Thursday 4 July 2019

New Gainer – marketing genius or marketing bomb?


    It is the biggest gopher controversy since the Calgary Stampeders “Gainer ban” in 2006.
    Back in 2006, the Stampeders hosted the Saskatchewan Roughriders in a CFL west semifinal playoff game on Nov. 5 of that year. Early in the week leading up to that contest, the Stampeders said the Rider Cheer Team was allowed to come, but Gainer, who was the Roughriders lovable mascot, was banned.
Classic Gainer at the 2018 Labour Day Classic.
    The Stampeders thought Gainer would do too good of a job of exciting Rider Nation causing the Calgary side to lose their home field advantage.
    About a couple of days later, the Stampeders recanted saying Gainer wasn’t banned from the facility, but he could not be on field level. Gainer could come to the game, but he had to sit in the stands.
    Politicians even got into the fray with then Alberta Premier Ralph Klein issuing a press release stating he supported the Stampeders “Gainer ban,” noting he appreciated the team’s efforts to keep Alberta free of “imported pests.”
    A number of Roughriders fans attended that game wearing buttons or messages on their clothes that said, “Free Gainer.”
    The odd person came to the facility dressed as the gopher mascot.
    The Roughriders ultimately won that contest 30-21.
    In the current day, that gopher controversy looks small compared to the one in the present day.
    On Monday during a 32-7 regular season home opening victory over the Toronto Argonauts at Mosaic Stadium, the Roughriders unveiled a new trimmed down Gainer to the shock of those in attendance and those seeing pictures on social media platforms.
    It was more surprising considering classic Gainer appeared at a wedding reception two nights earlier on June 29 at Mosaic Stadium.
Classic Gainer makes a last ride at Taylor Field in 2016.
    The new Gainer had a much different head too displaying a huge smile and bright white, green and black coloured eyes. The green colour in the eyes was the most jarring site, and classic Gainer’s eyes had always been all black.
    The new mascot sparked about 80 per cent outrage, while about 20 per cent said they either liked the new mascot or it was growing on the. The percentage of people that like the new Gainer seems to be going upwards at a snail’s pace.
    Complaints range from the new mascot looking either crazed or drugged out.
    It appears the Roughriders are going to stick with the new Gainer. You had to expect there would have been a contingency in place for a backlash.
    While this may sound crazy, the change in Gainer might ultimately be a move of “marketing genius” by the ’Riders. Yep, you just read that correctly, “marketing genius.”

    Gainer is the most iconic mascot in the CFL, and arguably the most famous sports mascot in Canada. He ranks up there in fame department with Youppi!, who started as the mascot of the MLB’s Montreal Expos and is now the mascot of the NHL’s Montreal Canadiens, and Calgary Flames mascot Harvey the Hound.
    The Roughriders were looking to tweak their game day experience.
Classic Gainer gives kids “fives” at Taylor Field in 2016.
    The biggest way to shake things up on that front was to change the look of Gainer, because that was still thought of as being unconceivable, despite the fact we seemingly live in a world where all manner of crazy things can happen.
    There is a phrase in marketing that there is no such thing has bad press. In an era where attention cycles seemingly last less than 30 seconds at a time, new Gainer has been in the news cycle for days.
    Actually, a large number of social media posts related to new Gainer could make up comedy hour, if you read them all. They will keep you laughing for hours on end.
    Michael Scissons, who is the business manager of the WHL champion Prince Albert Raiders, started things off on Monday night with a beauty tweet that said Gainer looked like he had a rough weekend.
    Scissons said in a story in paNOW.com he believes people will get used to the new Gainer in time.
    New Gainer has drawn the approval of the two most famous Gainer parody accounts on Twitter in “Fake Gainer” and “Bitter Gainer.”

    Some people might check out Saturday’s home game at 8 p.m. against the Calgary Stampeders to see what all the fuss is about.
    Still, this move could prove to be a “marketing bomb” by the Roughriders.
    Out of all the things in the game day experience, Gainer was the one thing that didn’t need to be changed. That increases risk in the public relations gamble when you actually do change Gainer.
Classic Gainer was always popular with the ladies.
    Seeing the lovable and plump classic Gainer was something you always expected to see from the Roughriders brand.
    For myself, I prefer classic Gainer, but changing the mascot won’t affect my decision to attend Roughriders games at home or on the road.
    Fans need those familiar points that link them with the experience of cheering for a team, which never seem to change.
    It is like going to a hockey game and hearing “The Hockey Song” by Stompin’ Tom Connors or “Clap Your Hands” by the Beau Marks. It is like seeing the “White Out” during a Winnipeg Jets NHL playoff game.
    While many on social media noted their kids liked the lovable classic Gainer, it feels like the female fan base loved the classic Gainer more than the new Gainer. That includes the 18-year-old millennials who recently graduated high school to seniors who are young at heart.
    They seem to have the urge to hug classic Gainer.
    Time will tell if new Gainer grows on Rider Nation.
Classic Gainer doing his thing at Mosaic Stadium in 2017.
    With the passage of time, it will become clearer if this was an act of “marketing genius” or a “marketing bomb.”

    If you have any comments you would like to pass along about this post, feel free to email them to stankssports@gmail.com.
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