Interesting Ringo Piece: CU misses chance to make bigger splash (Warning Uni content)

[absinthe]

Friday was a good day for the Colorado football program, but it could have done better.

The Buffs teamed with Nike Inc. to unveil new football uniforms. Doing so finally satisfied calls from a segment of fans who have been eager to see CU update its wardrobe. Those appeals seemed to be falling on deaf ears for years while programs around the nation freshened up their looks, some multiple times, since CU last broke any ground in this department.

Link to full text:
http://www.buffzone.com/buffzonetop...yle-ringo-cu-misses-chance-make-bigger-splash

Crux of the article:

The uniforms are sharp, especially the new all-white and all-gray looks, which are most popular with the players. It's not like CU was lacking the material to generate more buzz.

It was a bit of a head-scratcher for the program to choose to unveil its uniforms on the second day of the NFL draft when almost everyone in the local media is focused on what the Denver Broncos are doing.

The event attracted several hundred CU students and a few fans, but the state's largest newspaper was absent and area television stations ignored the Buffs.

It's true that you don't necessarily need the media to get the word out these days with social media becoming such a force in all our lives. The CU uniform unveiling certainly made its way around various social media sites on Friday, but here too, CU could have done better by simply changing the timing.

I think Ringo has a really solid point in this piece, what was the driver for doign this on the second day of the draft when speculations 1-14 would be on the Donkies and the 15 would be on where the CSU kids would go? It was nice to co-inside it with the student field day, was the focus on doing this for the students? if so then i suppose it matters less, but if the focus was to make a splash in Mid-may on a Thursday which is typically your largest splash day for media. He hits on the social media side of this and it was on social media a HUGE spalsh for those of us covering it, this was a bigger deal in social by an order of magnitude than Skiing's Naty. Across our facebook page we saw:

45,000 people reached
1250 Likes
75 new page followers

Which was roughly double what our posts on the skiing national championship got and our coverage on the Uni's can probably be milked for another week.

That is a great result for a May even for the buffs, but how many more people could they have hit if it was structurally timed better? My gut is in social you are probably looking at a 15% lift for allbuffs who covered this really well (rep Jens please) and a huge chance to drive engagement that was missed in not having the guys from TRR more up to speed, they covered off only barely on this after the fact and their numbers are usually at least 40% of ours as well as potential lift from Rumblin, CU at the game, and getting the images to Adam to post on his sites. total potential social upside here was probably 25-35%.


In the core media they completely missed the boat, as noted by Ringo only his paper and Yahoo covered off on this, given the timing of the draft a few weeks later and they could have had at least the post in on this as well and probably gotten the main sports sites besides yahoo to cover it, Live on pac-12 nets also would have been a good move.


Given the relative success of this event to anything like it in the past I have to give RG credit for the execution and for having something that drove more traffic to us than any event since signing day and gave us fall football like traffic levels on a Friday in May - but I also can't help but feel like Ringo it could have been more.


What else could they have done to improve this?

 

[Buffnik]

It's typical.

They wanted to do it on a Friday.

They wanted to do it when the students were still on campus.

They wanted students involved, so they incorporated with the garage sale & a student day at Folsom.

All of that is myopic. They are in the CU bubble, not thinking about all the other things that may be going on in the world of sports that would reduce the attention paid to the uniform unveiling.

As I've said before, CU needs an outside marketing & PR firm for the AD that drives messaging and programs. They refuse to do that. (Correct me if I'm wrong and they've changed this. If they have, they're not using the firm or hired a bad one.)

So we get the internal mindset of people who live inside the CU bubble and don't consider the types of things that Ringo pointed out. Opportunity was not fully leveraged for market impact.

 

[dio]

I think it shows that we still have a long way to go with how the AD manages the media and social media. I commented when they were announced that it was ridiculous they came out late on Friday at all. I would like them to pull their heads out of their asses in this regard.

 

[Shldr2Shldr]

CU is just now leveraging social media. This started about 2 months ago. The AD is way behind. I am hoping the new facility, the new uniforms, the new coaches, the new backing from the admin, and the new drive to finance the team now and in the future really are signs that they truly get IT. However I think they see the big picture items, but the details will slip through the cracks.

Social media presence may seem insignificant, but that is where the players we recruit run their social lives and get their information. CU needs to have an active roll in this.

 

[Bufffan68]

I'd expect savvier PR from RG. Having the players there is cool...but they could've shown them "offline" and waited for a better time to get more local and maybe national exposure. I'm guessing this will get buried on the PAC12 Networks too as they are covering the draft.

We aren't privy to the decision making process, and this isn't a big deal as recruits would probably watch the video anyway when their recruiter sends the link, but it was a missed opportunity to get CU in the news.

One positive is that the idiotic sports radio in Denver ignored it too...but they'd probably have ignored it no matter when the announcement was made.

