Marketing Activations Group, Life on the Road: SportsFest

Our second year at the 97.1 The Ticket SportsFest was even better than last year.  Building off the momentum of a very successful TigerFest for Detroit's favorite baseball club, MAG was able to deliver another satisfying event for both the Tigers and Red Wings.  Aesthetically, you could tell which pro teams' displays were created and designed by MAG.  Professional, vibrant signage was displayed above and on the floor.  Entertainment for all ages was available for each team.

Many of the same interactives seen at TigerFest were once again available to the fans at SportsFest, with the addition of live trivia on the stage.  Fan favorites such as Tigers Plinko, the PAWS Lil Dingers Challenge, and the video arcade were back by popular demand.  Meanwhile, the Red Wings rocked the Suburban Collection Showplace from beginning to end thanks to the energy and engagement of MC Leighton and DJ Matty Sexton on MAG's multi-purpose truss stage.  There were so many great prizes given away by the Red Wings, leaving many smiles on the fans after a fun day!

It's evident that Detroit sports fans are some of the best fans in the nation, and they deserve the credit!  The Red Wings and Tigers recognize their passion, and they showed their appreciation by putting on another great event in Novi.  MAG was happy to help along the way.

SportsFest is in the books, and the first half of the PBR season is winding down; but the Cooper Tire race season is heating up, and Bracket Town (the Official Fan Fest of the NCAA Men's Final Four) is right around the corner.  Look for more updates soon.  Until then, we'll see you on the road!

Marketing Activations Group, Life on the Road: PBR Part 1

Not everyday do you walk into a building to see thousands of diehard fans rooting on their favorite athletes.  We get the opportunity every weekend to see this unique sport of professional bull riding.  Not only are the fans loyal to their favorite bull riders and bulls, but the brands that partner with the sport, as well.  We are fortunate enough to represent several of the top partners of the PBR, including Cooper Tire, Pabst Blue Ribbon, Wrangler, Ariat, Caterpillar, and Bad Boy Mowers.

The first half of the PBR season is a little over half way through, and it’s been a great year so far for both MAG and its partners.  From the first weekend in January at a sold out Madison Square Garden, to this past weekend at an electric Dallas Cowboys Stadium, MAG has facilitated the day-to-day activation for each of its PBR partners.  With past markets such as St. Louis and Winston Salem reemerging and markets such as Sacramento and Oklahoma City holding strong, the PBR has blanketed the country with outstanding events.  They have set five attendance records this year alone, and the organization is looking stronger than ever!

New initiatives such as activations for one of the PBR’s newest partners, Caterpillar; to holding the Pabst Blue Ribbon Party Barn at each event; as well as social media efforts for both Cooper Tire (@TeamCooperTire) and Pabst Blue Ribbon (@TeamPabst1844); have made for exciting new projects for MAG.  Nine events down in the first half, eight to go as we end up in Las Vegas May 10^th and 11^th before a three-month summer break.  Stay tuned for more PBR action to come soon!

Marketing Activations Group, Life On The Road: TigerFest

Comerica Park.  Home of the 2012 American League Champion Detroit Tigers.  That was our setting for TigerFest, where thousands of rabid Tigers fans came out to meet the likes of Miguel Cabrera, Prince Fielder, and Justin Verlander.  Talk about star power!

You would think that Detroit in January would be warm, right? Kidding, of course.  But the amount of fans that arrived all bundled up was amazing.  There was plenty of heat on the concourse of the stadium to keep everyone from facing the extreme elements outside the stadium.  The MAG team was able to keep warm for setup and teardown by staying busy.  The two-day setup turned out to be a thing of beauty. 

                                                
TigerFest gave fans a view of features not usually open to the public.  The clubhouse and the dugout were just two features that are extremely exclusive.  Autograph lines seemed to stretch for miles.  We were very happy to have the likes of Miguel Cabrera, Max Scherzer, Doug Fister, and Alex Avila on our stage for kids activities.  As a baseball fan, meeting Miguel Cabrera (the first Triple Crown winner in over 40 years) made me feel like a kid, too!  That's what makes these events so rewarding. 

