2016 All Things Lions Marketing & Promotions

[TheLionKing]

Oh I get it the primo seats in 196x cost $3.50.... sorry to be so dumb. Anyways I am just old enough to remember Woodwards, "$1.49 days" and am stoked on Lions / BC heritage. These stories are interesting to my generation, and hold a lot more water than a new jersey or whatever.

Kept my ticket stubs from all the Lions game. Went to dig one up. My seat for the game against the Hamilton Tiger Cats back on Oct. 3, 1966 cost $3.50. (Section G Row 22 Seat 23)

[Alputt]

I am hopeful that when and if the team is sold to a group of the Waterboys as has been noted on the forum ( or some other consortium of local business leader, etc.), there will be a member of that team with a particular interest, expertise, etc., to institute a facet of the Lions past and heritage into a new promotional model. Not saying take everything back to the good old days but a tip of the hat to the Leo's past and what spoke to the fans of that era.

I wouldn't count on that. It seems the league's mandate, if not certainly the Lions', is attract/pander to millennials (although I don't believe if you interviewed anyone under 30 as to why they don't follow the Lions would give the answer "uniforms.") Retro anything seems to be a dirty word these days.

What would make sense since they've gone with such a radically different (Skulsky calls a 'futuristic') uniform and logo design, is to reinstitute a retro (3rd) uniform for heritage games as a kind of comfort food for their long time fan base, perhaps left feeling a little alienated by this radical uniform departure this season. But I wouldn't hold my breath on that happening.


DH

That may be true, although full on newcomers to Vancouver might not care about "heritage" I think those fans in their 20s and 30s who inherited Lions fandom through being born here would find some tradition interesting. NFL films has done a good example they have tons of suspenseful or emotional documentaries about classic teams or players, and although the CFL likely doesn't have the same quality footage I thought the 100 anniversary Grey Cup series was well done... Premier League soccer in England also leverages "tradition" as a selling point... In any event, just a thought, it seems some retrospective movies or marketing would appeal to some of the older members of the fan base and act as a sort of introduction or education for newer fans...

This could work in tandem with "futuristic" angles, and an admittedly improved social media presence. I think an important aspect of fandom is "identity" through tradition which helps drive interest and loyalty. Any 12 year old Montrealer has heard of Maurice Richard, etc.

[Alputt]

Essentially I don't think trying to be more trendy than the newcomer Whitecaps, or have the most futuristic uni's is the right direction. Appeal to peoples emotions about identity, tradition and patriotism and that could be an angle. And no I am not trying to take a page from Trumps playbook... This should be about pride but not exclusion.

(Sorry to bring politics, no offence)

Also bring seat pricing more in line with the 'Caps, dummies!

[CardiacKid]

That may be true, although full on newcomers to Vancouver might not care about "heritage" I think those fans in their 20s and 30s who inherited Lions fandom through being born here would find some tradition interesting. NFL films has done a good example they have tons of suspenseful or emotional documentaries about classic teams or players, and although the CFL likely doesn't have the same quality footage I thought the 100 anniversary Grey Cup series was well done...

I suspect there is actually a treasure trove of CFL footage tucked away in the CBC archives. Before CTV came on the scene and shared the broadcasts with the CBC, I don't know if the broadcaster was in the habit of broadcasting every scheduled game on its TV arm. But if they did, that would be pretty substantial. Of course, not every broadcaster was in the habit of keeping footage as they would sometimes re-use tape for other broadcasts or they would keep a pre-determined sample as a representation. Space would also be a consideration and I don't think anyone who worked in the early days of TV would have dreamed that old broadcasts could be potential sources of income or even interest to future generations.

Unfortunately, I would have to believe the CBC Archives is a shadow of its former self, what with cutbacks. I imagine the best the archives can hope to do is just preserve its holdings, including sports footage. Never mind fully catalogue its contents, convert it to digital form for distribution and consumption. Which is a shame; I previously worked in the museum field and during the course of my job at a small town museum, I ran across a film canister containing original footage of the Penticton Vees winning the world hockey championship. I made some inquiries and found out it was likely the only copy available of the entire championship game. Thanks to the help of CBC Vancouver and its facilities, we managed to convert the film to video and also have conservation work done on it prior to transferring it to the Hockey Hall of Fame where it could be properly looked after.

I don't think today that same level of help from the CBC in saving our national sporting heritage would be possible. Sad.....

[CardiacKid]

Also, Bighill seems like a peculiar choice of player for this sort of promotion. According to a series of tweets he wrote in late 2013 and a quote from Rich Stubler in this 2014 Calgary Herald story, Bighill follows a gluten-free diet, which precludes pretty much any cereal that Post produces. Being on the box is probably the closest he'll ever get to any Post cereal.

Bighill appears on Honey-Bunches of Oats so he gets off the hook on that one. Though I wonder if he had any chance to say yea or nay to what product his image would appear.

[DanoT]

Also, Bighill seems like a peculiar choice of player for this sort of promotion. According to a series of tweets he wrote in late 2013 and a quote from Rich Stubler in this 2014 Calgary Herald story, Bighill follows a gluten-free diet, which precludes pretty much any cereal that Post produces. Being on the box is probably the closest he'll ever get to any Post cereal.

Bighill appears on Honey-Bunches of Oats so he gets off the hook on that one. Though I wonder if he had any chance to say yea or nay to what product his image would appear.

I went down the cereal isle in a Thrifty's in Victoria today and no Bighill or CFL cereal boxes in sight.