 

[Buffnik]

I think it shows that we still have a long way to go with how the AD manages the media and social media. I commented when they were announced that it was ridiculous they came out late on Friday at all. I would like them to pull their heads out of their asses in this regard.

I wonder about that, too. Didn't they consider that folks might want to come to campus on a Saturday? They clearly thought of this as a student thing, integrating it into a student event at Folsom, versus considering the broader interest of the fan base who wouldn't be able to get off work early and to Boulder by 4:30.

If I was running things, this would have been on Saturday. I want fans there and I want to be in the Sunday sports page. I wouldn't have cared about competing with rounds 4-7 or the Kentucky Derby.

Ideally a different day, but not a deal breaker. But the big thing I would have had going on is that I would have used the event for 4 big things:

1. Fundraising for facilities. Introduce the brick program at the same event.

2. Merchandise sales. Garage Sale is nice and should be part of it. But this event begged for fans to have the opportunity to buy jerseys, helmets and gloves with the new look (among other CU football clothing).

3. Autograph time with MacIntyre, other coaches, Rick George and/or the team captains. Buy some of the new gear... get it signed. Hell, they could have had some of the new stuff pre-signed by everyone and sold in a numbered series as official memorabilia folks would have paid a premium for.

4. Use the event as an opportunity to sell season tickets. Maybe introduce the 3-game packages at this.

While I'm thinking of this stuff, one other thing that I think they should do in order to stimulate season ticket sales: make practices closed except that they open up a couple in Folsom that are for season ticket holders only. You've got to give some perks to those season ticket holders.

 

[Shldr2Shldr]

I wonder about that, too. Didn't they consider that folks might want to come to campus on a Saturday? They clearly thought of this as a student thing, integrating it into a student event at Folsom, versus considering the broader interest of the fan base who wouldn't be able to get off work early and to Boulder by 4:30.

If I was running things, this would have been on Saturday. I want fans there and I want to be in the Sunday sports page. I wouldn't have cared about competing with rounds 4-7 or the Kentucky Derby.

Ideally a different day, but not a deal breaker. But the big thing I would have had going on is that I would have used the event for 4 big things:

1. Fundraising for facilities. Introduce the brick program at the same event.

2. Merchandise sales. Garage Sale is nice and should be part of it. But this event begged for fans to have the opportunity to buy jerseys, helmets and gloves with the new look (among other CU football clothing).

3. Autograph time with MacIntyre, other coaches, Rick George and/or the team captains. Buy some of the new gear... get it signed. Hell, they could have had some of the new stuff pre-signed by everyone and sold in a numbered series as official memorabilia folks would have paid a premium for.

4. Use the event as an opportunity to sell season tickets. Maybe introduce the 3-game packages at this.

While I'm thinking of this stuff, one other thing that I think they should do in order to stimulate season ticket sales: make practices closed except that they open up a couple in Folsom that are for season ticket holders only. You've got to give some perks to those season ticket holders.

Ideally it would have been the previous Saturday. No draft. No race. No fight. Allowed all CU fans the opportunity to get up there. Would not have been pushed up against student final exams. They really could have leveraged this in ways that you mentioned to really make a dent in getting the fans re-engaged with the program.

 

[onealcd]

I wonder about that, too. Didn't they consider that folks might want to come to campus on a Saturday? They clearly thought of this as a student thing, integrating it into a student event at Folsom, versus considering the broader interest of the fan base who wouldn't be able to get off work early and to Boulder by 4:30.

If I was running things, this would have been on Saturday. I want fans there and I want to be in the Sunday sports page. I wouldn't have cared about competing with rounds 4-7 or the Kentucky Derby.

Ideally a different day, but not a deal breaker. But the big thing I would have had going on is that I would have used the event for 4 big things:

1. Fundraising for facilities. Introduce the brick program at the same event.

2. Merchandise sales. Garage Sale is nice and should be part of it. But this event begged for fans to have the opportunity to buy jerseys, helmets and gloves with the new look (among other CU football clothing).

3. Autograph time with MacIntyre, other coaches, Rick George and/or the team captains. Buy some of the new gear... get it signed. Hell, they could have had some of the new stuff pre-signed by everyone and sold in a numbered series as official memorabilia folks would have paid a premium for.

4. Use the event as an opportunity to sell season tickets. Maybe introduce the 3-game packages at this.

While I'm thinking of this stuff, one other thing that I think they should do in order to stimulate season ticket sales: make practices closed except that they open up a couple in Folsom that are for season ticket holders only. You've got to give some perks to those season ticket holders.

I think finals start on Saturday so it wasn't possible.

 

[Buffnik]

I think finals start on Saturday so it wasn't possible.

So you do it the previous Saturday.

