On naming rights, I'd prefer a corporate brand that brings "quality"
- Thread starter ttowncoug
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Welcome to Aston Martin stadium folks home of the fastest team this side of the falls
Back in the day when I was a relief milker (part-time job in high school and one summer in college - late 70s/early 80s), Darigold was a higher-quality brand than Vitamilk. Cleaner farms, cleaner cows, cleaner milk, in my opinion. Just my two cents. Don't know if Vitamilk is even still around. The family dairy farms seem to be a thing of the past now anyway.
There is nothing wrong with Darigold. We are a land grant institution after all, and the College of Ag is our largest college. Let 'em laugh. Maybe they will want to tie into our Cougar cheeses. Cougar Gold, by Darigold. And drinks. DariGoldschlaeger
Personally, in keeping with our WSU values and history, I think Busch Light Field would be fitting. But that probably won't fly.
Couple of good article links below. The first one is a bit dated, but is Pac-12 centric.
Plus, Wikipedia has a comprehensive list of named stadiums in the US. College and pro.
http://www.roaringforkagency.com/rf-blog/2016/4/13/7ofawjv4wcsxn4yhw77vgvga63h0ci
https://fansided.com/2017/05/23/hal...um-naming-rights-deals-arent-power-5-schools/
Wonder if Alaska Airlines would be interested in naming rights that would connect with the other 50% of the Evergreen State’s college football fans?
Maybe a package deal that also includes Beasley Coliseum could be arranged, similar to the way UW rebranded its basketball arena.
Maybe a package deal that also includes Beasley Coliseum could be arranged, similar to the way UW rebranded its basketball arena.
So, Dirty Dick’s Pawn Shop and Massage Parlor is a no?
Horizon Air stadium/field? You are aware that Horizon Air is part of the Alaska Air group? Nothing says little brother more than naming your stadium/field after a subsidiary of the UW's big sponsor, huh? LOL
More seriously, I get what you are saying. You don't like the fact that some people would poke fun at Moo U for naming their football stadium/field after a dairy company.
When I first saw the article that came to my mind, as well.
But, faced with the reality of our financial situation, my thoughts turned more to "BFD" (about what others thought). As long as a company is going to pay on a par with other places naming rights, and that company isn't a sleazeball operation, why not? Embrace the irony. Be proud of our roots!
After all, if OSU's stadium can be named after a potato salad/frozen burrito king, Boise State after a supermarket chain ("price check on the 40 yd line!"), Louisville after a pizza chain, and Cal's after a video game manufacturer (I think??)....then why the HELL NOT??
It's not like Microsoft or Boeing are fighting tooth and nail with Starbucks (sleazy owner, IMHO) or REI, for the naming rights, after all.
The problem with things like this is mostly with folks complaining but offering no realistic alternatives. Anyone can name a few companies they think would be "classier". But do ANY of those companies show any interest at all?
Naming rights don't have to be sold "in perpetuity". Sign up for 3 to 5 years and start making some damn money. Re-evaluate after that point. But get some much-needed cash flowing asap.
Gotta think of the Lactose Intolerant fans.
It might not digest well like Paul Wulff's Gumbo dinner.
Could help the Club Pay Toilet rentals (Excellent Ellegiance Moon Suites)
Was that the time CPW had an in-home with a key recruit but had to cut the visit short to make an urgent pit stop in the family's bathroom?
Never did hear if the kid ended up signing with the Cougs or not.
Spencer Waseem, per Brand Y:
"Coach Wulff came to my house and ate my dad's Gumbo then used my bathroom (#2) so we were family at that point. Lol."
Good thing the kid signed with the Cougs or CPW's critics would've said he didn't flush and soiled a hand towel.
I have no problem with Darigold so long as the deal does nothing to Ferdinands.
Now THERE is a WSU institution!
Now THERE is a WSU institution!
Instead Wulff just turned Bill Doba's reputation and WSU football into his personal colostomy bag.Spencer Waseem, per Brand Y:
"Coach Wulff came to my house and ate my dad's Gumbo then used my bathroom (#2) so we were family at that point. Lol."
Good thing the kid signed with the Cougs or CPW's critics would've said he didn't flush and soiled a hand towel.
No objection to Darigold at all. However the thought occurred to me that the Washington State Vintners Association- or whatever it is called- might be interested. Wine is a big-time industry in the state and those guys are rolling in dough. A tie-in with our school of enology/viniculture would be a natural. Highest quality wine in the country on average and the advertising may well be worth it to them.
Treetop (apple juice) Field? It sounds good (not all corporatey...yes, I made that word up just now), is a WA company and is regionally appropriate, as well as being an important function of the university in terms of ag research.
