Is March Madness Expanding as an Advertising Opportunity?

Home Depot launched a March Madness campaign this month aimed at homeowners tackling spring do-it-yourself projects, joining a number of other brands showcasing campaigns around the three-week tournament.

Starring former Louisiana State University (LSU) and NBA legend Shaquille O’Neal, Home Depot’s “How to March Madness” campaign features content tying together basketball themes with common spring projects, including “How to Protect the Paint” and “How to Clean the Glass.”

Prior to launch, the home improvement chain struck a three-year agreement to be an official corporate sponsor of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA).

“The Home Depot’s customers are also big sports fans, and March Madness is one of the most exciting times of the year,” said Molly Battin, Home Depot’s SVP and chief marketing officer.

Last week, the ad sales teams at Warner Bros. Discovery and CBS, which are jointly broadcasting all 67 games of the NCAA’s Men’s Basketball Tournament, predicted “record” advertising revenues this year. Interest in the games is seen as being helped by the explosive growth of legal online sports betting.

More and more, advertisers have started to consider March Madness as a viable and less costly major alternative sports event, compared to the hyped Super Bowl, that can reach a large number of viewers. Kantar wrote in a study, “The three weeks of ‘March Madness’ offers brands a center-stage platform for integrating themselves into the tournament through paid advertisements in offline and online channels, social media conversations, branded placements and experiential events.”

At the same time, advertising demand for this year’s NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament “has grown substantially,” according to Ad Age, following 2023’s record-setting event — including 9.9 million viewers for the national championship — and with the fanfare over stars including Iowa’s Caitlin Clark and LSU’s Angel Reese.

Finally, the arrival of NIL (name, image, and likeness) deals, which allow college athletes to earn money as brand ambassadors, is opening up opportunities for brands.

Ritz retained 16 current college basketball players and NBA legend Isaiah Thomas as ambassadors to support the introduction of two new flavors to its toasted chips line. Kim Kardashian’s SKIMS brand is featuring six men’s college basketball stars in a March Madness campaign promoting its new men’s terry loungewear range.

A survey of 2,000 college basketball fans over the age of 21 commissioned by Tipico Sportsbook found fans expecting to spend 36 hours consumed by the 2024 NCAA Tournament across watching games, creating brackets, discussing the tournament with family and friends, engaging with online content, watching highlights, and placing bets.

Brian Becker, Tipico’s SVP of marketing, said, “March Madness is a cultural phenomenon unlike any other because anyone can be a hero; every year, new storylines captivate a diverse audience and define the fabric of the college basketball world.”