Pats Marketing Receives Today's Gold Star

Did you read the article in today's Boston Globe titled, "http://www.boston.com/business/globe/articles/2006/08/08/first_and_ten____grill_one_again/," that reported the New England Patriots "are rolling out hot dogs, bratwurst, and sausages named after the team, complete with the Patriots' logo on the package"?

One cannot tell me the Pats haven't been watching how the Sox are developing new revenue streams and wanted to get in on the action. The Pats don’t have any more tickets they can sell so they needed to think “outside the box.”

The meat will be available at Gillette Stadium in the next week and then it will hit grocery stores in September. The story added, "The Patriots don't plan to stop at meat; they envision an array of football foodstuffs. Not only are team executives mulling Patriots hamburgers and chicken wings, they also want Patriots barbecue sauce, ketchup, and mustard."

Consumers want to be associated with winning teams and I will not be surprised if these products start selling off the shelves. At the beginning there will definitely be a "curiosity factor" to try the new products. Local supermarkets will also want to have these products on their shelves and may not charge the same stocking fee they do with other items.

Hopefully the Pats are smart and they will start selling these products during tailgating before and after the game. You can bet people would spend a little extra money if they didn't have to bring extra food to the game.

What does the future hold for the Pats and new revenue streams? If they are smart, they will consider creating an FSG type organization. The Kraft family overseas sponsorships for Gillette, the Pats, the New England Revolution and most likely, the new soccer stadium when it is built. They should work an agreement with TrinityOne marketing and Lou Imbriano, the former Pats employee to oversee this new company.

I bet the Pats could convince local colleges to let them handle their sports-related advertising in the future. What I mean is they would help to sell advertising in college game programs, radio/TV programs and on the field. What local college wouldn't want to be associated with the Pats?

Another question: Can fans do tours at Gillette stadium? Wouldn’t football fans be interested the same way Sox fans are? Just seems like the right thing to do.

This rollout of food is a smart move by the Pats.