After a year of growth at both the club and the league level, Euroleague Basketball is pleased to announce the finalists for the 2014 Devotion Marketing Awards. Alba Berlin, Olympiacos Piraeus and Saski Baskonia are the three finalists after six of the teams that competed in either the Turkish Airlines Euroleague or the Eurocup last season were nominated for the award by their marketing counterparts across Europe.
Joining the three finalists among the nominated teams were Fenerbahce Ulker Istanbul, Olimpia Milan and Panathinaikos Athens. All participating clubs had the chance to vote for any of the six nominees, but could not vote for itself. The final results are a compilation of the votes made by Euroleague Basketball and its member clubs.
The three finalists each made novel contributions to the growth of basketball and their brands, whether locally or internationally, via different commercial projects, media and technological ventures, and fan-based activities.
Alba Berlin developed a successful strategy to penetrate the Chinese market by employing ideas in multiple areas. The use of grassroots measures and basketball camps in addition to communications and social media were among the keys to their strategy and success. Alba Berlin was the Silver Devotion Marketing Award winner last year.
Olympiacos Piraeus debuted a club loyalty program that was based on the partnership between its commercial assets, ticket sales and fan membership. Olympiacos was the Bronze Devotion Marketing Award winner last year.
Saski Baskonia improved its online strategy by applying the latest technologies in some of their different branches. The club unveiled an updated web site in three languages and also created a business directory, an online store and a mobile app.
The order of the winners will be announced this week at the European Basketball Marketing Summit on Wednesday and the recipients honored at the 2013-14 Turkish Airlines Euroleague Draws on Thursday.
