Brand Development: Establishing and expressing a clear brand identity and positioning for the United States Polo Association as the authoritative governing body of the sport is a fundamental requirement to accomplish the Marketing LLC’s strategic objectives. The Marketing LLC has engaged Red Peak, a leading branding and marketing agency, to implement a process to develop the USPA Brand Platform encompassing the following three phases:
Phase I: Brand Audit and Assessment o Interviews with Stakeholders o Identify Brand Assets and Opportunities o Target Outcomes and Success Measurement
Phase II: Brand Positioning and Architecture o Articulate Platform for the NGB Brand Identity o Establishing Source Brand & Role with U.S. Polo Assn. Brand o Brand Personality, Values, Mission, Reasons to Believe
Phase III: Brand Execution o Brand Identity System o Identify Applications for Brand Expression
Stakeholder research will begin in early January and the process will take six months to complete. Findings from Brand Audit and Immersion Phase and preliminary concepts will be presented at the annual spring meeting in April. Broadcasting: The most recent USPA Membership Survey (POLO 2020 – Vision for the Future) revealed that members believe presenting polo to a wider audience through targeted television programming and internet broadcasts of high profile polo events is critical to the growth of the sport. The USPA reached a milestone in 2013 by showcasing two major events on the NBC Sports Network, the Maserati U.S. Open Polo Championship® and the Westchester Cup. The combined viewership for these two broadcasts averaged over 280,000 viewers – more than the combined attendance at all polo events in 2013 in the United States. The broadcasts generated over 10 million media impressions and 176 direct leads from individuals interested in learning more about the sport. Substantial increases in traffic to the uspolo.org website (50% for the U.S. Open alone) and social media were also achieved. The programs were then re-aired on HRTV and HRTV.com for further exposure. This exposure was also significantly less costly than previous efforts that tested webcasting events in recent years – reducing the cost per viewer from a high of $9.44 in 2011 to just 42.5¢ in 2014. Sponsor support and scheduling on networks and time slots with greater viewership will reduce this cost even further in 2014. These broadcast ventures were considered a trial run, and USPA is currently reviewing existing opportunities to improve the process and overall production quality for a better viewing experience.
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