Especially for the youngsters, it was great to have an event where fans could be outside and active, ready for the season.  Any chance you can get to play whiffle ball in the dead of winter has to be a great day!

TigerFest was a blast, and we were happy to face the elements and deliver a great event for great fans.  To be a part of another great event just a few weeks later - 97.1 The Ticket SportsFest - has us believing that Detroit is tough to beat when it comes to great sports cities. 

Until next time… we'll see you on the road!

Marketing Activations Group, Life on the Road: Introduction

With over 200-plus event days a year; and crews hitting the pavement seven days a week, 365 days a year, MAG certainly lives a life on the road.  Whether it is in New York City, Chicago; or places much smaller such as Billings, Montana and Bismarck, North Dakota; MAG treats every event the same, with one goal in mind: to put forth the best work we can each and every day to achieve the best results possible.  This effort wouldn’t be possible without a contribution from each and every person that touches our projects on a day-to-day basis.

The Marketing Activations Group Life on the Road series will highlight the roles of several individuals from brand ambassadors, to tour managers, all the way to the owners themselves and how each one makes every event what it is.  Life on the Road will feature behind-the-scenes footage that includes interviews with the MAG crew; the ups and downs that go into creating a successful event; highlights of the events themselves; and of course a look at what MAG encounters while spendingLife on the Road. 

The first segment of Marketing Activations Group: Life on the Road will highlight TigerFest 2013, in which MAG assisted in the execution of the Detroit Tigers annual winter fan fest; as well as an interview with one of the top brand ambassadors on the MAG team.  Stay tuned for more to come!

Upping the Ante in Social Media

#PBRTAMPA…”Like Us on Facebook…”@TeamPabst1844…#TEAMCOOPERTIRE…

These simple and somewhat foreign looking words and phrases have infinite power when it comes to today’s event marketing industry.  Whether it is hyping up an event a few days or even weeks before; starting banter between unique personalities involved in the event; or showcasing a behind-the-scenes and live perspective from an event; social media has become an integral part in how MAG continues to add value for its clients.  From MAG’s own Twitter and Facebook pages, to clients such as Cooper Tire and Pabst Blue Ribbon in which MAG assists in the execution of the company’s social media strategy, we continue to strengthen our approach to social media and how instrumental it can be in a brand’s efforts to connect with consumers.

Earlier this year, as the MAG team redesigned its website, we also took a similar approach in reinvigorating our social media outlets and dedicated ourselves to spending more time connecting with brands and consumers through these outlets.  With the help of FanBridge, we added a new element to our Facebook page called MAG Live.  MAG Live allows fans to keep up with more of our action by showcasing an event calendar, featured videos from past events, and showcasing our Twitter feed, all in one simple platform.  Leading up to, during, and following each event, we also post the latest news and highlights pertaining to specific events.  Following each event, we also post pictures and other content on both our Facebook and Twitter pages. 

Taking things one step further, a few of MAG’s clients have also asked for MAG’s involvement within their own social media strategy.  Earlier in 2012, the @TeamCooperTire Twitter account was created.  @TeamCooperTire is dedicated to all the latest updates on members of Team Cooper Tire from Professional Bull Riding, TORC Off-Road Racing, Global RallyCross, Cooper Tire Prototype Lites, the USF2000 Series, Formula Drift, and more.  @TeamCooperTire has provided Cooper Tire with a platform to extend their brand beyond just the event footprint itself.  By joining the social media realm, @TeamCooperTire has brought new life to its sponsorships with these properties by involving bull riding and motorsports personalities in discussion, providing live updates from each event, and pre and post event news pertaining to each event. 

