The Value of a Women’s Hoops Superstar, Harvard’s Take on Brand Marketing, and the Other Stars at All-Star Weekend

Each week, we sift through a ton of content and then debate it ad nauseam at FEVO HQ. And since good content, like the mind, is a terrible thing to waste, we are also sharing it here with you, our fans, in the form of this weekly blog post on e-commerce, media and life on the internet.

Sportico: NBA All-Star weekend will feature online stars, too

The NBA has long been ahead of the curve when it comes to embracing new media channels (e.g., allowing clips to be widely distributed on social media) and influencers/creators (e.g., the league’s Courtside Creators program, which has featured the work of more than 1,000 individual creatives in its 10+ years of existence). The upcoming All-Star weekend is further evidence of that pioneering spirit, with more than 100 content creators on the official invite list in Indianapolis and hundreds more sure to attend of their own volition. The two worlds are also beginning to meld into one, with many current players running their own successful content arms. The future of sports consumption increasingly looks like one in which fans are able to view games through whatever lens — whether it be that of a creator, player or more traditional outlet — they want. How quickly each league adapts to that future may have a big impact on their ability to connect with younger audiences, and at the moment, the NBA looks to be leading the way.

Forbes: How Caitlin Clark became the Taylor Swift of women's college basketball

At the time of this writing, Iowa’s Caitlin Clark is eight points away from capturing the NCAA women’s all-time scoring record (ed. note: she broke the record en route to a career-high 49 points). Her games have become appointment viewing, with the Hawkeyes regularly attracting over a million viewers and NBC opting to show her record-breaking game exclusively on Peacock in their quest to add more subscribers. She’s also signed nearly $1M in NIL deals with the likes of Nike, State Farm, Buick and more. Fox Sports even started a CaitlinCam on TikTok that follows her everywhere she goes on the court. All of that is to say that savvy marketing combined with generational talent is a recipe for massive success — and with more money than ever flowing into women’s sports, Caitlin Clark’s ascent couldn’t come at a better time.

Harvard Business Review: Empirical data on what types of brand advertising are most effective

Brand advertising, as opposed to direct response advertising, is meant to engender goodwill and loyalty with an audience over a long period of time. This in-depth article lays out many of the steps necessary for creating successful touchpoints to ensure long-term success across your campaigns. The most important factor: Make promises you can keep. These promises can hit a variety of topics like value, emotional connection, fun, etc., but they should always be something you’re sure you can deliver on. The most important part of creating a consumer-to-brand bond is trust. Never forget that.

And a few more nuggets of assorted internet wisdom … 

See which Super Bowl ads scored with viewers (Today)

Arthur Blank on PE in the NFL (Front Office Sports)

Naomi Osaka explains why she’s investing in women’s sports (Bloomberg)

What happens to ads when the Super Bowl goes to overtime (Adweek)

A first look at the NBA's new interactive LED glass court for this year's all-star weekend (Joe Pompliano)