Your client's ad
at spring training
How to reach the most avid of Major League fans
By Diego Vasquez
Feb 1, 2010
Advertising at pro sports venues can be pricey. But to reach Major League Baseball fans at minor league prices, there's no better place than spring training, the annual two-month preseason baseball camp held in Florida and Arizona that kicks off Feb. 17.
Spring training attracts many of the same fans who go to regular-season games, but advertising at these ballparks is available at a fraction of the cost, roughly 10 to 15 percent of regular-season prices.
At spring training, advertisers connect with fans who are passionate enough about their teams to travel great distances to see them. Fans schedule their trips to include preseason games, batting practices and hanging out at the park, where advertisers can set up booths to engage people one on one.
Plus, many spring training games are shown on ESPN or local cable sports networks, giving outfield advertisers extra exposure to a national or regional audience.
To find out how to get your client’s message at spring training, read on.
This is one in a Media Life series on buying out-of-home venues. They appear weekly.
Fast Facts
What
Advertising to baseball fans at spring training in Arizona and Florida.
Who
All 30 Major League Baseball teams have a spring training unit based in either Arizona or Florida, depending where they play. Those units handle the sales of spring training advertising.
How it works
Think of spring training as spring break for baseball geeks. Fans head down to either Arizona, where the Cactus League plays, or Florida, where the Grapefruit League plays, for vacations centered around their favorite teams.
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There are myriad opportunities for advertisers at all 30 of the spring training venues. Some stadiums allow brands to advertise just during spring training, while others sell signage on a year-round basis.
Most of the stadiums are used for other purposes the rest of the year, including minor league baseball games, community events such as meetings or graduations, and concerts. The bulk of the stadiums are not state-of-the-art facilities like the ones Major League teams have at home, which means there are limited opportunities for digital advertising.
The most visible in-stadium signage appears on outfield walls. These signs are generally 8 feet high and 16 feet wide. Up to two dozen of them line the outfield walls at each stadium, and they are often caught on camera during televised games.
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Other in-stadium signage options include smaller signs in the concourse areas and signs on or near the stadium scoreboard, which may also make it on television. The handful of stadiums with video scoreboards can run spots before games and in between innings.
Advertisers can also sponsor giveaways at a spring training game, such as giving the first 1,000 fans who enter the stadium a team poster with the sponsor's logo displayed prominently.
Advertisers can also sponsor contests. For example, a store could award a gift card to the fan who finds a certain sticker under his seat.
Advertisers can also interact one-on-one with fans by setting up display tables either outside the stadium gates or inside the stadium concourse. Advertisers can hand out product samples, distribute fliers about a product or service, or collect fans' names and addresses to be entered in a promotional drawing.
For booths set up inside the concourse, the stadium PA announcer often reads a 10-second spiel encouraging fans to visit the advertiser’s table.
All of these options are available during regular-season MLB games too, but at a much higher price.
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Advertising at spring training facilities generally skews local. One team estimates that 60 percent of spring training ads are local and 40 percent national, while others say it's more like 65 or 70 percent local.
Markets
The 30 MLB teams are divided into Cactus League and Grapefruit League participants.
The Cactus League trains in Arizona and has teams in Mesa, Scottsdale, Phoenix, Tempe, Tucson, Peoria, Surprise, Goodyear and Glendale.
The Grapefruit League trains in Florida and has teams in Lake Buena Vista, Fort Myers, Jupiter, Tampa, Bradenton, Port Charlotte, Viera, Sarasota, Lakeland, Kissimmee, Port St. Lucie, Clearwater and Dunedin.
Numbers
From late February to early April 2009, 1,561,873 fans watched Grapefruit League games. The league averaged 6,030 fans per game for the 259 games played from Feb. 25 through April 4.
In that same span, the Cactus League drew 1,578,709 fans for 246 games, for an average of 6,418 per game.
This year games will be played from March 2 to April 3.
