Editor’s note: This story is revised from the print edition.
Marketing services and sales agency PCG SportsDesk is rebranding to 4Front, some 11 years after its founding.
Co-founder Dan Migala said the new identity is designed to more effectively illustrate the range of services offered by the agency, which include consulting, digital media, innovation, ticketing, analytics, activation and third-party property sales representation for the likes of Feld Entertainment, Hendrick Motorsports and Minor League Baseball.
“We like to say that we solve problems, create solutions and generate incremental revenue,” Migala said, noting that the company, with offices in Chicago, Dallas and Denver, will have around 40 employees by the end of the first quarter.
The firm was founded by Migala and Josh Kritzler as PCG in 2007 and expanded in 2012 with the inclusion of former AT&T sponsorship executive Eric Fernandez and Sports Desk Media. “We built a great business, but we failed to build a brand,” Migala said. “So we need to tell people about all of our capabilities.”
An example: While PCG SportsDesk has run several digital campaigns for UFC, marketers at the mixed martial arts circuit were largely unaware of the agency’s other capabilities, Migala said.
Clients “were the ones who suggested the name — they were the ones who helped us find what our brand really is. So we decided to package that all up and tell a comprehensive story to the market,” he said.
The company has been offering targeting techniques to improve results for clients.
As one example, in 2017, 4Front managed 183 digital ticketing campaigns for 25 university athletic departments and conferences. The company said it delivered an average return on ad spend of 9 to 1.
One of 4Front’s investors touted the reband as the next logical step in the company’s development.
“It’s been rewarding to watch the 4Front team grow their business. There are a lot of players in the sports marketing space, but few that can marry creative thinking with data, analytics and digital media execution,” said Michael Kassan, chairman and CEO of Media Link. “Perhaps most importantly, they have been able to grow their bench strength of industry leaders in-house so there is real substance and power behind their work.”
The official launch of the rebrand will be at the National Sports Forum in Frisco, Texas, this week. Other agency clients include the Chicago Cubs, Cleveland Cavaliers, General Motors, Pepsi and Topgolf.
