Wild postering: an effective out of home strategy for sports marketing
The 2024 Winter Classic being played in Seattle’s T-Mobile Park between the Seattle Kraken and Las Vegas Golden Knights
Sports are a big deal.
There are nearly 200 professional sports teams in the US, and annually they account for $520 billion in revenue. Sports teams utilize a vast array of marketing tactics to reach fans, sell tickets, make announcements and more. Despite marketing trends in the digital sphere, teams and sports commissions continue to employ out of home marketing media to great success. Out of home marketing provides an authentic “edge” to traditional marketing efforts that responds to fan loyalty and brings audiences closer to the teams they love. It’s far from as passive as it seems.
Out of home successes
In Seattle alone, 2023 saw out of home campaigns by the Sounders FC, Kraken, Mariners, Ballard FC, the MLB All-Star Game and the NHL’s Winter Classic. These featured transit ads, billboards, and most importantly, wild postering. The public response was overwhelmingly positive on the street level, as people get caught up in the hype and energy of the posters, bringing a fresh anticipation of the upcoming big games.
But why did they use wild postering?
Wild postering is a successful tactic for high-traffic areas where billboards and other out of home media aren’t available or too expensive. Wild postering is cheaper and can reach more locations than other strategies. Sports teams can drive greater engagement through this medium and deliver more localized and personal messaging. There is more power for creativity with wild postering designs and layouts.
Women’s sports: on the rise
Today, women’s professional sports are undergoing a renaissance. The boom is largely due to new viewership deals and streaming offerings, new teams and leagues being formed, and an overall increase in awareness. As viewership and attendance surge, there is even more need to reach new audiences and maintain the growth nationwide. We believe that wild postering will be an invaluable addition to the marketing mix for these new teams, especially for some that don’t yet have the budgets for billboards or other more expensive media buys.
What do sports teams really need to market?
The possibilities are endless, really. We have worked on campaigns with messaging targeting many different goals, including:
Announcing a new season schedule
Season or single-game tickets going on sale
Upcoming rivalry matches or special exhibitions
New jersey or logo designs
Playoff or All-Star game hype
Highlighting specific players
And much, much more!
We love seeing different teams harness the creative power of wild postering in so many different ways. It really is a great way to bring a team’s identity on the streets and connect with fans (and make new ones!)
Consider how wild postering can help your team’s marketing needs next season!
Sézane: Promoting a new pop-up store all over town
Sézane is a prestigious French clothing brand with flagship stores in Paris and London. Recently they have expanded into the US market with temporary stores opening in Boston, Los Angeles and San Francisco.
When they approached us about their upcoming Seattle store (open at University Village until January 2024!), we were excited for the opportunity to execute some creative activations for them to raise awareness. We started with a citywide wild postering campaign featuring bold poster designs highlighting the new store and the fashion line. Their plan was to ride the initial hype of the store opening for a few weeks and then conduct some strategic activations around the city to maintain interest in the store following the rush.
We developed a few concepts for activating locally in order to show off the clothing and tell people about the store location and hours. The idea that Sézane felt would best resonate and remain on-brand was a series of small events at various locations throughout the city. We would dress models in Sézane clothing and have them hand out branded flower bouquets and tote bags. We had flyers with information about the store for people to take as well.
The planning process was fairly simple, but required coordination. We ordered flowers and had them cut and dressed at the office. The models were fitted and made up to fit the style of the brand. We brought a cute cart to hold the flower arrangements and tote bags on site, as well as a branded tent featuring the poster designs as a backdrop. Then we hired a local band named Rouge to sing French standards as entertainment while the brand ambassadors would hand out the items.
The activations were a huge success. People raved about the clothing and many visitors said they had visited the store or knew of the brand already. All the flowers and bags were given away, much to the delight of the client.
