Experiential marketing extends to sports teams, delivering the Chicago Cubs to local audiences, breweries and city streets. The May 2016 Cover Your Bases pub crawl, known to Chicago patrons as “CYB,” is the pro baseball team’s distinctive public promotion event. Cover Your Bases, celebrated in Wrigleyville annually since 2009, extends the team’s Winter Crawl Events Twelve Bars of Xmas to spring months and to new avenues.
A May Rundown
April and May are prime promotional times for Major League Baseball, and the Chicago Cubs regularly utilize promotional strategies to highlight the city’s finer establishments. Highly conducive to connecting the team with its loving audience, the Cover Your Bases pub crawl is dedicated to the past-time beer-and-baseball phenomenon. The National Anthem, a first pitch pub arrival, a seventh inning stretch and colorful rewards are highlights of the event.
The Cover Your Bases Famous Photo Frames
Where direct promotion is considered, the Chicago Cubs have outranked rival teams by offering a specialty photo frame series. Fans hanging with the Chicago Cubs are rewarded with photo opportunities, signatures and a special place upon Chicago’s finest pub walls.
The Cover Your Bases pub crawl insists event-goers wear jerseys, baseball hats and league gear, promoting both the Cubs and the league alike. While each pub location is in the heart of Cub territory, White Sox fans are similarly welcome.
Widespread Visibility
The event’s photo walls don’t end its visual promotion. Its Photo Scavenger Hunt spreads fans across each bar’s interior, maximizing Chicago Cub exposure. Four to six prizes are rewarded—depending upon winner count—and on-stage group competitions pit team fans against one another. Hot dog eating, softball passes, bat passes and frozen t-shirt contests are all included.
Twitter provides exclusive coverage through the #CYB2016 tag, expanding Wrigleyville bar exposure. The 15 locations lead to the legendary Murphy’s Bleachers, where fans will recognize Waveland and Sheffield’s Wrigley Field. All Festa-based events are covered through Bud Light, giving the the Chicago Cubs extra appeal to beer-lovers, both in-bar and out. Goose Island Craft Beer, too, plays host to the event, linking Chicago Cub exposure on Twitter to fan favorite crafts.
Festa Parties Place as a Provider
While the Chicago Cubs chiefly power the Cover Your Bases event, their link to Festa Parties is powerful. Festa Parties is well-known for its high-end customer entertainment and engagement services. The Twelve Bars of Xmas aka TBOX and The World’s Most Spectacular Pub Crawl among its favorites, Festa Parties never fails to make a splash in Chicago. Cover Your Bases benefits from Festa’s other outreach programs, reaching critical acclaim from cross-market beer and pub crawl lovers.
As the Chicago Cubs gear up for their newest season, the Cover Your Bases Event drives viewership and brand purchases. Baseball gear located at Sheffield’s Wrigley Field certainly gains increased attention, as event tailgaters commonly attach the location to the event’s cross-town crawl. The Chicago Cubs have displayed an extraordinary knack for promotion in the past—and this year’s crawl is no different.
