Winning the bid for Super Bowl 2024 is just one more touchdown in a series of game-changing plays by the New Orleans tourism and travel industry. The 2024 championship game will be the culmination of a winning streak of sporting events that will bring hundreds of thousands of eager fans and tourists to the city. The College Football Playoff National Championship game and the NCAA Women’s Final Four will be held in New Orleans in 2020, and the NCAA Men’s Final Four is set to take the city by storm in 2022.
The bid for Super Bowl 2024 employed the clever marketing theme “NOLA 2024/7,” a nod to New Orleans’ non-stop entertainment scene. That will be more true than ever in 2024. The NFL’s championship game will fall smack dab in the middle of Mardi Gras season, giving local businesses even more festival traffic than usual. The 2013 Super Bowl infused more than $480 million into the local economy, and we can expect to easily top that number in 2024.
What sporting events mean to the local economy
Mega-events like the Super Bowl and other championship games bring more than sports fans to New Orleans. They bring media coverage, investments and prestige. Around the world, eyes are fixed on the city’s preparations for the big day, and that’s even more true when the event coincides with a cultural phenomenon like Mardi Gras.
Community involvement and pride reach all-time highs when popular sporting events come to town, meaning tourists won’t be the only people spending more money at New Orleans businesses. Even gyms can expect to see a rise in membership as locals get into a competitive, sporting mindset. From sports retail shops to tourist attractions, these games will bring in a steady flow of new business to savvy New Orleans venues.
How your marketing strategy can capitalize on all the fanfare
With more eyes on New Orleans, the next few years will be a golden opportunity for local businesses to increase public awareness, enhance their reputations and build powerful brand associations. Don’t wait until the final quarter to take advantage of this moment in the spotlight, though. Use these tips to start generating brand awareness now.
Be a sponsor. If you’ve got the budget, get your brand associated with one or more of the sporting events coming to town. Mardi Gras is fair play, too. Just remember, you have to pay to play. Only sponsors who pay to be associated with an event can legally reference it. Any attempt to run around the rules can get your business flagged.
Be a sports authority. If you can make it work with your brand, appeal to sports fans with profiles of star players, recaps of game highlights and other relevant updates on the games. You can even post score updates on your social media platform to keep your community pumped.
Be visual. Break down game stats and plays with exciting visuals like infographics, animations and video recaps. These are highly shareable and can bring new eyes to your brand.
Be visible. With so many more visitors in town, outdoor advertising will be more effective than ever before. From billboards to bus stops, there’s never been a better time to invest in traditional marketing efforts.
The boom in New Orleans sporting events in the coming years is going to bring in millions of visitors primed to spend money and share their favorite New Orleans memories. If you want to be one of them, but you’re not sure where to start, get in touch with New Orleans’ premier media agency, Morgan & Co. Our team is skilled in all facets of media planning and buying, producing smart strategies that incorporate new ideas and hard-nosed buying. And it’s all supported by analytics that capture your true ROI.
