Professional Athletes in Branded Documentary Marketing
How Professional Athletes Can (and Should) be used in Branded Documentary Marketing
Going Beyond Traditional Advertising
We’re all here to find innovative ways to connect with audiences. Marketing is a challenge, but one strategy that has found a lot of success in the brands that I work with is simple - branded documentaries. These real world narratives go beyond traditional advertising, offering deep dives into the stories behind the brand, its values, or the lives of its ambassadors. Among the most compelling ambassadors are professional athletes, whose journeys of perseverance and achievement can resonate deeply with viewers.
Professional athletes bring a unique blend of authenticity, relatability, and admiration to the table, making them perfect protagonists for branded stories. These individuals are often seen as more than just sports figures; they are symbols of hard work, dedication, and the pursuit of excellence - qualities that many brands aspire to align with.
Branded Documentary Marketing
This blog post aims to explore how professional athletes can be effectively utilized in branded documentary marketing. I’ll dive into why athletes are a potent tool for storytelling, how to integrate their narratives with brand messages, and the challenges and considerations that come with this form of marketing. By examining successful case studies and current strategies, this article will provide marketers with valuable insights into leveraging the power of athletes for brand storytelling.
And, at the end, if you need help bringing a branded documentary project to life - you’ve got a contact form conveniently at the bottom of the page if you want to chat more about all this :)
Understanding Branded Documentaries
Definition and Evolution
A branded documentary is a form of storytelling that allows brands to communicate their values, history, and visions through genuine and engaging content. In a world of doomscrolling social media, ads or organic posts, having a meaningful piece associated with your brand can go a long way. Unlike traditional ads, which often push products directly, branded documentaries focus on crafting compelling narratives that resonate emotionally with the audience. This genre has its roots in the early days of cinema but has seen a modern resurgence as consumers seek more authentic connections with brands in a digital age.
Key Features of a branded documentary
Branded documentaries are characterized by their narrative-driven approach that prioritizes story over direct selling. They often feature real people - such as athletes, company founders, or consumers - and real stories that highlight struggles, triumphs, and transformative moments.
This authenticity is key to their effectiveness, allowing viewers to see a side of the brand that is often unexplored in conventional advertising. We all know that we don’t like feeling like we’re getting sold something, and branded documentaries can solve that problem while still getting eyes on your brand.
Benefits for Brands
The primary benefit of branded documentaries is the ability to forge a deeper emotional connection with the audience. By focusing on stories rather than sales, brands can enhance their credibility and trustworthiness. These documentaries also allow for greater creative expression and can set a brand apart in a crowded market. Additionally, they provide valuable content that can be repurposed across various media platforms, maximizing reach and engagement. If you’re filming for a branded documentary, you can still re-edit that footage into short form content, giving you the best of both worlds.
The Role of Professional Athletes in Branded Content
Athlete as Storyteller
Professional athletes possess inherently dramatic and compelling life stories, marked by peaks and valleys, victories and defeats. Their lives are ripe for storytelling within branded documentaries. Athletes naturally embody the qualities of resilience, determination, and the relentless pursuit of goals - themes that are universally admired and incredibly inspiring. When athletes share their stories, they don’t just speak about their sports; they delve into personal challenges, the significance of mental health, teamwork, and the broader impact of their sporting endeavors on their lives and communities. This makes them perfect storytellers for brands that want to elevate their narratives beyond the mundane.
Authenticity and Credibility
The authenticity that athletes bring to branded content cannot be overstated. Audiences tend to trust real stories from real people, especially from figures they already admire and follow. It’s not just about their social media followers either, fans have an inherent draw to athletes they respect and will binge any meaningful content they’re a part of. This credibility is crucial for brands aiming to strengthen their image or reposition themselves. For example, when a well-known athlete discusses overcoming injuries with the help of a specific brand’s products or services, the message feels more genuine than traditional advertising.
Case Studies of Professional Athletes in Branded Documentaries
Nike’s “Breaking2” Documentary: This branded documentary followed three elite athletes' quest to break the two-hour barrier for the marathon—an audacious feat in the world of long-distance running. The film captured the intense preparation and the actual attempt, highlighting Nike’s innovations in shoe technology. The documentary served not only to showcase groundbreaking athletic performance but also to demonstrate how Nike supports athletes in pushing the boundaries of possibility.
