At the buzzer! Swish!

Three seconds left, and the clock is ticking. Fake left, fake right and there are only three seconds left on the clock; he dribbles left and pulls up for the game winning shot.

The scenario played out every March. Cinderellas, Mid-Majors, upsets, blowouts, lottery pick, buzzer beater, Selection Sunday, conference championships, seedings, local pools, Bracketology, bracket, and diaper dandy. All these and many more are some of the words that can be heard during March. Even those that aren’t avid sports fans will fill out a bracket. Some will pick teams based on color, some on research, and some will just check to see what picks our President made and they will copy those. How does a sport like college basketball consumer the American consumer audience for such a short period of time? How have the words March Madness affected the insights of consumers?

Being that I love sports, I was never really amazed at the draw of the NCAA Tournament. It was just the culmination of every of sport in that we would eventually crown a champion. However, it had a different feel. I can always remember laying in bed watching 8 games in a row. I’d watch each of these games without even knowing any player on the team, but each game was important for my bracket. All picks would lead to the immortality of beating your friends in the local pool that was made. Everyone thought they knew how to pick the upsets. In fact, because the games usually fall just after Spring Break, I constantly found myself making picks based upon many different factors. I began to think of myself as a college basketball Bracketologist. I thought I could dissect games and pick a winner.

It’s March Madness! Every game matters, and on any day anyone can win, but how does this apply to consumers. Well because the NCAA Tournament has become a big part for almost everyone, even those who don’t follow sports.

How does this relate to consumers? Well it consumes then. The reason I’m writing this blog is because I began to notice how many businesses take “March Madness” and use it to sell their product. A nice salon was advertising “March Madness” prices. I saw local car dealerships advertising their “slashed March Madness pricing”. It seems every company tries to do their own take on “March Madness”. How does this affect consumers? It just reinforces the brand “March Madness”, which in the beginning was a reference to the volatility of the NCAA Tournament. Every year a Cinderella almost wins the Championship. Every year there are upsets and other wild results to this month of sporting events. Every year there are teams that make me pull my hair out because they are bracket busters. All this excitement reinforces the brand “March Madness”. How do those that have never experienced a college basketball game reinforce the brand?

The brand no longer represents college basketball. After writing this blog, I have found that while the words “March Madness” originated because of college basketball, they have come to take on this other meaning; A meaning that evokes feelings of spring time. This in turn represents slashed prices and good deals. So as a consumer I’m happy, but as a sports fan I’m a little disappointed. I want everyone to be able to enjoy March Madness for what it is. The greatest month of sports.