(By John Shomby) Black Friday is traditionally a day when retailers flex their muscles, but a few weeks back, Amazon took that to a whole new level. The mega-retailer and the NFL joined forces for the first Black Friday NFL telecast in history.
Now, by U.S. law, the NFL can’t legally hold a game on any fall Friday after 6pm, to not affect attendance at high school and college football games. But Amazon, being Amazon, found a loophole – a 3pm start on a holiday weekend – and the NFL was in.
It probably didn’t hurt that Amazon also paid the NFL a hefty $100 million for the rights to broadcast the game.
So how do you make up a 100-million-dollar expenditure? Amazon doubled what they charge for Thursday Night Football, raising the price to $880,000 per commercial! They also allowed non-Prime members to watch the game for free. (Note: in their very first Thursday Night Football telecast, they generated more Prime signups than any 3-hour window in company history.)
Here’s where it gets interesting: Amazon generates a series of “audience-based creative” ads targeted to two different groups, Prime members and Non-Prime members. Each would see a different ad from a specific client. In addition, brands would be able to re-target the viewers after the game. I watched (if you did, you know it was a lousy game no matter who you were pulling for) and there were lots of QR codes popping up with various ads that would take you right to the advertised deal on, you guessed it, the Amazon website.
The goal was more than just showing a pro football game, but to connect that viewing with some interesting deals on the busiest shopping day of the year and do it from the comfort of your couch. (And draw fans away from going to physical stores and competitors.) The result? Amazon sold out every available commercial slot and, I’m guessing, with new signups, came close to making up that 100 million dollars while taking on the malls and outlets around the country.
The number one lesson here starts and ends with building a game plan for a mutually beneficial partnership. For radio, think of the possibilities – of course, local sports teams, event organizers, concert promoters, etc.
First Down – Create something with another entity in your market (or associated with your market) that creates a unique and engaging experience with listeners and their customers. Amazon partnered with the NFL because they both knew they could reach a wider audience.
Second Down – Use ALL your platforms to enhance the partnership. On-air, website, socials, mobile app, etc. and connect with all the platforms of your partner and vice versa. Amazon made Prime accessible for the game which would reach well beyond the “normal” NFL viewer. Create an interactive experience for both groups which could include special online deals and giveaways without interrupting radio listening.
Third Down – Look for a special event/time that you could align with a partner as Amazon and the NFL did with Black Friday. Maybe it’s a major superstar stadium concert, a state fair, a special holiday (hmmmm!!!!), a major sports event, etc. Create something that would be new, different and, most of all, memorable. Above all, think unconventionally.
Fourth Down – Promote the heck out of it on every one of your and your partner’s platforms. Amazon’s existing partnership with the NFL led to the enormous number of promos run during previous games, online and through Prime membership emails.
Extra Point – Utilize your and your partner’s formulas to analyze the data from the promotion to share and review behaviors, preferences, and more, including the all-important financial results.
Put aside any media criticism about the actual Amazon/NFL promotion and think about the partnership and the goal of the partnership. The NFL announced that the game, itself, averaged 9.61 million viewers, lower than the average Thursday night game but double that of the daytime college game that day. It will still probably take some time to determine the overall success but, the fact is, this shows what a real partnership formed with some real creativity can accomplish.
Based in Nashville, TN, John Shomby is the owner and CEO of Country’s Radio Coach. He is focused on coaching and mentoring artists, radio programmers, and on-air talent to help them grow and develop inside the radio station and the industry. Reach John at [email protected] and 757-323-1460. Read John’s Radio Ink archives here.