How it is measured
Game attendance is used to estimate impressions.
What product categories do well
Frequent advertisers include beer, fast food, restaurants, banks, local businesses, telecommunications, hotels, legal services and rental cars.
Demographics
Eleven percent of Major League Baseball fans are ages 18-24, with 16 percent 25-34, 20 percent 35-44, 21 percent 45-54 and 14 percent 55-64, according to Scarborough Research. MLB fans skew 65 percent male and 35 percent female.
Eleven percent of MLB fans live in households with annual incomes less than $25,000, with 17 percent between $25,000 and $40,000, 11 percent between $40,000 and $50,000, 19 percent between $50,000 and $75,000, 17 percent between $75,000 and $100,000, 15 percent between $100,000 and $150,000, and 11 percent $150,000 or above.
Making the buy
Pricing varies depending on the elements involved in the campaign. On the low end, it costs about $500 for a display table at one game.
On the high end, it costs $14,000 for outfield signage for the duration of spring training. By comparison, similar signage at Major League ballparks costs about $100,000 for the whole season.
Lead time also varies depending on the inventory available. Teams recommend having deals in place no later than two weeks before games kick off, which this year is on March 2.
Who’s already at spring training
Recent advertisers include Wendy’s, Hooters, Budweiser, AT&T, Bank of America, Corona, Coke Zero, Tastykake and Carrabba’s Italian Grill.
What they’re saying
“Most stadiums are used the rest of the year by minor league teams. In that case, signage is good for the whole year. It will be seen at spring training, during high school graduations, at minor league events, meetings, concerts, etc.”–
Dan McDonough, assistant general manager and director of sales at Phillies Florida
Web site info
Cactus League
http://www.cactusleague.com
Kino Sports Complex (Arizona Diamondbacks)
http://www.kinosportscomplex.com
Surprise Recreation Campus (Texas Rangers and Kansas City Royals)
http://www.surpriseaz.com/index.aspx?NID=234
Scottsdale Stadium (San Francisco Giants)
http://www.scottsdaleaz.gov/stadium
Phoenix Municipal Stadium (Oakland Athletics)
http://phoenix.gov/TEAMSPRT/index.html#PRO
Peoria Sports Complex (San Diego Padres and Seattle Mariners)
http://www.peoriaaz.gov/springtraining/spring_home.asp
Maryvale Baseball Park (Milwaukee Brewers)
http://phoenix.gov/TEAMSPRT/index.html#PRO
Hohokam Stadium (Chicago Cubs)
http://www.hohokamstadium.com/Home.aspx
Goodyear Ballpark (Cleveland Indians)
http://www.goodyearaz.gov/index.aspx?NID=1119
Camelback Ranch (Chicago White Sox and Los Angeles Dodgers)
http://www.camelbackranchbaseball.com
Grapefruit League
http://www.floridagrapefruitleague.com
Roger Dean Stadium (Florida Marlins and St. Louis Cardinals)
http://www.rogerdeanstadium.com
Steinbrenner Field (New York Yankees)
http://www.steinbrennerfield.com
Bright House Field (Philadelphia Phillies)
http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/index.jsp?sid=t566
Hammond Stadium (Minnesota Twins)
http://www.miraclebaseball.com/stadium
Joker Marchant Stadium (Detroit Tigers)
http://www.lakelandgov.net/parkrec/facilities/JokerMarchantStadium.html
Osceola County Stadium (Houston Astros)
http://www.lakelandgov.net/parkrec/facilities/JokerMarchantStadium.html
Tradition Field (New York Mets)
http://www.stlucieco.gov/parks/trad_field.htm
Dunedin Stadium (Toronto Blue Jays)
http://www.dunedingov.com/home.aspx?page=departments/LeisureServices/dunedinstadium&title=Knology%20Park
Space Coast Stadium (Washington Nationals)
http://www.viera.com/public/Attraction.jsp?id=28
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