[sj-roc]

Also, Bighill seems like a peculiar choice of player for this sort of promotion. According to a series of tweets he wrote in late 2013 and a quote from Rich Stubler in this 2014 Calgary Herald story, Bighill follows a gluten-free diet, which precludes pretty much any cereal that Post produces. Being on the box is probably the closest he'll ever get to any Post cereal.

Bighill appears on Honey-Bunches of Oats so he gets off the hook on that one. Though I wonder if he had any chance to say yea or nay to what product his image would appear.

Don't let the name fool you. From the ingredient listing that cereal has more wheat than oats and also contains wheat flour plus two sources of barley. So, totally not GF. Unfortunately, and I can confirm from personal experience, reading ingredients is always a must for eating GF; it's stunning just how many foods contain added wheat, rye or barley (esp the first of these) in a seemingly non sequitur fashion. Moreover most oats, though they are themselves GF, are by default contaminated with wheat because of typical farming practices so even if those four sources of wheat and barley were eliminated it would still be off limits, especially if he's abstaining because of sensitivity issues.

Good question though on how much control he has over his image in league marketing initiatives; I have no idea. For something like this where it's ostensibly just a generic action shot and the players aren't even named on the box beyond being able to identify them from their faces, uniforms, numbers, nameplates, they may not have much control — although Willy seems fine with it judging from his involvement in the initial press conference last November.

[sj-roc]

Also, Bighill seems like a peculiar choice of player for this sort of promotion. According to a series of tweets he wrote in late 2013 and a quote from Rich Stubler in this 2014 Calgary Herald story, Bighill follows a gluten-free diet, which precludes pretty much any cereal that Post produces. Being on the box is probably the closest he'll ever get to any Post cereal.

Bighill appears on Honey-Bunches of Oats so he gets off the hook on that one. Though I wonder if he had any chance to say yea or nay to what product his image would appear.

I went down the cereal isle in a Thrifty's in Victoria today and no Bighill or CFL cereal boxes in sight.

It's still early days; the rollout only began this month. Any place that carries Post brand cereals ought to have them sometime in the next few weeks. Some places may still have abundant stock of product that came out just before this promotion began, so they may have to sell this stuff off before these promotional editions start to show up on retail shelves.

[CardiacKid]

Also, Bighill seems like a peculiar choice of player for this sort of promotion. According to a series of tweets he wrote in late 2013 and a quote from Rich Stubler in this 2014 Calgary Herald story, Bighill follows a gluten-free diet, which precludes pretty much any cereal that Post produces. Being on the box is probably the closest he'll ever get to any Post cereal.

Bighill appears on Honey-Bunches of Oats so he gets off the hook on that one. Though I wonder if he had any chance to say yea or nay to what product his image would appear.

Don't let the name fool you. From the ingredient listing that cereal has more wheat than oats and also contains wheat flour plus two sources of barley. So, totally not GF. Unfortunately, and I can confirm from personal experience, reading ingredients is always a must for eating GF; it's stunning just how many foods contain added wheat, rye or barley (esp the first of these) in a seemingly non sequitur fashion. Moreover most oats, though they are themselves GF, are by default contaminated with wheat because of typical farming practices so even if those four sources of wheat and barley were eliminated it would still be off limits, especially if he's abstaining because of sensitivity issues.

Good question though on how much control he has over his image in league marketing initiatives; I have no idea. For something like this where it's ostensibly just a generic action shot and the players aren't even named on the box beyond being able to identify them from their faces, uniforms, numbers, nameplates, they may not have much control — although Willy seems fine with it judging from his involvement in the initial press conference last November.

The things you learn on Lionbackers .... . Glad my gut can handle just about anything

[CardiacKid]

Also, Bighill seems like a peculiar choice of player for this sort of promotion. According to a series of tweets he wrote in late 2013 and a quote from Rich Stubler in this 2014 Calgary Herald story, Bighill follows a gluten-free diet, which precludes pretty much any cereal that Post produces. Being on the box is probably the closest he'll ever get to any Post cereal.

Bighill appears on Honey-Bunches of Oats so he gets off the hook on that one. Though I wonder if he had any chance to say yea or nay to what product his image would appear.

I went down the cereal isle in a Thrifty's in Victoria today and no Bighill or CFL cereal boxes in sight.

Checked out Country Grocer, Walmart and Thrifys in Victoria and still a big goose-egg....

[Alputt]

Shreddies boxes at my local Save-On no go. I did buy 3 bags of Ruffles chips! See you in Toronto! Lol.

[Ballistic Bob]

Bighill bobbleheads will be available at merchandise counters at the 13th of Aug. No need to run over a child for one. BB

[Alputt]

Nice, I plan to pick one up. First 5000?

[Hambone]

Also, Bighill seems like a peculiar choice of player for this sort of promotion. According to a series of tweets he wrote in late 2013 and a quote from Rich Stubler in this 2014 Calgary Herald story, Bighill follows a gluten-free diet, which precludes pretty much any cereal that Post produces. Being on the box is probably the closest he'll ever get to any Post cereal.

Bighill appears on Honey-Bunches of Oats so he gets off the hook on that one. Though I wonder if he had any chance to say yea or nay to what product his image would appear.

I went down the cereal isle in a Thrifty's in Victoria today and no Bighill or CFL cereal boxes in sight.

They have a special version for BC. You have to go down the granola aisle.

[Qman]

Shreddies boxes at my local Save-On no go. I did buy 3 bags of Ruffles chips! See you in Toronto! Lol.

tons of cfl cereral boxes at my local save-om