Bauer, which is a company that makes hockey equipment such
as skates and sticks, is currently responding to the NHL lockout. They were set
to launch their first re-branding campaign in 17 years this October, coinciding
with the start of the season. Their ads featured more than 20 pro players who
are currently not playing for the NHL. Instead of not using any of the campaign
footage, they decided to use the footage of amateur players (such as AHL
players) that was supposed to appear alongside the professional player footage. Bauer has also held off on buying digital ad
space and TV spots in large hockey markets such as Toronto and Chicago. But Bauer is moving ahead with other
elements of the campaign, called "Own the moment." They plan to air a
TV spot on TSN, a national sports channel in Canada, during the IIHF World
Junior Hockey Championship at the end of December. Bauer is also running print
and digital ads in hockey publications and making out-of-home buys in amateur
arenas. On Twitter, the company is plugging the hashtag
"#ownthemoment," which it says has gained popularity among amateurs.
Currently Bauer has 52% of global market share for hockey equipment, which has
grown during the lockout.
"Obviously from a viability standpoint, you
want to have your products on the best players in the world skating up and down
the ice during the NHL," Mr. Jones, Bauer’s director of Global Marketing,
said. "But that's 600 players," he added. "There are 6 million
kids playing. They need hockey equipment." And that's accomplished by
going to where the players live. "So we want to make sure our advertising
and marketing message is seen repeatedly in arenas where kids go five, six,
seven days a week into their local rink to play.""It's not all about
the NHL," Mr. Jones said.
1) Do you think that Bauer correctly responded to
the lockout by beginning to advertise to minor league and amateur players?
2) Do you think that using amateur players in their
ads will change their brand reputation? For the better or for the worse?
3) Do you think that the growth in market share
during the lockout will hurt the advertising relationship between Bauer and NHL
in the future?
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