Get your Utah Women’s Soccer Scarf and Season Ticket today!

I didn’t go to the University of Utah, but in support of their new “Show Your Scarf” campaign, I’m going to buy a season ticket. Crazy, I know… My alma mater is actually a Mountain West Conference competitor – the University of Wyoming. But the Utah Utes Soccer Team has truly embraced social media marketing and as a result, I’ve embraced them. Here are the top 6 reasons why I love the “Show Your Scarf” campaign.

1. The movement is authentic.

All too often, social media campaigns are developed by marketing departments and pushed through anonymous channels. But this University of Utah project is based on *real people* – the coaches, ticketing folks, athletic directors, and even players are getting involved. This allows the message to transcend traditional channels and inch its way into real life – a much more influential media marketplace. Check out the “Show Your Scarf” video, made by the players themselves! (link opens in a new window):

2.The concept is simple.

From UtahUtes.cstv.com:

The University of Utah soccer team has announced a new season ticket campaign featuring Utah Utes soccer scarves. Scarves cost just $20 and double as a season ticket to all Utah Soccer home games. To purchase your Utah Utes scarf, click here or call 801-581-UTIX for more information. They will also be available at all home contests.

Any questions?

1. It’s easy to engage.

Check out how the Valley Sports Spot described the campaign:

The Lady Utes, you see, are making their campaign interactive, and asking fans to “show your scarf”. They are asking fans to take pictures with their scarves…well, where ever! Around campus, around town, Times Square, Mayberry…you get the point. Once you take your pics showing your scarf, they then ask you to upload it to the team’s Facebook page and to post it on Twitter, using the hash tag #sys (for show your scarf of course!) so that anyone in the twitterverse (as they call it) can just type in #sys and up will come links to fans of the Lady Ute’s…with their scarves.

1. The campaign is scalable.

$20 earns anybody a scarf, but more importantly the cache of being part of a special community. Think family members, friends, athletes, alumni, the student-body at large… even Utah Utes campers (see the photo)! No matter where they live, each of these groups can become part of the family.

The best part: The only work the Utah soccer coaching staff really has to do to make this thrive is communicate with people through Facebook/Twitter – which is centralized so it’s easy to manage.

1. People are talking about it.

Increased Brand Awareness. In a marketplace where competition for exposure is tough, this unique idea cuts through the clutter and gives people a reason to talk about the Utah Women’s Soccer program (outside of the normal chatter regarding any athletic team). Utah Athletics will soon become known as an innovative university that’s engaging fans (and recruits) in a different, fun, comprehensive way.

Here are two blog posts about the campaign:

• Social Media x Community
• Social Media Marketing and the Sports World: Utah Utes Women’s Soccer

Here’s a look at a few of the comments I’ve seen so far:

• Russ Morgan on the Utah Women’s Soccer Facebook page said, “Done and done, just bought two of them. Great promotion! Don’t know how many games I will make it up to (I live in Las Vegas) but I love the idea.”
• Jen Smock on the University of Utah Athletics page said, “Genius.” Why yes, Jen Smock, it certainly is!
• Lee Neves on the Utah Women’s Soccer Facebook page said, “Love the show your scarf idea out here in California! So much so that I decided to blog about it!….and I”m getting a scarf too!!”

1. Scarf sales = ticket sales.

At the heart of any good marketing campaign, there is a conversion event. And often in sports, this is a ticket purchase. Good on ya for packaging the “Show Your Scarf” campaign with a season ticket package. Smart.

Get your Utah Women’s Soccer Scarf and Season Ticket today!

Big props once again, Utes!

Question: What do you get when you cross a rock star Assistant Athletic Director for Tickets and a kick ass Assistant Soccer Coach with Facebook and Twitter accounts?
Answer: The Utah Utes “Show Your Scarf” campaign and record numbers of season tickets sold.

• Follow Utah’s Assistant Soccer Coach, Mariel Wilner, on Twitter
• Follow Utah’s Assistant Athletic Director, Zack Lassiter, on Twitter

View Original Post at amandavandervort.com

• Filed Under:  
• Soccer, Sports, SportsPLUS, College, Technology, Student-Athlete, Media/Marketing