SHSBulldog00
07-29-2010, 11:34 PM
If you've ever visited a collegiate bookstore or one of the thousands of online retailers that specializes in university-themed gifts, you know one thing: You can buy anything with your favorite college's logo on it.
This phenomenon only increases when the school in question is big and/or good at sports, and there are few schools that fit that criteria quite so well as Texas. Which is why it's probably fitting that the Texas Longhorns are taking branded collegiate merchandise to a whole new level. They're selling Longhorn renewable energy. (It kind of helps if you read that sentence twice.)
SportsBusiness Journal has the details (hat tips to The Dagger and SB Nation) on what has to be one of the more ridiculous and ingenious marketing ideas in the history of college sports:
The electricity will be supplied by Champion Energy Services and is being touted as 100 percent renewable energy to alumni and fans in deregulated regions of Texas. Every new account will generate funds for the University of Texas and consumers will receive Longhorns merchandise, memorabilia, access to events, ticket discounts and other benefits as incentives, including likely co-promotions with other UT sponsors.
“This is not a gimmick. This is renewable energy at a competitive price,” [longtime sponsorship consultant Larry] Weil said. “But when you combine it with the depth of passion people have for their university, it should be a powerful marketing platform, because you can give something to your school and do something green at the same time.”
One comparison the article draws is to team-branded credit cards. Fans have shown that they're willing to sign up for a new credit card if it means they get to show off their fandom on the card; Retail Energy, the company behind the Texas stunt, is hoping the same applies to energy. Which means it's probably a matter of time until your energy provider -- heck, everything you buy that can be somehow branded -- comes with the official approval of [insert your favorite college basketball team here].
Because spending is much more fun when you get to say "Go Team!" every time you pay your bill. Or something like that.
This phenomenon only increases when the school in question is big and/or good at sports, and there are few schools that fit that criteria quite so well as Texas. Which is why it's probably fitting that the Texas Longhorns are taking branded collegiate merchandise to a whole new level. They're selling Longhorn renewable energy. (It kind of helps if you read that sentence twice.)
SportsBusiness Journal has the details (hat tips to The Dagger and SB Nation) on what has to be one of the more ridiculous and ingenious marketing ideas in the history of college sports:
The electricity will be supplied by Champion Energy Services and is being touted as 100 percent renewable energy to alumni and fans in deregulated regions of Texas. Every new account will generate funds for the University of Texas and consumers will receive Longhorns merchandise, memorabilia, access to events, ticket discounts and other benefits as incentives, including likely co-promotions with other UT sponsors.
“This is not a gimmick. This is renewable energy at a competitive price,” [longtime sponsorship consultant Larry] Weil said. “But when you combine it with the depth of passion people have for their university, it should be a powerful marketing platform, because you can give something to your school and do something green at the same time.”
One comparison the article draws is to team-branded credit cards. Fans have shown that they're willing to sign up for a new credit card if it means they get to show off their fandom on the card; Retail Energy, the company behind the Texas stunt, is hoping the same applies to energy. Which means it's probably a matter of time until your energy provider -- heck, everything you buy that can be somehow branded -- comes with the official approval of [insert your favorite college basketball team here].
Because spending is much more fun when you get to say "Go Team!" every time you pay your bill. Or something like that.