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
Pandora is betting on AI agents to scale service and emotional selling during the peak holiday season
Pandora is using AI agents to scale customer service and replicate emotional in-store selling online, just as peak season puts pressure on margins and teams.
Rembrand’s CEO wants to grow virtual ad placements in streaming, and he’s looking elsewhere for models
Omar Tawakol wants to improve advertising within the streaming world, and is working with advertisers and publishers to improve that experience.
Marketers are keen to use generative AI in ad campaigns, but hidden costs lurk
Marketers across the industry want to use AI to cut down on time spent in creative production. It’s not so simple in practice.