Capital One
Capital One’s partnership with MLB, now in its third year, has focused on fan experiences and supporting diversity initiatives, taking a big role as presenting sponsor of the World Series and the Roberto Clemente Award, given annually to a player demonstrating character, community involvement and philanthropy. Capital One is also the presenting sponsor of ESPN’s “Sunday Night Baseball.”
Byron Daub, VP of sponsorships and experiential marketing for Capital One, said the big bank values baseball’s long summer schedule for its advertising and media presence—Capital One is the nation’s eighth-largest advertiser, according to Ad Age’s Leading National Advertisers report.
“MLB, plus some of its high-profile events like the All-Star Game and the World Series provide us a platform to have that always-on presence through a long period of time—a period where we had had a gap in terms of our media presence and advertising presence,” Daub said.
Capital One uses its deal to provide what Daub called “elevated experiences” for VIPs and cardholders. At Game 3 of the World Series, for example, invited guests sat for an intimate Q&A with Yankee legends Reggie Jackson and Derek Jeter—known as Mr. October and Mr. November for their respective World Series heroics.
“I think if you’re going to invest and be a part of league-wide partnerships or other tentpole types of sponsorships, you really have to figure out how to invest behind them and get your brand to stand out among many other brands,” Daub said.