Supporting Seattle Arts: Vera Project
Photo by: @poundingthenail August 24th, 2023
In our office, we know how important postering is for helping local venues and bands gain awareness. Personally my camera roll is filled with quick snapshots of posters that I pass by, hoping to catch a good show! That’s why Polite Society supports The Vera Project, and provides relief on the postering end. Founded in 2001, the Vera Project has ALOT going on, in the best way. They are best known for being a non-profit all ages venue, a rare find here in Seattle. Vera Project is constantly bringing great line ups including ZULU, Soul Glo, and Playytime from a recent lineup.
photo by: @hilden.chase September 11th, 2023
The Vera Project not only provides seattle’s youth with great shows, but also great opportunities. Vera provides classes accessible to all skill levels, ages, and identities, such as screen printing, sound & stage, and photo & video. These are an invaluable resources for budding artists looking to break in to the industry. The Vera Project is a dedicated, collaborative, community space centered around music & art, and is an amazing venue for self expression. Just recently, they opened Cafe Vera, a collab with Caffe Vita. Music, art, and great coffee in one place? We couldn’t ask for anything more!
Visit the Vera Project at their location in Seattle Center and show your support for local art and music. Vera’s community impact is an important part of the arts scene in Seattle and we are proud to continue to support this incredible organization!
Why Should You (A Musician) Use Street Marketing?
Seattle’s culture is inextricably linked to its music scene, thanks in no small part to its great venues like the Paramount, Neptune Theatre, the Showbox, Neumos, Chop Suey and many others. The local industry is further supported by great organizations and nonprofits that provide services, practice spaces and equipment, training and skills for musicians young and old. These venues, organizations, touring acts and local musicians alike have long turned to posters to help get the word out about their upcoming shows. It remains a staple of the industry’s marketing tactics for shows of any size.
Polite Society is a specialized marketing agency that focuses on street and experiential marketing techniques, which can help musicians get their music and message out to the public in creative and innovative ways. We can help you develop a comprehensive marketing plan and then implement it in an effective and efficient manner, including everything from setting up and executing guerrilla marketing campaigns to forging partnerships with local businesses and organizations.
When considering options for outsourcing awareness efforts, here are some of the most prominent benefits for a musician partnering with a street marketing agency like Polite Society:
Reach a Wider Audience: A street marketing agency can help you reach a larger and more diverse audience than you would on your own. Through our marketing efforts, you can reach potential fans you may have otherwise missed.
Word-of-mouth and artist social media pages are often heavily relied on by artists to gain notoriety, but how can they reach people that aren’t already familiar with them in some form? A pole poster campaign is a great starting point. These campaigns are cost effective and are a direct way to grab the attention of people who frequent the area. People looking for weekend plans or fun things to do will be intrigued by a strong poster design that jumps out to them. Awareness is a huge part of getting people in the door for local shows, so this form of street marketing can help artists easily see a return on a small investment by reaching a larger audience than other methods they may currently employ on their own.
Wheat pasting is another medium to consider in tandem with, or instead of, a pole poster campaign. Wheat pasting has the added benefit of dedicated locations on utility boxes, meaning an artist’s event is featured alone instead of with a grouping of other shows and events on a pole. While this service has a slightly higher price point, the possibility of added benefits is worth considering if it’s in the budget.
Create Lasting Connections: Street marketing campaigns create a more personal connection between you and your fans. By engaging with them in a physical space, you can create a more direct response that will last much longer than a digital connection.
Messaging can easily be lost on the endless feeds of social media. However, street marketing is a direct approach to reaching an audience while creating more unique and personal engagement. In addition to pole posters and wheat pasting, hand-to-hand flyering is another great way to create this memorable connection with an expanding audience. Street team members can ensure that messaging is getting directly into the hands of consumers who may be less receptive to other forms of marketing. This more personal touch can have a greater influence on people by giving them a reminder to take with them rather than relying on their memory of a show date on a poster or social media feed.
Leverage Location: Street marketing campaigns allow you to target specific locations and tailor your message to that specific audience. This can be very effective in reaching potential fans in a certain area of the city or a specific demographic.
Street marketing offers the flexibility of giving musicians the ability to target specific neighborhoods close to music venues where they’re performing and reach people who are already frequenting or living in the area. These people are more likely to attend shows close to home or work, and posters can very easily remind them about upcoming shows and venue schedules. We regularly post in and around neighborhoods where prominent music venues are situated, reinforcing the local music culture and keeping awareness high.
Using a street marketing agency can be a powerful and money-efficient way to get awareness about your music out there and connect you with your fans. Polite Society can suggest a specific service or mix of services and suggest campaigns that are well within your budget. You can trust us to create an effective marketing plan and get your message to the right people in the right locations. If you’re looking to expand your reach and develop meaningful relationships with your audience, consider using street marketing for promoting your next show.