Red Bull’s “The Art of Flight”: Red Bull has long been associated with extreme sports and daring feats. “The Art of Flight” featured professional snowboarders, including Travis Rice, exploring untouched mountains. The documentary, while showcasing breathtaking landscapes and stunts, subtly integrated Red Bull’s branding, reinforcing its image as a patron of extreme adventure sports.
KT Tape “Dreams to Medals”: This is an example of a branded documentary project, for a brand a bit smaller than Nike and Red Bull to demonstrate that any size brand can achieve this marketing strategy and still yield immense benefits, not just the big ones. Teaming up with Olympic bronze medalist Molly Seidel and US Team Triathlete Matt McElroy, we created two branded documentaries that were later used to launch specialty products from the athletes. Check out Molly Seidel’s film below…
Strategies for Integrating Athletes into Branded Documentaries
Choosing the Right Athlete
The success of a branded documentary can hinge on selecting the right athlete. It's essential that the athlete’s image and personal brand align with the overarching message and values of the brand. Factors like the athlete’s discipline, personal story, reputation, and fan base should be considered to ensure a good fit. For instance, an athlete known for their environmental advocacy would pair well with a brand focusing on sustainability.
For our KT Tape branded documentary campaign, both athletes had overcome injuries and focused heavily on recovery during their training, making them a perfect fit for a brand selling recovery tape.
Collaborative Story Development
To develop a narrative that resonates, it’s crucial for brands to collaborate closely with athletes. This partnership should aim to craft a story that feels true to the athlete's experiences while effectively conveying the brand’s message. Engaging the athlete in the creative process ensures the content remains authentic and reflects their genuine voice and sentiments. In my documentary projects, listening to the athlete is as important as any other stage of the process. They often have incredible stories, and good stories sell, we just have to be brave enough to listen to them.
Multi-Platform Storytelling
Maximizing the impact of an athlete-driven branded documentary involves leveraging multiple platforms. While the primary documentary might live on a streaming service or the brand’s website, additional content like behind-the-scenes footage, interviews, and social media posts can help maintain audience interest and engagement. This strategy ensures that the story reaches as wide an audience as possible, utilizing everything from traditional media to digital and social platforms.
Challenges and Considerations for Athlete-Driven Branded Documentaries
Maintaining Authenticity
One of the primary challenges in creating athlete-driven branded documentaries is maintaining authenticity while achieving marketing objectives. The balance is delicate; the narrative must not feel overly scripted or solely focused on product placement, which can alienate viewers. To address this, it is crucial to let the athlete's true experiences and personality drive the story. Authenticity can be preserved by focusing on genuine stories that naturally align with the brand's message rather than forcing a connection. My recommendation - don’t have any product specific shots. I know, it sounds absurd but the second a viewer sees a clip of a product it will remind them this is a commercial and you’ll lose that authenticity.
Balancing Commercial and Personal Narratives
While the ultimate aim of a branded documentary is to enhance brand image and potentially drive sales, these goals should not overshadow the athlete's personal story. There needs to be a clear balance so that the commercial aspects do not detract from the personal, human elements of the narrative.
This can be achieved by integrating the brand in ways that complement the story - such as showcasing how the brand's products in action or ethos have genuinely impacted the athlete's life or career - rather than making it the central focus.
Ethical Considerations
Engaging in branded content with athletes involves ethical considerations, particularly around transparency and potential conflicts of interest. It is essential for brands to disclose any commercial relationships and to ensure that the content does not mislead viewers about the nature of the athlete's endorsement. Furthermore, respecting the athlete's voice and ensuring their stories are not manipulated for commercial gain is crucial for maintaining trust among the audience. Athletes are real people and real people deserved to have their stories crafted and shared empathically.
Measuring Success in Branded Documentary Campaigns
Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)
To assess the effectiveness of a branded documentary, brands need to establish clear KPIs. These might include direct metrics such as viewership numbers, engagement rates, and conversion rates, as well as indirect metrics like brand sentiment analysis and social media mentions. These indicators help determine not only the reach of the documentary but also its impact on brand perception. I always ask “what does success look like” with all of the brands I work with and it can range widely. Regardless of what your KPIs are, just make sure you approach them realistically but with hope for good things to come.