Actually, they only LOOK like they are rolling in dough. Grape farmers as a group make money; but wineries as a group don't. Too many wineries in business, many of which were founded by folks with a lot of money who wanted the ego strokes that they would get from owning a winery. That is all well and good...but it doesn't mean that the wineries themselves are profitable. Wineries today are like the old sailboat analogy; a funnel in the water into which you pour money. Substitute the winery for the sailboat and the analogy is still good. The mega-corporations can make it work, but it is financially hard for 80% of the wineries anywhere...pick your state.
Darigold seems like a great sponsor for us. I guess I don’t understand the shame some people feel about WSU being a rural, land grant school. Hell, that’s what drew me to it back when I was a teenager. It was different. Out there.
Moo U, Vet Sciences, Cougar Gold, Ferdinand’s, Darigold. I think we have a winner.
Moo U, Vet Sciences, Cougar Gold, Ferdinand’s, Darigold. I think we have a winner.
I think you're spot on. Right now, lets get some money flow. It will be interesting to see how long this partnership will pencil for.
But aside from that, once we get someone on board, then we are able to start a bidding war, for lack of a better term, in the future.
But you mentioned REI... I think that's an interesting market for our area. REI maybe not (or maybe?). But how many sporting goods stores would love to be branded with the likes of WSU? I'd say quite a few. Bass, Cabela's, stuff like that? Bass Pro Shops haven't really branched out here west because Cabela's has the area but that means you can drum up that competitive market. Hey Cabela's, we are looking at the outdoors and would love for you to have a stake in this game, rather than your competition, kind of thing. If no, go to Bass Pro Shop and do the same. Hey Bass, if you are thinking of branching out into the West, do we have an opportunity for you to get some incredible coverage all over the West Coast! Would help you anchor the move and we would love to help you guys out to branch out further!
Bass bought Cabelas for $4 bil. Marriage of two excellent brands.https://www.fool.com/investing/2017/07/15/buying-cabelas-still-a-bad-idea-for-bass-pro-shops.aspx
Still trying to figure out how someone named Moos couldn't close a dairy company.
LOL.
I've read here what you think of BM.
I'm pretty sure you long ago figured out why you think he wasn't a great generator of revenue
Particularly since he grew up on a farm and owns a cattle ranch. I wonder if he has a 10 year contract to supply beef to the WSU training table.
I just mentioned REI because it seemed to fit in with the other companies I mentioned (Boeing, Microsoft, Starbucks) all originated in the state of Washington, all pretty big corporate outfits now.
REI's corporate mission and outlook would most likely NOT be at all interested in any collegiate stadium/field type sponsorship. They are much more into the "get out there and do something outdoors, yourself" type mode, than they are a "support a team" type mode. But they are a viable Washington based company and deserved some mention, if only as a "pipe dream".
Nordstrom's is another. Since their family's initial ownership position with the Seahawks, I don't think they have gotten too involved with any team sports ventures, though? And, the "Nordy's" brand doesn't quite seem like a great match for Pullman, from a demographics situation (for them at least), does it? Yeah, plenty of college kids, and their parents, probably shop at Nordstrom's. But, as far as them sinking a large amount of cash into advertising in Pullman, I think not?
OTOH, your idea about Cabella's/Bass Pro Shop is more intriguing. Interestingly, I think Bass bought out Cabella's within the past year, or so? Those types of outdoor gear stores are much more in line with sponsorship type deals than a place like REI. Another outdoor store chain, Dick's Sporting Goods, though not a Washington based chain (I think their original stores were in New York state?), has a history of stadium/field sponsorship. They sponsored the MSL Colorado Rapids stadium in the Denver area, called Dick's Sporting Goods Park.
You would think a place like WSU would be a natural for a company like Cabella's/Bass, or Dick's, to sponsor the stadium/field eventually? "Dick's" opens up a lot more "memes" than Darigold, IMHO....LOL
Like I said originally, the idea of turning up our noses at a viable, "local" brand, that is an "upfront" (non sleazy) company/corporation, which might be willing to sink considerable cash into our coffers, because "it isn't classy enough" (translate into "I get embarrassed by people calling WSU Moo U") just boggles my mind. I say preemptively take all that away by embracing the irony, so to speak. Our roots are in being a cow college. Even if that cow college thing had nothing to do with my major and my eventual career, I'm not going to be swayed by the "insults" thrown at WSU by people whose opinions mean less than nothing to me.
If it becomes "Darigold field at Martin Stadium", or some variation of that, as long as they pay enough dollars for the rights, it's fine by me!
And plenty "classy"!
In general I don't really get how companies justify these naming deals (marketing experts feel free to educate me/us). Does Alaska really think more people will fly with them because they see the name plastered at mutt stadium and mutt kennel? $4+ million worth of extra tickets? Actually they need to generate way more than that to create $4+ million in profit to offset the marketing cost. Coors Field in Denver is another one. Although in that case the whole country sees it at some point when teams come to play the Rockies. ML Baseball in general makes more sense to me - 81 chances to see your name. Plus playoffs.
University of Phoenix Stadium was pretty innovative - got their name out there in a new place.
