2010 Vancouver Olympics provide N.J. Devils, hockey another golden opportunity to grow their brand

BY JOE FAVORITO

NEWJERSEYNEWSROOM.COM

ON N.J. SPORTS MARKETING

Thirty years ago we had the Miracle on Ice, and the sports world waited as Jim Craig, the triumphant U.S. goaltender, prepped for his NHL debut with the Atlanta Flames a week later. Coca-Cola made Craig the branding darling of the Olympics, and thousands of kids rushed out to buy hockey sticks across the country to try and relive the victory over the Russians.

However, at that time the NHL was suffering from a lack of aggressive leadership and branding at the top — coverage was not great outside of home markets, there was no social or online experience to expand the moment, and only a percentage of the great young Americans went on to have productive NHL careers, many of whom didn't gel for a few years and were not ready for the bright lights of top level professional hockey at that point. It was a great moment which has lived on, but a moment in the history of the star-crossed sport of hockey in the U.S.

So we fast forward to now ... a time when the NHL has looked at and been successful at, virtually every digital initiative possible to grow its audience. It has built the Winter Classic as the greatest of regular season sporting events, and has a host of young international stars who can help the sport finally reach a new audience.

Sunday night's terrific viewer rating for US-Canada, and the storybook ending to the game, exposed millions of casual fans to the game, many of whom did not know Sidney Crosby from Sidney Greenstreet or Ryan Miller from Miller Beer before the Games began.

Even with the success, the spectre of not shutting down the NHL for two weeks for the 2014 Games in Sochi, Russia, is still out there. So not just the NHL, but hockey as a sport, is again at a crossroads for growth. Where will it go? Will it go anywhere or will hockey just get the halo effect of success that Lindsey Vonn or Julia Mancuso will get, before we move on to something else to capture our spirit and imagination?

Well, hockey has perhaps the biggest advantage and is poised for a larger, extended glow than any other winter star can ever have here in North America. It has a real season that is going on ... with fans and television and radio and hours of media coverage already going on. They have brands that are tied to teams that can help boost the Olympic reminder with local audiences, and smart marketing and sales teams which can package that moment of Olympic success — not just for the Canadians but really for all who participated in the tournament — and re-sell it not just to their die-hards but to an audience which loves the rings and what they have stood for the last few weeks.

Yes, the focus for the NHL clubs has to now be on the playoffs and the Stanley Cup, but those selling the game, from the Federations to the minors to the grassroots to the NHL teams, need to take every advantage to extend that brand window and make sure that every possible person in the market gets a chance to somehow...in person, digitally, virtually...take part in the after-effect of Vancouver.

The NHL has made a business like no other sport of parading their Stanley Cup to far outposts with their athletes during the off-season, and they should do the same with every piece of the Olympic experience with those who participated. Perhaps there is a feeling that if they glean off the Olympic experience too much they will have to push back on whatever plans are in place for not shutting down for the Winter Olympics in 2014. However, for a sport that needs to build right now, the short-term assistance and ability to expand brand and participation has to be taken advantage of. Sochi is four years away, teams and the sport need the boost now, or some may never get to 2014.

Thirty years ago a very unique window was opened for hockey. Some got through before it closed, but it did indeed close and those at the top have struggled to slowly, steadily reopen it and set the sport up for a higher level of exposure and success.

So how does this apply to the Devils, who before very long will be the ONLY professional team that will use "New Jersey" along with their nickname? The team has made huge strides this season in social media, and overall team branding and outreach. They have perhaps the best combination of a radio/TV platform of any winter sports team in the region with MSG and WFAN. Their alumni group is one of the most diligent of any pro sports team in the area. Now in addition to one of the, if not the, greatest goaltender in NHL history in Martin Brodeur, and a host of interesting and engaging personalities they have an American hockey media darling in Zach Parise, an athlete who two weeks ago Sports Illustrated called "The greatest hockey player no one knows." It has long been a Devils policy to have the brand, not the current players, out and about during the regular season. The Devils were all about team ... and that success worked on the ice but not in the community and with the casual fan. Now, more than ever, for the Devils to get to that next level of brand recognition they need to aggressively market their athletes in addition to their brand campaigns.

The casual fan needs to know about the athlete and how they can make a connection to them now more than ever. Without exposing these individuals in community events, branding programs and sponsor partnerships the Devils, and the NHL, will miss a great window of opportunity.

New Jersey wants to know more about their guys. The opportunity has been created with a global platform in the Olympics. It will be interesting to see if the Devils can seize it over the next few months and into the offseason, and grow a market share even more than they have with their increased presence these past few months.

Joe Favorito has over 23 years of strategic communications/marketing, business development and public relations expertise in sports, entertainment, brand building, media training, television, athletic administration and business. Visit him at JoeFavorito.com.