CEO Adam Grossman Discusses Opportunities and Trends Headed into 2017 in the Sponsorship Space

By Adam Grossman

Question: How has sponsorship changed the past few years and what are some trends to look out for headed into 2017?

How do you teach a computer to see? This idea still may seem far-fetched to many in the sports industry. Computer Vision, however, is a field of machine learning that already exists, where programmers can train computers to recognize images, logos, and people in videos or images. Teaching a computer to “see” enables the machine to collect more data more quickly and more accurately than ever before to determine when, where, and how long a sports sponsor’s logo was on screen during a broadcast. Computer Vision is a good example of the biggest change that has and will continue to impact sports sponsorship. New technology allows sports sponsorship buyers and sellers to collect more data than ever before. This has caused buyers to want to use that data to enhance their decision-making process. More specifically, sponsors now expect that big data can generate big insights and maximize the benefits of their relationship with a team, league, event, or athlete across different channels, based on the sponsor company’s strategic goals. The proliferation of new technology to create and collect data will necessitate that sports properties quickly and effectively analyze data and highlight value created by a sponsorship. Communicating using a language based on data will be at the heart of conversations around sports sponsorship in 2017.

Read more from industry experts on sponsorship trends via The Sponsorship Space and check out Block Six Analytics for ways that sports properties, brands, and agencies can take advantage of these trends.