March is here, which means March Madness is right around the corner. Spring is upon much of the country, winter is at least starting to be in the rearview mirror, and the excitement across the college basketball scene in the weeks to come is unmatched in sports.
It’s the Cinderella story. The blue bloods. It all comes together in a convergence of 16 games on Thursday, 16 games on Friday, in what is one of the craziest back-to-back days on the sports calendar.
And the best part? Even people who haven’t watched a minute of college basketball are interested. They’re filling out a bracket, placing a sports bet, and watching players they could not pick out of a lineup. After the Super Bowl, it may be the second-most-watched casual sports event in the country, because of how it’s set up.
This is always a gold mine for sports talk. But is there an equivalent for news/talk? We have a Presidential election every four years, and in between, we have the midterms in the even, non-Presidential years. Of course, we find ourselves in one of those right now.
How can we take advantage in news/talk with content and/or listener-engaging events that can engage beyond the die-hard political base?
Think about how sports are able to hyper-engage their audience and grab the casual sports fans as well. What are our options?
I’m not sitting here sharing what I think are the best ideas, but they may trigger you to come up with better ideas for your station. How about a news equivalent of a fantasy football draft? Your top hosts “draft” the issues, candidates, cities, counties, or movements you think will “win” in November. Do one with listeners, and one with local personalities (sports guys, realtors, chefs, business owners).
How about “The Road to November” on your station? Similar to “The Road to March,” you see sports brands use all the time. Could a local “issues” bracket work that involves fans on social media? Daily 60-second breakdowns of key issues tied to sponsors. A weekly casual-voter call-in segment may work as well.
Does the branding around a “Road to November” work with an Election Guide? And this doesn’t mean endorsements from hosts. I’m generally not a fan. If Obama and Trump can endorse people who lose, why do ours matter? Cover the candidates, rip or praise them based on what they do, but endorsements have never made sense to me.
But a one-sheet with our logo and branding with registration deadlines, how to vote early, top local issues, zero spin, and all clarity. These will appeal the most to those who casually pay attention. Your die-hard fans will already know this information. But it’s not intended for them. And these things can go viral on social media and get shared in your market.
Other ideas: Social media polls are a no-brainer, too. Fans love them, social media algorithms push them out, and they can be seen by thousands of people who might not otherwise be familiar with your station or digital platforms.
The point is, there are many ideas better than mine that you probably have spinning around in your head, or that may cater better to your specific market. If so, that’s great.
But think as sports brands think about their big benchmarks of the year. And while there’s plenty of activation opportunities for the superfan listener, the chance to broaden the umbrella as people start paying more attention approaching November’s midterms can lead to cume growth and engagement, which can grow the station in the long term.
And while it’s only March, and many of us in news are just thinking about our NCAA Tournament brackets, November is going to be here before we know it. Get planning.
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