 

[BuffNut99]

I'm choosing to think that the timing was aligned with alot of recent bluechip offers. The timing wasn't perfect, but this wasn't a fire-the-AD-in-May type blunder.

 

[onealcd]

So you do it the previous Saturday.

I would have preferred all of it so be during the spring game. Garage sale, Spring Game and then uniform unveil. And on a Saturday not a Sunday.

 

[The Alabaster Yak]

I wonder about that, too. Didn't they consider that folks might want to come to campus on a Saturday? They clearly thought of this as a student thing, integrating it into a student event at Folsom, versus considering the broader interest of the fan base who wouldn't be able to get off work early and to Boulder by 4:30.

If I was running things, this would have been on Saturday. I want fans there and I want to be in the Sunday sports page. I wouldn't have cared about competing with rounds 4-7 or the Kentucky Derby.

Ideally a different day, but not a deal breaker. But the big thing I would have had going on is that I would have used the event for 4 big things:

1. Fundraising for facilities. Introduce the brick program at the same event.

2. Merchandise sales. Garage Sale is nice and should be part of it. But this event begged for fans to have the opportunity to buy jerseys, helmets and gloves with the new look (among other CU football clothing).

3. Autograph time with MacIntyre, other coaches, Rick George and/or the team captains. Buy some of the new gear... get it signed. Hell, they could have had some of the new stuff pre-signed by everyone and sold in a numbered series as official memorabilia folks would have paid a premium for.

4. Use the event as an opportunity to sell season tickets. Maybe introduce the 3-game packages at this.

While I'm thinking of this stuff, one other thing that I think they should do in order to stimulate season ticket sales: make practices closed except that they open up a couple in Folsom that are for season ticket holders only. You've got to give some perks to those season ticket holders.

I pretty much agree with everything here, but I think their focus on the students is legitimate. It's the most noticeable void in the stadium on Saturdays and makes us look so amateur when an entire end is empty. Getting the excitement back with the students seems to be a priority, and the material nature of the uniforms is the best way to get them involved. Saturday would have been better, for sure, as they could have still incorporated the students while appealing to the broader fan base with "nothing to do" on a Saturday.

 

[Shldr2Shldr]

I would have preferred all of it so be during the spring game. Garage sale, Spring Game and then uniform unveil. And on a Saturday not a Sunday.

Well they were trying to align the Spring game with selection sunday for the NCAA Tourney. Obviously didn't work.

 

[cufan141]

Hey guys, I don't post often, mostly troll. Above someone posted about PR and social media. With these new uni's do you think the University would ever have a poll for a uniform combination for one of our home games? I would think that would be a great opportunity for CU to show that we has fans/students/alum do have a say and our opinions matter. And would proTo the best of my knowledge no college has done something like this. I may be way off base but I thought it was a pretty solid idea.

 

[BuffNut99]

With these new uni's do you think the University would ever have a poll for a uniform combination for one of our home games? I would think that would be a great opportunity for CU to show that we has fans/students/alum do have a say and our opinions matter. And would proTo the best of my knowledge no college has done something like this. I may be way off base but I thought it was a pretty solid idea.

Apparently the team captains will decide the uni combinations for each game before the season begins.

 

[absinthe]

I'm choosing to think that the timing was aligned with alot of recent bluechip offers. The timing wasn't perfect, but this wasn't a fire-the-AD-in-May type blunder.

I dont think this was a blunder at all, more of it was a 5 out of 10 - how could they have made it a 7 or an 8?

 

[dio]

It just another in a long string of CU not paying attention to details, and I blame much of it on Plati. Stapled media guides, giving Jon Embree a press conference when left, announcing good things at horrible times and bad things when they will garner the most attention..... stupid, PR 101 type stuff IMO.

 

[dply]

Hey guys, I don't post often, mostly troll. Above someone posted about PR and social media. With these new uni's do you think the University would ever have a poll for a uniform combination for one of our home games? I would think that would be a great opportunity for CU to show that we has fans/students/alum do have a say and our opinions matter. And would proTo the best of my knowledge no college has done something like this. I may be way off base but I thought it was a pretty solid idea.

I think that is a great idea. The CU AD just needs to do a better job than when Mountain Dew asked customers to name their new drink.

 

[The Alabaster Yak]

Hey guys, I don't post often, mostly troll. Above someone posted about PR and social media. With these new uni's do you think the University would ever have a poll for a uniform combination for one of our home games? I would think that would be a great opportunity for CU to show that we has fans/students/alum do have a say and our opinions matter. And would proTo the best of my knowledge no college has done something like this. I may be way off base but I thought it was a pretty solid idea.

Maybe let the Seniors choose 3-5 combinations and then allowing the fans to vote. Not a bad idea. Anything to get the program out in the public and media eye would be good, IMO.

