The Bold Sun Devils Gambit: New Uniforms, New Identity, New National Appeal?
by Cory Williams on Jun 27, 2011 7:01 PM MST
in The Devil's Advocate
Email
Print
Arizona State University unleashed their new identity on April 12, 2011, creating an emphasis on the Sun Devil pitchfork while seamlessly blending black into the color scheme of the country's biggest state university.
It was a bold move for a school that has tremendous potential as a brand. When you factor in the appeal of living in Tempe (weather, women, weather), it makes a lot of sense for a school like ASU to be a presence on the national sports stage on a consistent basis.
When you consider how logical it is, that's what makes the reality all the more baffling -- despite the benefits of being a Sun Devil, for some reason ASU has lacked a national appeal. Perhaps it has to do with the inconsistent performance of the football team, or the inability of the basketball team to find success in the shadow of the University of Arizona.
Whatever the reason, Sparky-laden merchandise and memorabilia, while coveted by Sun Devils, were not selling like hotcakes across the land. Something about a Disney cartoon didn't resonate... what are the odds?
In the wake of the uniform upgrade, the ASU softball team made a historic run to win the Women's College World Series, and ESPN featured the new pitchfork prominently during the broadcasts. Similarly, when the ASU baseball team was playing Texas in the Super Regional, the pitchfork was exposed to a whole new audience.
These might seem like minor details to the casual observer, but the pitchfork is a bold new frontier for a school that had previously lacked the initiative. Should the Sun Devils impress on the gridiron this fall, this gambit will have paid off tenfold in merchandise sales, product recognition, and public awareness.
After years of being a sleeping giant, that's a risk that the Sun Devils were wise to take.
5 comments
|
0 recs |
Do you like this story?
Comments
Seriously?
Did Lisa Love send you a free hat to promote the new uni’s? Nobody is talking about this. The alleged “hype” never resonated any further than the Athletic Dept. Selling out the little tradition ASU had for a million dollars from Nike is a joke. This will go down as a notch above the Adidas blunder of the mid 2000’s. Yawn.
The hype was huge
Believe it or not, this was a big deal. We had an absolutely huge day of traffic on 4/12 when the uniforms were unveiled. The hype doesn’t always manifest itself in obvious ways, especially when you consider that it’s the summer, zero sports are being played, and the nation hasn’t seen the uniforms on the field yet.
Dave, I promise you that the jerseys will be a big hit if the team plays well this season.
House Of Sparky: An Arizona State Sun Devils blog
SBN Arizona: The ultimate destination for Arizona sports coverage
by Cory Williams on Jun 28, 2011 11:10 AM MST up reply actions
One could argue this statement applies to any time the team is successful...
Dave, I promise you that the jerseys will be a big hit if the team plays well this season.
I say this because during the time of the walk in the wilderness (DuBose thru Shula) Bama gear was not going off shelves. Sure, the die hards were buying, but in many shops around PHX I was told they only stock top 20 in sales (not polls, sorry Boise, you got screwed again) and I was left to order my stuff online. I go around to half of those stores today to peruse the inventory of Bama hats they have ordered.
This team has not performed (I discount the first year of HCDE, as the ending was more of a flan falling in the cupboard) in years, and that will have an effect. You’re going to get the impulse buyers (homers like me) that will buy anything and everything associated with the university. The problem is that will only keep your heartbeat going for so long. You need the stability of a successful program to help grow the brand, and your brand has to be recognizable.
If this team does not perform, you will not see the expected bump in sales as you expect. Jerseys are just cloth, and they can be marketed to people that want to look good, but there are a lot of long-time season ticket holders (I shouldn’t say a lot, but so far of the 40 or so I know all have expressed disdain for the change, and Lisa Love) who do not like this change and have begrudgingly renewed their tickets because at the end of the day they are Sun Devils, no matter what “bad decision[s]” are made by the present leadership of the Athletic Department.
(ps, I know I’m echoing your sentiment a touch. I think in the end we both want the same thing; a successful athletic department. I’ll even take you getting your name in the MNC talk as long as Bama isn’t on the other side)
pps, forgive my compound sentence writing style. it does get the point across, I hope.
It's not what you've done but what you are doing that matters.
Maybe next year the Ice Surface at Jobing.com should be frozen with the tears of Winnipeg. - TimmyHate of FiveForHowling to a troll after it was alleged Coyote fans do not know how to ice skate.
by AlabamaJammer on Jun 29, 2011 5:22 AM MST up reply actions
Even in a cash-strapped athletic department?
Selling out the little tradition ASU had for a million dollars from Nike is a joke
Honestly, to me ASU tradition is the old ASU sunburst on the side of the white helmets. The cartoon Sparky was good for some, and eventually became part of tradition too.
This will become tradition now, as it’s too late to change directions. The ink is dry on the contract.
Now I can only hope they give Sparky a trident, err, pitchfork that looks more like the logo instead of that curved thing he carries around.
It's not what you've done but what you are doing that matters.
Maybe next year the Ice Surface at Jobing.com should be frozen with the tears of Winnipeg. - TimmyHate of FiveForHowling to a troll after it was alleged Coyote fans do not know how to ice skate.
by AlabamaJammer on Jun 29, 2011 5:26 AM MST up reply actions
It is about the product on the field
Someone said above, “I promise you that the jerseys will be a big hit if the team plays well this season.” And I’ll counter with, “If the team plays well this season then the jerseys will be a big hit regardless of what the jersey looks like.”
Despite Lisa Love’s protestations to the contrary, Sparky is as good as gone.
Comments For This Post Are Closed
Secondary Sidebar
User Tools
FanPosts
Community blog posts and discussion.
Recent FanPosts
E-Mail Us
Feel free to e-mail us at CoryWilliamsSBN@gmail.com with any questions, comments, or contributions.
We have a Twitter page. Follow us at
http://www.twitter.com/houseofsparky now!