Audience Engagement
Engagement is a critical metric in evaluating the success of branded content. Social media analytics can provide insights into how audiences interact with the documentary and related content. Comments, shares, average watch time, and click-through-rate (an important metric for YouTube thumbnails) can indicate how deeply the content resonated with viewers. Additionally, audience surveys, test screenings and honest feedback forms can provide direct responses about the documentary's impact.
Long-Term Impact
The true success of a branded documentary often extends beyond immediate metrics. Long-term effects, such as improvements in brand loyalty, increased brand awareness, and enhanced reputation, are vital. Tracking these changes requires ongoing analysis and can help inform future marketing strategies and content creation. Even if there’s not specific metrics for tracking the emotional connection you make with each and every customer, the reach often extends further than we think.
Future Trends in Athlete-Driven Branded Content
Technological Advances
All the audio for this film was run through an AI software to remove wind noise. I didn’t use any microphones on my camera because was originally in Costa Rica just for a photo project, but the audio turned out good enough for film festivals take notice of the story.
The landscape of branded documentaries is rapidly evolving, especially with the advancements in artificial intelligence (AI) and its integration into the production process. As cameras and sound equipment become more sophisticated, and as editing software grows increasingly powerful, the potential to tell deeper, more nuanced stories of athletes enhances significantly. AI technologies can streamline editing, enhance sound quality, and even help in scripting more compelling narratives based on data-driven insights into viewer preferences.
Many filmmakers/photographers are worried about AI but these technological improvements not only boost the quality of the documentaries but also allow filmmakers to focus on creativity and storytelling, bringing athlete-driven narratives to life with unprecedented clarity and impact. This surge in technical capabilities means audiences can expect richer, more engaging content that does justice to the complex and inspiring stories of athletes around the world.
Increased Personalization
As technology advances, so does the potential for personalized content. Content is everywhere these days. It’s already overwhelming to open Instagram or Youtube and get blasted with nonstop reels. As the future unfolds, the desire for meaningful and personalized films will only increase.
Brands can utilize data and viewer preferences to tailor documentary content to individual interests and engagement patterns, making stories more relevant and impactful for each viewer.
Global Reach
The global fanbase of athletes provides a unique opportunity for brands to reach international audiences with their documentaries. As streaming platforms continue to expand globally, branded content featuring universal themes of ambition, resilience, and achievement can appeal to a wide range of demographics and cultures, significantly extending the brand’s reach.
The Power of Branded Documentaries
As we've explored throughout this article, the power of branded documentaries in today's marketing landscape cannot be underestimated, particularly when they're centered around professional athletes. These documentaries do more than just tell stories; they build bridges - connecting brands with audiences through the authentic, relatable, and often inspirational lives of athletes.
The delicate balance of authenticity with commercial intent, the strategic choice and integration of the right athlete, and the ethical considerations all play pivotal roles in crafting a successful branded documentary. However, navigating these waters effectively requires expertise, creativity, and a deep understanding of both narrative storytelling and brand alignment.
Bringing in an expert :)
As an athlete myself, I find it’s important to be able to keep up with the skiers, surfers, climbers, runners, swimmers, and cyclists that I film. You can’t tell the story of an athlete if they keep beating you around the track so an important part of my filmmaking process is taking breaks to go out on runs like this :)
Now, here comes the cheeky bit - why not make your life a lot easier by bringing an expert into the mix? That's right, hiring a seasoned branded documentary filmmaker (hello, that’s me!) can transform your athlete-driven marketing efforts from good to unforgettable. With experience in capturing the essence of athlete stories and aligning them with brand messages, I can help ensure your content strikes the perfect balance between authenticity and marketing objectives. Let’s create something that not only resonates with your audience but also leaves a lasting impact.
So, if you're looking to elevate your brand with a documentary that audiences will talk about, think about, and hopefully remember forever, let's chat. Together, we can craft compelling branded documentaries that showcase the heart and soul of your athletes while also driving your brand forward.
Get in touch, and let's make marketing magic happen!
Let’s Work Together!
Roo is a commercial/documentary filmmaker and photographer based in Boulder, Colorado but travels all around the world for his filmmaking career. He has directed documentaries for Patagonia in California, produced films for Outside Magazine throughout Europe and Africa, camera operated for Netflix in the Rocky Mountain West, photographed among indigenous communities in South America, and has received notable recognition in his hometown of Orcas Island in Washington State for his work telling uplifting stories in the outdoor space.