Canada's freshly rebranded Fight Network, which features fighting, fighters, fight news, and the fighting lifestyle, spent the month of April spreading the word about its makeover to consumers. A comprehensive campaign created by Toronto-based brand consultants Brandworks sought to engage potential viewers with street teams sporting Fight Network gear, microsite needtofight.com, a vehicle emblazoned with the new network's logo, interactive fighting experiences and stunts, and more. But you can't have a channel without advertisers, and so the monthlong promotional extravaganza culminated with a V.I.P. event on Wednesday for 150 media buyers and sponsors at new downtown venue the Ballroom.
As Fight Network C.E.O. Leonard Asper explains, the channel hoped to counter a common misconception about fighting and its athletes with the event. "There is this perception that they're a bunch of thugs. It's not like that at all," he said. "We're really representing a culture and a community." An experiential event provided the solution. "We said, 'Let's not talk about fighting, let's show it'," Asper added.
"We wanted to connect emotionally. To bring [fighting] closer to people and not have it up in a ring far away," said Brand Momentum's Jillian Bowman, who worked with Jump! Creative Inc. to produce the event. The evening immersed guests in the fight culture right away, placing fighters training at boxing bags suspended from the ceiling at the entrance. "People instantly got into the feeling of being in the gym training," she said.
Additional up-close-and-personal elements included UFC fighters signing autographs, interludes of athletes sparring, an appearance by the current women's Muay Thai world champion, Andrea Watson, and TVs displaying the broadcaster's new promotional clips. Toward the end of the evening a bell rang, and network execs pitched the attendees the new Fight Network offerings. Passed food included ground beef sliders with cheddar and Buddha Dog mini pogos, in keeping with the overall feel of the evening. "Nothing fancy about it, and that was the whole thing: Keep it nice and rugged," Bowman said.
But not too rugged. The Ballroom's central location, attendant buzz, and infrastructure (exposed beams from which to hang very heavy punching bags) ultimately made it the perfect setting for the channel's coming-out party, but, as Bowman explained, the network explored other concepts and spaces before selecting the venue. A "fight club" theme got nixed for being too dark and loud, and hosting the event at an authentic, decades-old boxing gym seemed like a good idea until organizers paid a visit. "We said, 'We're never getting rid of the smell of this place'," Bowman said. "Then the Ballroom came up, and it seemed too easy."
Ultimate Fighter 10 finalist Brendan Schaub made an appearance at the event.