 

[Shldr2Shldr]

Let the fans select the Homecoming set. That day is all about the fans and the alumni anyway

 

[skibum]

I think that is a great idea. The CU AD just needs to do a better job than when Mountain Dew asked customers to name their new drink.

I could see a Dew type problem occurring if the AD really doesn't a. understand and b. think through the process. I'm worried about the CU AD organization being able to successfully do either of those.

-"The fans want to vote on a uniform for a game."
-"That's a great idea, let's do it!"
-CU AD Tweet:"Vote for uniform combination for Rocky Mtn Showdown. Gold, Silver, Black, White: Helmet, Jersey, Pants. GWB = Gold helmet, White Jersey, Black pants #BuffsUniforms"
-CU fans split their votes among various kick ass options.
-CSU student organizations: "Make CU look like Wyoming in RMS, vote WSG in Fluff's poll! #BuffsUniforms"

If the haters organize around a single awful choice, it's easy to win against fans votes that are split among various awesome choices.

History tells us that the CU AD would be completely incapable of seeing something like this coming.

 

[TDbuff]

Late Friday and over the weekend is generally where organizations drop announcements that are bad news that they don't want people talking about very much. By the time the media echo chamber gets fired up again on Monday, the story is buried a bit in all the weekend's events. And this weekend had all the events you can cram into a sports weekend.

I guess if they were aware of that, and had other priorities, I can sort of understand.

 

[CVBuff]

I don't think Kyle's criticism on this one is worth a cup full of spit. The new uniforms are important,in the large picture, to recruits. To them, when it is announced is irrelevant. The recruiting guys will make sure that every recruit sees the new uniforms. No one is purchasing season tickets in Folsom for a football fashion experience. And anyone who cares about CU offered a critique within that first hour. Denver Post put out a story, as did all the affiliates.
Daily Camera had more coverage. Another day may have been better, but the harm is imagined.

 

[sackman]

To my way of thinking, the splash they got was probably bigger than what they deserved. It's uniforms, people.

 

[Shldr2Shldr]

To my way of thinking, the splash they got was probably bigger than what they deserved. It's uniforms, people.

Not really about the uniforms specifically in this case. More of using the uniforms as an excuse for bigger things.

 

[Buffnik]

I don't think Kyle's criticism on this one is worth a cup full of spit. The new uniforms are important,in the large picture, to recruits. To them, when it is announced is irrelevant. The recruiting guys will make sure that every recruit sees the new uniforms. No one is purchasing season tickets in Folsom for a football fashion experience. And anyone who cares about CU offered a critique within that first hour. Denver Post put out a story, as did all the affiliates.
Daily Camera had more coverage. Another day may have been better, but the harm is imagined.

I don't see harm. I don't think abs saw harm as his motivation for posting this.

What I do see, though, is missed opportunity. What was done was done well. More could have been done.

Simply put, the people working at a university or in an athletic department are not business people. I don't blame them for not knowing what they don't know. I do blame them, however, for not hiring a consulting firm that knows what they don't know and can properly leverage these opportunities.

As far as Ringo is concerned, I don't think his mind really leaves the myopia of his media bubble. His article reflected that and I'm not sure his point was worth much except as an introduction to the larger point about how to run an integrated PR, Marketing & Sales campaign to maximize your revenue and brand equity (something Ringo wouldn't be qualified to write about anyway).

 

[DBT]

To my way of thinking, the splash they got was probably bigger than what they deserved. It's uniforms, people.

No kidding. People, including Ringo, are blowing this WAY out of proportion. The uniforms don't matter until they start wearing the damned things in games.

 

[DBT]

I don't see harm. I don't think abs saw harm as his motivation for posting this.

What I do see, though, is missed opportunity. What was done was done well. More could have been done.

Simply put, the people working at a university or in an athletic department are not business people. I don't blame them for not knowing what they don't know. I do blame them, however, for not hiring a consulting firm that knows what they don't know and can properly leverage these opportunities.

As far as Ringo is concerned, I don't think his mind really leaves the myopia of his media bubble. His article reflected that and I'm not sure his point was worth much except as an introduction to the larger point about how to run an integrated PR, Marketing & Sales campaign to maximize your revenue and brand equity (something Ringo wouldn't be qualified to write about anyway).

So, are you saying they should have had an "event" that, oh, 150 people would've given a **** about?

 

[goalline]

No kidding. People, including Ringo, are blowing this WAY out of proportion. The uniforms don't matter until they start winning the damned games.

fify

 

[Buffnik]

So, are you saying they should have had an "event" that, oh, 150 people would've given a **** about?

I saw people lined up out the door for a block for the garage sale... ostensibly so they could get inside and stand in another line so they could actually enter the garage sale. And the garage sale sucked.

I think the problem might also be that folks don't realize how big of an opportunity this was. Most people over 30 don't get how big the uniform deal is.