For the second annual State of Play: Clio Sports Marketing Summit, a series of panels tackled front-of-mind topics like the power of music in sports marketing, reaching viewers via college athletics and the rise of alternative broadcasts.

Below, we look at the highlights from Monday’s event in NYC.

Harnessing the power of music for sports

The event kicked off with execs from Universal Production Music, ESPN and the NBA describing how music amplifies emotions across audio, video and static imagery.

For Claude Mitchell, coordinating director of music at ESPN, soundtracks are “the inspiration, the motivation and the direction that takes you through things.” Growing up a Yankees fan, Mitchell recalled that Frank Sinatra’s version of “New York, New York” was played at the end of a game they won, while Liza Minelli’s take closed out contests lost. In both cases, music heightens the experience.

Every song has a purpose. Lucas Spry, music director and producer at UPM, noted that “we’re not just throwing upbeat hip-hop tracks on an album just because we can. There’s purpose in that and the BPM tempo arrangement” can help define a collection of tracks.

The NBA recognizes how vital music and tempo are, too. Watching a LeBron James video on mute wouldn’t evoke as much energy and drive as watching with the sound turned up high.

“Music is a critical part of how we translate moments to our fans that are not only in attendance, but who are also engaging with us across our platforms,” said Jasmin Marquez, who helms music programming and business operations at the league.

“Tracks must resonate with all of our fans, no matter where you sit—whether it’s in the arena, or watching the broadcast, or catching it on our social media platforms.”

The music must amplify what’s happening on court, and enhance “how our fans, our teams, our players are all interacting with those moments,” he said.

Sometimes, picking local faves and melding them with global hits can prove a sound strategy.

“Everyone can source authentic regional music,” Spry said. “My job is to listen to that and find … how we can meld genres which work for every medium—social media or broadcast. There’s different tempos, there’s different moods, there’s different lyrical terms that really can make or break” a telecast or livestream.

College sports marketing success for Nissan

Nissan’s Director of U.S. brand & retail media, Rob Martin, spoke to Muse executive director Charell Star about going all in on college sports. That strategy’s driven impressive results, without the steep cost of, say, an NFL partnership.

The carmaker is the official partner of the Heisman Trust, an official NCAA corporate partner, and has multimedia rights agreements with universities across the country.

“You couldn’t just have the Heisman Trust. You couldn’t just have NCAA, although people do take that approach,” Martin said. “We needed a three-legged stool: the Heisman Trust, the NCAA, and the colleges and universities that we participate with. “By using all of those pieces of the puzzle, we can build a really cohesive, creative execution. You’re using colleges and IP, so it feels very authentic. It’s contextually relevant, and that’s why we built our strategy the way that we have.”

The Heisman House campaign, around since 2006, continues to evolve and elevate both creative and the Nissan brand.

“More than a into decade of a campaign, you better continue to think of new ideas. So what did we do? We launched the Heisman House on Zillow,” says Martin.

“Everybody’s looked at Zillow, looked at apartments, looked at houses,” he said. “Never did we think that we would put the Heisman House on Zillow. As you can imagine, everybody asks, ‘Is the house real?’ So we continue to fuel the idea. Yes, this is a real thing. An example of just how we continue to expand the platform and how we continue to refresh it with new ideas.”

Heisman House is the brand’s top performing promotional vehicle each year.

“When we talk about building brand awareness and building brand consideration, it’s our single most important property. So for us, that tells us not only is it about the media, but also just how we’re speaking to the audience. And we find year after year that we continue to see that brand awareness continue to happen, which is staggering when you think of how long this campaign has gone on. And frankly, that’s why we keep doing it.”

The rise of alternative broadcasts

Competing with second-screen viewers has become a challenge that alternative broadcasts aim to win. Execs from Bleacher Report, ESPN and the NFL explained exactly what alternative broadcasts are—and how they’re leaning into the practice.

“When we think about ESPN alternative broadcasts, we really think about creating complementary programs that are going to help to magnify or amplify the main broadcast, like our Toy Story animated football game,” said Tim Reed, the network’s VP of programming and acquisition. “The target there was younger audiences, and to drive co-viewing and distribute that across Disney+. It was a success because parents and kids really enjoyed it. I think the expectation is if we did more of that, they’d watch more.”

Tyler Price, VP of content, Bleacher Report, said: “We’re a digital-first entity that has made its mark by concentrating on the audience. That’s how we look at alternative broadcasts: What value can we provide, specifically in in terms of options and interactivity? How do we make our users feel they have power over what their options looks like?”

