Posted by: Ed Roche

The big dance is here, and it’s your time to shine. What are you gonna do? Fade into the background, or make a lasting impression? When opportunity strikes, it’s often all or nothing.

Let me explain, in the world of college basketball, they refer to the NCAA March Madness tournament as “The Big Dance”. This weekend, the “Final Four” remaining teams square off. At this point in the proceedings, it’s do-or-die. Every team is so near to the finish line they can smell it. It’s time to step up and bring your best effort, and phoning it in just won’t cut it. “Big Dance” doesn’t even do justice to this kind of pressure.

When a team is not seeded among the top ranks, they refer to them as underdogs. But when an underdog team makes it this far into the proceedings, sports fans start using another term for them – “Cinderellas”. These teams are living the dream, having been given one chance to compete with the big dogs to stake their claim. This year, the “Sweet 16” teams were made up of a huge amount of Cinderellas, and two of them, Michigan State and Butler (each of them seeded 5^th), are now in the Final Four, each of them eager to make the most of this opportunity on the big stage.

If you ask me, the world of marketing is a “Big Dance” as well.

Just like in the tournament, when it comes down to it, the field of competition has to be whittled down before the real business can take place. And, just like in the big dance, if your marketing partner is going to have a Cinderella story in the face of the big players, you’ve got to get there by having the appetite for seizing every opportunity and performing under pressure situations.

You don’t have to be the biggest and best to make it big. It all comes down to how bad you want it and how much work you’re willing to put in to get there. Avis car rentals ran a campaign about just this idea. They proudly advertised their status as the “Number Two” rental car team out there. It’s because of that, and not in spite of it, they claimed, that made them willing to work harder than anyone to cater to your needs.

Even Capital One is rooting for the underdogs:

Also, the industry we’re in, like the dance those teams are doing, is do-or-die and winner-take-all. In fact, in the marketing world, taking your big shot can even be a lot more crucial. If one of those teams doesn’t capitalize on their chance, hey, there’s always next year. For an advertising team, if you miss out on a big opportunity, you may never get that kind of chance again. When you get your one shot at making your mark, every detail matters. Don’t be afraid to be a perfectionist, because all eyes are on you. How you perform under the pressure of a big situation can mean a lot more than whether you win or lose, if reflects your attitudes about the game.

With so much competition, you’ve got to get out there, find your big shot, and make it a good one. I’ve shown you the proof: Cinderella stories really do happen.

P.S. – This weekend, I’ll be rooting for a 5th seed. Duke is the team to beat. Deep on the bench, but they’ve got all the pressure. Close games all around, this should be a classic. See you Monday night.

• Categories:
• news
• |
• Tags:
• marketing,
• sports,
• strategy
• |
• 
• 2 Comments

• Share
• Twitter
• Facebook

2 Responses to “Cinderellas, Sweet 16’s & The Big Dance”

1. Sean says:

   April 6, 2010 at 5:44 pm

   Seizing an opportunity is huge…Tim Horton’s did a good job of this at the Olympics…they used the Olympic stage to introduce the product to the world…smart move considering they are aggressively expanding into the US.
   http://tiny.cc/g07mw
   http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e4PAEQEmq7E
2. Deb Cakes says:

   January 14, 2012 at 11:00 am

   “When you get your one shot at making your mark, every detail matters.” = wise words