In this webinar, Dane Storrusten, Daniel Casados, and Chad Newell share their favorite initiatives and most significant challenges of 2020. As the Sr. Creative Director at the NFL and founder of a creative agency, Gridiron Labs, Dane is no stranger to creative strategy, brand identity, and execution. Daniel is the Director of Game Presentation at the LA Clippers and oversees events, budgets, and teams. As StudioNow’s CEO, Chad Newell is brilliant at building key business strategies and providing hands-on leadership.
Don’t miss out on any great actionable ideas and real-world applications shared during this presentation!
If you’re saving the video for later, here are some highlights as food for thought.
How did the sports industry’s marketing teams come together to create messaging, branding, and execution of campaigns?
Right off the bat, Daniel acknowledges the struggles of COVID-19 and the Clipper’s decision to develop a distraction through sports entertainment.
These uncertain times created uncharted territory for sports marketers to come together now more than ever before. Daniel emphasizes the unity, formed in early 2020, between the Los Angeles Clippers and Los Angeles Lakers with campaigns of togetherness, “We Not Me,” showed the world how the social justice movement is much bigger than the rivalry between two teams.
The NFL reflected on the NBA’s actions and used similar tactics regarding messaging for COVID-19 and the social justice movement.
Streamlining strong ties within competitive sports teams of large enterprises increases the impact of the message. Hopefully, there aren’t more pandemics in the future, but this emergency caused a key shift in how brands create messaging.
Favorite Initiatives of 2020, and what would you like to take into 2021?
The NBA and the NFL pushed the limits of their creative skills when it came to production challenges. Virtual fans and schedule flexibility on game days were a few of the many issues the NBA and NFL had to brainstorm and overcome.
Daniel discussed with his marketing team about placing crowd murmurs for their home games or not. Refer to the on-demand recording for a thorough and informative discussion with Dane and Chad. Creativity in 2020 was challenging but rewarding. Dane, Daniel, and Chad all hope to continue this momentum going into 2021.
Testing new ideas and evaluating if the new strategy works is marketing in a nutshell.
Biggest Challenges of 2020
With countless challenges in 2020, StudioNow asked the panel about the biggest one.
Daniel begins by addressing the gravity of the global pandemic and the social justice movement. He adds on with his biggest challenge as being creative during these times and keeping players motivated to achieve their best performance without knowing all the ever-changing protocols and safety precautions.
Dane echoes this discussion point by identifying his biggest challenge as going outside the box to think creatively. Football season was a possibility, but nothing was certain for a while. Many jobs would have been lost without a football season this year. The creativity necessary for 2020 required the entire staff to stay proactive and get involved.
Again, I don’t want to spoil it for you. Watch the webinar to see how the NFL continued to stay proactive with NFL leaders weekly and Dane’s example of a colleague risking his job to promote awareness for George Floyd.
How did you approach the idea of balancing empathy alongside business goals and still staying creative considering the social justice movement of 2020?
As more people work from home and social media news spreads like wildfire, brands need to appear humanized and authentically address their audience’s concerns—starting from within.
Dane, Daniel, and Chad all concur on the significance of maintaining a lot more one-on-ones with personal check-ups on colleagues. Simply asking, “Hey, are you doing okay?” goes a long way.
There are many companies and platforms offering help with their expertise in any way they can. The thought of togetherness has radiated throughout this year. Despite many challenges, there are glimpses of hope for the new year.
How do all these concepts translate to real-world applications?
The global pandemic of 2020 created the biggest obstacle of all but allowed creatives to push themselves in a way they might not have had the chance to before. Looking back and discussing 2020 with other like-minded individuals offers reflection at a time of uncertainty.
Social justice issues aren’t going away. The movement came to light this year as a bigger platform with advocates. Dane emphasized how crucial it is to continue these conversations and make it a part of everyone for 2021 and beyond. The social justice movement is so much more than just a trend.
As a bonus…
Reflect with your internal team on the hardships of 2020. These discussions may be difficult but are essential to address.
With a unique year, there’s a lot to consider from a marketer’s perspective. Adaptability, knowledge, and navigating emergencies are skills marketers truly discovered the meaning of in 2020.
This year taught everyone important lessons, hardships, and gratitude. Luckily, we have a fresh new year coming up. Dear 2021, I’m hoping you won’t disappoint us!
If you want to get all the details on this discussion, check out the webinar, and enjoy.
