The Deal: Mellon Bank signs as sponsor of the Pittsburgh Penguins.
Estimated Value: $1 million to $1.2 million.
Length: Three years; starts immediately and goes through 2001-02 season.
Deal Makers:
Jim Lauteri, brand marketing manager, Mellon Bank; Dave Soltesz, vice president, corporate sponsorships, Pittsburgh Penguins.
Key Elements:
Use of Penguins logo for promotional purposes.
Two 80-foot by 40-foot ceiling murals.
Rotating signage on skybox facade (300 feet of signs exposed for eight minutes per game).
Six backlit entry/exit signs on top seating level of arena.
Two 30-second videoboard ads per game plus in-game features.
Logo on press conference backdrop used at arena, practice facility and promotional events.
Sponsorship of giveaway and promotional events.
Discount ticket coupons offered to Mellon customers via ATM receipts.
Background:
Mellon's chief competitor, PNC Bank, recently bought naming rights for the Pittsburgh Pirates' new ballpark. Mellon still retains an unspecified ownership stake in the Pirates. New ceiling murals for Mellon and its Dreyfus subsidiary replace an ad for US Airways, which ended its sponsorship with the team two years ago.
Analysis:
How many other businesses in bankruptcy could secure a marketing investment from a bank? Mellon makes the Penguins the recipient of its second-largest sports sponsorship investment (the bank's deal with the Philadelphia Phillies is larger.) There's nothing like the potential of a team leaving town to get civic-minded sponsors to open their wallets. As long as the team's financial problems don't affect the on-ice product or the affinity fans have for the Penguins, Mellon will benefit from the deal if it can extend the relationship beyond the arena elements.