I assume that some of the rationale is to develop affinity among the actual fan base - Cougs will choose Darigold next time we are at the store. But I also assume a lot of it is to create name recognition among the TV viewers in other places. In that case I guess Darigold makes sense - viewers in California and Arizona and Utah will see their name plastered on the field. They shouldn't need name recognition here. Although I will admit that until I googled them yesterday and read up on them I did not know they were based in Washington and were primarily regional and were a farmer co-op.
Oh - had to throw this in for laughs. How about Ted Nugent/NRA field?
Edit - one more then I have to quit goofing off. Since 4 of the 6 Pac-12 states now have legal marijuana, maybe.............
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Nordstrom and REI have extremely strong family ties to uw that precede their first stores.
The issue with a large national company that directly sells to the public is the image of favoritism, which they'd avoid like the plague.
Your best best for a 'quality' name sponsor was one of the financial institutions - Washington Trust should have been a lay-up with their regional footprint. Same with Banner Bank.
Probably could have scored with one of the credit unions as well. Numerica, STCU, BECU - all viable entities. Hell, the Vandals just scored a naming rights deal with Idaho Central Credit Union on their new basketball arena.
"Somebody" didn't forge personal relationships with the right people in those institutions.
Probably could have scored with one of the credit unions as well. Numerica, STCU, BECU - all viable entities. Hell, the Vandals just scored a naming rights deal with Idaho Central Credit Union on their new basketball arena.
"Somebody" didn't forge personal relationships with the right people in those institutions.
For a while Riverside Bank was the naming sponsor of ANWCF. I remember speaking with the CAF (this was pre-CAF, but for simplicity) folks at the time about who our sponsor was going to be and was anyone working on getting/ retaining Riverside and the unease in the room was palpable. Someone burned a bridge or dropped the ball or something, because Riverside never came back and when the subject of getting them (back) was brought up it was quickly shut down.
Understood. I was just throwing them out as Washington state born and raised companies.
I don't think the original 1938 ties to folks who founded REI as a true "co-op" would have nearly the impact on advertising money choices for 2018 REI that their corporate identity/mission would have, as far as choosing to get involved with naming rights to any college stadium/field. I sure could be wrong about that? It's still a member co-op but has something like a 10 person board of directors, who make all the big decision as far as direction for the company, etc.
And Nordstrom's started out as a shoe store in 1901. They sold the business a while back and the family is trying hard to regain the company at this time, without success, AFAIK.
Any Seattle based family business of such long standing probably has significant UDump ties in it's DNA.
BUT, if ANY corporation thought buying naming rights to WSU's stadium and/or field would bring them a return that was worth the expenditure (and fit their company's mission), they would do it, ancient family ties to UDump, or not.
I actually was originally just using ALL the companies I named as examples of Washington born and bred large corporations that WERE NOT "fighting with each other over paying WSU money for stadium/field naming rights"!
Here's the thing about marketing, at least from my little corner of the world. It isn't just about Alaska Air selling more tickets... although it happens. Whether that single vein receives increased flow enough to substantiate that price tag is dependent on the price/cost. But there are other reasons for marketing:
1. To keep your branding strong. For Alaska, they don't want to lose ground to Southwest or Delta or whomever. They don't have any intel on Delta making a move, but they don't want the battle either.
2.Many times, these things are strategic. They have heard Delta wants to make a move on Seattle, part of THEIR marketing plan is to get naming rights and Alaska needs to preempt that. Many, many times this can happen and the public never knows about it.
3. Targeting a demographic. Alaska got a hold of some numbers that show they could increase their revenue by courting the sports world a bit more.
4. Positioning. Alaska is making a move. They are stretching out. They buy the rights to the Utah Stadium because they want more of the Salt Lake market.
5. Experimental product. For Alaska, they are running new routes and they want to use this move in conjunction with the new routes.
Just the ones off the top of my head. But basically, there are many companies that do this strictly to remain "out there". In today's ADD/ADHD world, if you aren't continually out there, you're going to be forgotten. #1 on my list is #1 for a reason.
EDIT: and your jab at the NRA... Since I'm a member, I'd be good with it.
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The question isn't whether we are a land grant school or rural, my perception is (for athletes we are trying to draw from Seattle) we want to differentiate ourselves to a degree, but say we have everything to offer and more.
We NOT are "hick u" with shotgun racks in the back of our pick up trucks. We are a college campus, in a rural beautiful setting in the NW, that offers a great education and a true college experience. I am not dismissing Darigold per se, I am merely stating if the vision is a world class college town, with great athletics (think Auburn), then we should pick the appropriate sponsor so it completes that vision.
We NOT are "hick u" with shotgun racks in the back of our pick up trucks. We are a college campus, in a rural beautiful setting in the NW, that offers a great education and a true college experience. I am not dismissing Darigold per se, I am merely stating if the vision is a world class college town, with great athletics (think Auburn), then we should pick the appropriate sponsor so it completes that vision.