Another MAG client, Pabst Blue Ribbon, which is well known for its unique sense of humor associated with its brand, also saw social media as an opportunity to extend its reach among its sponsorship of Professional Bull Riding, as well.  Pabst created a twitter account, @TeamPabst1844.  This new Twitter handle is an effort to play the part of the “sports loving individual” that finds their way into behind-the-scenes access at PBR events.  Although @TeamPabst1844 is well within its beginning stages, MAG continues to work with Pabst to develop a strategy to best capture the consumer’s attention through social media.

As MAG continues to develop its business in a way that will best suit the needs of its clients, social media has and will be one of the instrumental parts in developing the best plan to do so.  2012 has been a huge year in shaping the way we approach this, with more interest already coming from clients that recognize the importance.  We look forward to continuing to grow this facet of our business and helping more clients to come.  Make sure to follow us on Twitter at @FollowMAG and Like Us on Facebook at facebook.com/marketingactivationsgroup.  

As Summer Winds Down....Fall Brings Another Busy Time

Summer always brings a busy time for MAG and its clients.  Now that Summer is winding down, Fall brings yet another busy few months across several different platforms for MAG. 

As the PBR heats back up for the second half of its season and concludes in October in Las Vegas at the PBR World Finals, MAG continues to develop campaigns for new and old clients alike.  Adding Pabst Blue Ribbon to its arsenal of PBR clients, MAG now manages sponsorship elements for five of PBR’s main partners.  Not only does this make for a busy time for the seven remaining events leading up to the World Finals, but the planning and execution is certainly an animal in itself.  With several clients going above and beyond their week-to-week activation, MAG works with each client to put the best program possible together to end the year with a bang in the desert.

The racing scene also continues with a busy Fall Season for our client Cooper Tires in series such as Global RallyCross, USF2000, Cooper Tires Prototype Lites, Traxxas TORC, and Formula Drift.  Labor Day Weekend at Crandon International Off-Road Raceway and Global RallyCross at Las Vegas Motor Speedway highlight an exciting finish to the racing season.

MAG is also working in conjunction with Omelet to launch the Strike Back Experience, as Cinemax takes the show on the road to promote the next season of its hit show Strike Back which premiered on August 17^th.  The Strike Back Tour hit the road this week and will make a stop at Atlanta Motor Speedway this weekend for the NASCAR weekend at the track.

So you ask, when does it ever stop?  It certainly is always a busy time for MAG and we are happy and honored to be a part of so many great projects and continuing to build great relationships with our old and new clients while continuing to add more to our portfolio. 

Welcome to our Blog!

Welcome to the new blog for Marketing Activations Group.  What a ride it has been over the past seven years.  We’re glad you could stop by to check out what’s new in our world.  We’ve got some exciting things happening, one of them being our new website launch, as we hope you’ve seen by now.  Before we get into things to come, here’s a little bit about our past…

MAG officially opened its doors in 2005. We were approached by brands and different event properties, asking for our event marketing expertise. MAG started with a college football tailgating event and a few mobile tours.  Our first brand experience was with Gatorade as part of the NFL Experience at the 2007 NFL Super Bowl.  We have since grown up and gained the trust of several global brands to manage their experiential programming.  In 2012, we have worked with Cooper Tire; Turner Sports (to manage the execution of the NCAA Men’s Final Four Bracket Town); Wrangler; Omelet (producing elements for AT&T and Pantech’s sponsorship of the Winter Dew Tour); the Detroit Red Wings; and the Detroit Tigers.  To say we’ve come a long way in the last few years is an understatement.  

But there’s also the future, which is looking bright for us.  We currently have projects about to launch for Omelet (and their client, Cinemax); Pabst Brewing Company; and the Detroit Red Wings, who you may have noticed are a little busy with next year’s Winter Classic.

Keep checking back to hear more stories along our journey.  If you have any questions about our company, we’d love to hear them. 

Sincerely,

Aaron & Todd