSW this year was how companies wanting to support women’s sports through their ad buys need more inventory with which to do so. When you’re chasing limited inventory, locking in sufficient quantities of it at decent rates makes sense.
The second has to do with one of the reasons one would support women’s sports specifically in the first place: because you want the audience to perceive you as SUPPORTING WOMEN’S SPORTS. A brand that participates in this program wants more than just the same quantity of eyeballs they can get with a content-agnostic media buy. Fans who care deeply about women’s sports tend to spend to support the brands who seem to share that affinity. Some of that will be apparent by virtue of seeing one’s advertising running in, say, a live game broadcast. But a brand may also seek to capture earned media value from their commitment. Participation in custom content and events were also named as options for Level Up participants. Those assets could be useful beyond just their audience traffic if they help with a brand’s positioning.
I read another article on Tuesday, too. This one, from SportsPro Media’s Josh Sim, contained some stats about the United Kingdom gathered by their Women's Sport Trust, although I’d like to think they potentially reflect preferences in other countries, too. They found that 62% of women’s sports fans consume their sports content live. But they also found that “58 per cent of committed women’s sports fans want more non-live women’s sport content available” and “47 per cent find it difficult to find non-live women’s sports content.”
In the U.S., ESPN’s networks, through their various documentaries, pre- and postgame shows, and robust websites have probably done their part to reduce the number of women’s sports fans who find it difficult to find the non-live content they want. But will they need even more? In some ways, the success of Level Up will depend on having sufficient inventory, both live and otherwise, to fulfill promises to the buyers who join in.
I attended one of the above-mentioned WNBA games Tuesday evening. The Dallas Wings defeated the Atlanta Dream and the home crowd enjoyed it. I’m sure those who watched the TV broadcast on the local regional sports network, Bally Sports Southwest, did as well.
I joined my friend and collaborator Nancy Lieberman at the game. In addition to doing a lot of work with her eponymous charity, I’m also working on a documentary about the Hall of Famer’s life and career. We’ll eventually place it with an ESPN or their competition. We’re positioning it to maximize multi-platform inventory across her rich story. Custom content, events, earned media, and more will be in play in the creative process right from the get-go. Another article that came out Tuesday, this one written by Fuse CEO Louise Johnson for the Sports Business Journal's website, suggested “it’s time for women’s sport to stand on its own and benefit from bespoke activations tailored specifically for women’s sports fans -- creatives take note.”
Some of us are taking note, and, therefore, today’s developments encouraged us. Somebody’s going to need more inventory.
Rush Olson has spent two-plus decades directing creative efforts for sports teams, broadcasters, and related entities. He currently conceives and executes content projects through his companies, Rush Olson Creative & Sports, FourNine Productions and Mint Farm Films. Through MFF, he’s at work on biographical documentaries about Nancy Lieberman, Sidney Moncrief, Pudge RodrÃguez, Ed Belfour, and Bob Lilly as well as a show about the The College Gridiron Showcase.
Subscribe to @MintFarmFilms on YouTube to see excerpts from upcoming documentaries.
