Zyrtec Sponsors the PGA Tour - A Marketing First
Source: Kenvue
It's pretty hard to do a "first" in marketing any more. I've been around long enough to see pretty much everything that has been done. Sure, you can try different angles and different nuances, but it's hard to do something for the very first time.
But let’s keep trying!
I’m all for reinvention and reapplication, but completely brand new is almost impossible.
Which is why this new program from allergy relief medicine Zyrtec caught my eye. Not because it's breakthrough or especially creative, but because it's a genuine marketing first.
Maybe not completely totally brand spanking new like never before on this earth new, but it’s a marketing first of its kind. How’s that for positioning?!?
For the first time ever, the PGA Tour has an official allergy relief sponsor.
Zyrtec.
This isn’t the first brand to sponsor a sports tournament, that is for sure. Nor the first brand to sponsor the PGA. But it is the first allergy relief medicine brand to sponsor the PGA Tour.
That’s unique.
The logic is obvious. The tour runs all spring. It's all outside. It's peak allergy season. For spectators, allergies kill the experience. For the players themselves, symptoms can disrupt their game. The pain point is real.
I’m a bit surprised there hasn’t been an allergy medicine sponsor before, to be honest.
Zyrtec is calling this "Yes Season" as opposed to the "NO" that allergy sufferers default to when plans require being outside. “NO” I can’t do this, “NO” I can’t do that. That’s the typical allergy season behavior.
I can personally relate.
The campaign includes player ambassadors, pop-up installations at tournaments, social content, and a commercial that inspires people to say yes during allergy season.
None of that is necessarily new, I acknowledge that but the program does put the brand at a genuine pain point for an audience that knows exactly what the problem is. Zyrtec offers the solution, officially for the first time with the PGA Tour.
Back in the day, we'd call this right place, right time marketing. The label still fits, making it a solid marketing program. Whether it’s a big bold first in your view or not.
I say take the title.
What's your experience? JIM