The world of NBA sponsorship is considered almost a mystery for the majority of us. This can be explained simply by the fact that a lot of people might not fully realize how much they are crucial for a team and how much money is involved. If the sponsorship happens, and we know that they do, how do they even work?
Well basically, just like any other company, the NBA has its own marketing department. This sector will be the one to analyze any sponsorship deals that might be the right decision for the whole league. Then, each team has its own marketing department as well. They will be the ones to choose which companies they want to try and negotiate new sponsorships deals with.
But it doesn’t end there; there are multiple types of sponsorships.
- How does sponsorship work
The concept of sponsorship is simple – Money in exchange for exposure. Just by associating your brand with a winning NBA team is enough to increase brand value. Especially if the chosen team has the ability to sell venues and attract good ratings on TV.
Once a company has decided that they want to sponsor a team, they need to choose how. Some examples of different types of sponsorships are:
- Title Sponsor – This is a big deal. The brand, in this case, will be able to utilize the team’s image fully. Sometimes, they even have the power to change colors of uniforms, for example, to align with the brand.
- Official Partner – This might be the right choice if your niche isn’t directly related to the NBA. By choosing this type of deal, you are still able to link your image to the team for your campaigns.
- Technical sponsor – A technical sponsor is a brand that is usually directly related to the niche. For example, in 2015, Nike won over Adidas for its right to sponsor the NBA teams. With that, they were able to be the ones to provide their uniforms. These, of course, carry the Nike logo.
Aside from these, a company might also acquire a sponsorship deal for jersey patch ads. This means that the logo of the brand will appear on the team’s uniform. You might think that this will get in the way of the technical sponsor. The answer is no. Two competitors, such as Adidas and Nikes, won’t both be able to sponsor a team.
Therefore, the logos that will appear on the jerseys are from brands that paid for their spot there. However, with the detail that these brands are never direct competitors such as Coca Cola and Sprite.
- The Bottom line…
The sponsorships are essential for a team because they represent financial security and profit. Meanwhile, for the brand, it means exposure and consequently, more sales and increase brand value. Therefore, marketing teams from both the league and the teams work hard in order to secure the best deals.
Finally, when the deal is made, we are able to see them on basically anything related to the team, which proves that they are doing their job right.
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