When done right, such alternatives are something the players themselves can get behind—with enviable numbers pointing to success.

“The Toy Story execution, the players and coaches, they were actually all, generally welcoming about this,” said Reed. “It showed an authentic side. We actually had some of the players bring their kids and their families into the actual vignettes or personality pieces and just integrate things they liked about Toy Story, their favorite characters.”

“Parents were likely to share that type of experience. And 90+ percent of kids were willing to watch another execution like that.”

Now in its 13th year, Nissan’s beloved “Heisman House” campaign returns from TBWAChiatDay, casting college football’s biggest stars as regular folks in a spoofy reality-show format. As usual, viewers peek into the lives of these elite athletes as they goof around their frat-style digs and hang with NCAA mascots.

USC sophomore quarterback Caleb Williams, who took home the 2022 Heisman Award, joins five decades of winners, including Eddie George, Barry Sanders, Tim Tebow and Charles Woodson. The campaign hypes Nissan vehicles such as the Rogue and all-electric Ariya SUV.

In the hero :45 below, Williams tells viewers he used to watch “Heisman House” ads every year and wondered if they reflected real life. The next shot shows George teaching Williams to trim hedges in the shape of the Heisman Trophy. That’s … real? Kind of?

“Fans are always looking for deeper and closer connections to their favorite teams and players,” says Marisstella Marinkovic, VP and CMO, Nissan U.S. “This reflects how fans feel about Heisman athletes, too. There’s a deep personal pride when the winner comes from your team or your state. This mentality connects fans to the on-the-field happenings as if they’re part of the team. We wanted to bring that vibe to this year’s campaign in a super-fun way.”

All told, eight commercials will air throughout the season. 

Next, campaign stalwart Tebow gets a tad “Too Helpful,” offering George a head shave, carrying groceries for Billy Sims, and guiding Sanders as he backs out of the driveway:

And this extremely silly segment, “Bath Day,” finds mascots hogging in the guys’ washing machine:

“Fans believe that the ‘Heisman House’ is real,” adds Marinkovic. “Well, this year, we are actually making it real, giving them a chance to view the house on Zillow.”

Indeed, Nissan is launching a collaboration with the real estate site, treating users to a tour hosted by vlogger and apartment aficionado Caleb Simpson (along with Heisman winners and mascots, natch). 

Also new this year is the Heisman House Pass, with an all-access NFT that unlocks exclusive content and experiences. Free passes will be available at TheHeismanHouse.com or IRL at activations visiting campuses in the fall.

Nice topiary, dudes!

Next, Tebow and Ingram engage in some birdwatching, but there’s a twist:

Instead of actual birds, they spot the mascots of the Louisville Cardinals and Oregon Ducks. (Nice beaks!)

Below are two more spots. There are no bird costumes, though mindreading and bullhorns come into play:

At various points in the campaign, Nissan’s 2021 Rogue and Sentra appear, along with the Titan and Kicks.

Here’s some behind-the-scenes footage, in which we learn that Tebow and Murray, though they appear to be in a car together, were filmed separately, addressing their lines to tennis balls:

Maybe Tim should take up tennis. Baseball hasn’t exactly panned out for him, after all.

The initiative also includes a virtual 3-D Heisman House and sweepstakes.

With fewer college football games this year owing to Covid concerns, and six of the eight campaign stars currently playing pro ball, Nissan’s “Heisman House” media buy for the first time includes NFL telecasts, including next Monday’s Steelers-Giants and Titans-Broncos contests on ESPN.

“Over the past six months, Nissan has pivoted multiple times to adjust to new realities, and that agility has enabled us to come up with new and entertaining ways to reach our audiences,” says Allyson Witherspoon, vp of marketing communications and media at Nissan North America.

She believes the latest iteration of “Heisman House” displays that spirit, delivering the goods without sacrificing the silliness that’s made the campaign a seasonal staple.
 
“While there’s no doubt the 2020 college football season will look different, the humor, camaraderie and excitement of the Nissan Heisman House remain relevant, perhaps even more so during this time when audiences are craving some semblance of normalcy,” Witherspoon says.

Also among this year’s housemates: Derrick Henry, Marcus Mariota, Charles Woodson and Baker Mayfield (though the Heisman House represents somewhat smaller digs than the latter’s grown accustomed to.)