The Big Ten men’s college basketball championship final last weekend at Madison Square Garden had a new type of brand sponsor: SoFi.
The San Francisco-based personal finance brand joins a small club of finance startups making a name for themselves through a connection to sports. Quicken Loans has long-established sports sponsorships, including naming rights to Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland and links to college sports teams; and Credit Karma is playing in gaming, by becoming the “official personal finance partner” to eLeague, the gaming league formed by Turner Broadcasting and IMG tournament two years ago.
“As part of an overall media buying strategy across a number of platforms and formats, we’ve identified sporting events such as the Super Bowl, the Big Ten tournament and the X Games as excellent ways to reach our target audience,” said Margi Brown, SoFi’s vice president of marketing and media. “Our marketing strategy is driven by meeting our members where they are, with a unique focus on brand awareness marketing.”
More in Marketing
Your favorite beauty brands are now also entertainment brands
Many of today’s beauty brands are asking if entertainment and advertising can be one and the same.
Synthetic data specialist Ideally wants research to be used at the start of the creative process
Ideally is looking to reinvent research when serving the creative side of the industry by integrating consumer insights earlier in the creative process.
By the numbers: How marketers are building the infrastructure for AI search
Marketers are carving out budgets for AI search, but research suggests execution, measurement and content strategies are still catching up.