By Kathy Prentice
Jan 28, 2008
 

Super Bowl ads are notorious pricey--millions for a half-minute. And while there's scattered guerilla stunts in the area of the stadium, only big-budget advertisers gain exposure inside the stadium on Super Bowl Sunday.

There's one exception: branded cup holders.

To find out how to get your client’s message at the hands of every fan in sports stadiums, read on.

This is one in a Media Life series on buying the new out-of-home venues. They appear weekly.

Fast Facts

What
Ads placed on cup holders in sports stadiums.

Who
Sports Media in Silvis, Ill.

How it works
Ads are placed on the cup holders that are attached to seats in arenas, stadiums and ball parks.

“For an event like the Super Bowl, only NFL sponsors have a presence in the stadium unless a team sponsor is inside the building for the season,” says CEO Dan Kosth. “The NFL could cover up anything already in the stadium for the season, but they’re leaving the cup holders.”

The ad space measures 3 inches high by 12 inches around the cup.

Creative usually includes the advertiser’s logo and can also include a message. For example, Dunkin’ Donuts ran a campaign with the slogan “Enjoy Dunkin’ Donuts” alongside a picture of a coffee cup.

The advertiser usually provides the creative but Sports Media will assist with creative development. 

Up to two advertisers can be displayed on each cup holder.

Ads can rotate every other seat or by sections of the stadium. Cup holders are also placed in stadium restrooms.

Advertisers can distribute product samples by placing them in cup holders before a game begins.

Both national and local brands advertise on stadium cup holders.

The availability of exclusivity varies venue to venue.

Branded cup holders are often part of a package that can include naming rights or pouring rights.

Advertisers can also sponsor cup holders to benefit charity. The sponsor’s name appears on the cup holder along with the targeted charity and the local team name. The program is called “Cupholders for Charity.”

Markets
Branded cup holders are available in NFL stadiums in Tempe, Atlanta, Baltimore, Buffalo, Charlotte, Chicago, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Dallas, Denver, Detroit, Green Bay, Houston, Indianapolis, Jacksonville, Kansas City, Miami, Minneapolis, New Orleans, Oakland, Philadelphia, San Diego, San Francisco, Seattle, St. Louis, Tampa, Nashville, Landover, Foxboro and East Rutherford.

Cup holders are also available in Major League Baseball, National Basketball Association, National Hockey League, semi-pro and college venues, including soccer, baseball and tennis.

Numbers
Super Bowl XLII is expected to reach approximately 1 billion viewers in 232 countries, and some share of those viewers will see the cup-holder ads over the three hours of the telecast.

There are currently 16 million cup holders across all markets that are available for branding.

How it is measured
Game attendance and number of cups in the venue are used to estimate impressions.

Research
According to a 2007 study by Caddy Products, cup-holders are used by 92.3 percent of stadium attendees, and those attendees look at the holder an average of 28 times during the consumption of each drink.

Recall rate was 53 percent.

What product categories do well
Automotive, beverages, airlines, pizza, gas stations, newspapers, radio stations and food products are top categories.

Demographics
Groups are targeted by the events they attend, Kosth says.

“We use data provided by the teams. On the pro level, 90 percent of the teams use Scarborough Research to help advertisers target. Within a stadium you may even find different demographic groups sitting in different sections. For example, the upper bowl may seat a more influential people.”

Making the buy
Lead time is six weeks. An advertiser can buy one market, multiple markets or the network.

A minimum buy is three years.

The cost is approximately $10 per cup holder for three years but can vary stadium to stadium. Branded cup holders are often sold as part of a larger sponsorship package.

Who’s already on cup holders
State Farm Insurance is on cup holders for this year’s Super Bowl at the University of Phoenix Stadium.

Recent advertisers also include Papa John’s Pizza, McDonald’s, Fox Sports, National City Bank, Marathon Gas, Coca-Cola, Pepsi and Aquafina.

What they’re saying
“Collectively, branded cup holders offer the largest ad space in a stadium when you add up the square inches.” – Dan Kosth of Sports Media

Web site info
Sports Media at http://www.sportsmedia.net
Cupholders for Charity at http://www.sportsmedia.org