NFL CMO Tim Ellis on why content creators are leading the league’s Gen Z-focused strategy
As this year’s NFL Draft is currently taking place in Kansas City, NFL CMO Tim Ellis wanted to bring a youthful energy and better connect with younger audiences. To do so, the NFL is hosting a three-day event showcasing the talent of current Gen Z content creators through on-site social activations.
The NFL has partnered with Zachery Dereniowski, a motivational influencer who goes by @MDMotivator on social media, as well as TikTokers Josh Richards, who goes by his name on social media and Scarlet May, who goes by @scarlet_may.1 on social media. May has created inclusive content that explained the Draft through sign language. Meanwhile, video creator Lisa Nguyen (@LisaNguyen on TikTok) visited her favorite Kansas City restaurants to talk football and food. The goal for this is to connect with Gen Z NFL fans authentically while also leveraging its content creators to gain interest on the NFL Sunday Ticket.
This comes months after the NFL revamped its social media strategy with its NFL Content Creator Network to allow fans to directly engage with Gen Z football fans, such as Twitch streamer Esfand, who presented a showcase of the meeting of traditional athletes and gaming creators.
Digiday caught up with Ellis to learn more about what league intends to do to continue to attract and retain Gen Z viewers beyond the NFL Draft and their plans with their newly drafted players who are under current NIL deals.
This conversation has been edited and condensed for clarity.
From Las Vegas to Kansas City, were there any differences between how the NFL marketed the Draft this time around?
Hosting Draft in different locations lets us to spotlight the respective city and all it has to offer. For example, we are leaning into BBQ and highlighting some of the top pitmasters and BBQ spots in Kansas City. We also showcased the local culture through our Draft creative, which is displayed throughout various OOH installments in Kansas City. The vibrant street art, the exposed brick and the overall vibe of the city were really important for us to capture in all the creative designs for Draft.
This year’s Draft features Gen Z content creators for some of the activities. What was the approach with this strategy?
Gen Z is one of our priority target audiences, and we’re always looking for authentic ways to engage with them to continue growing our NFL fanbase. Creators are an important part of reaching this demographic. We generally target creators in strategic verticals – fashion, gaming, wellness and music – as well as those native to TikTok – specializing in humor, food, art, animals or endemic to football.
Talk about the AI activation part of this year’s draft. Why does it matter?
We’re excited to announce the first-ever partnership with [AI artist] Adrian Curiel, where we are creating an incredible AI-fueled backstage set at the NFL Draft. It promises to not only push the boundaries of creativity, but also deliver on our commitment to immediately unite top prospects with …read more
Source:: Digiday
