TSN is getting in touch with its playful side with the launch of a new digital platform called BarDown.com.
In development for more than six months, the new site is intended to bring a pop-culture twist to its flagship sports brand’s coverage through the inclusion of features like viral videos, original video content from TSN personalities such as Cabbie, and classic clips involving mainstays like Michael Landsberg and Geno Reda.
BarDown.com managing editor Dave Krikst said the site will house the type of sports-related content that typically falls outside the purview of the main TSN.ca site.
Mark Silver, senior director of TSN Digital, told Marketing that the Bell Media brand looked to several popular U.S. sub-brands including Sports Illustrated’s “Monday Morning Quarterback”, USA Today’s “For the Win” and ESPN’s Grantland.com for inspiration for everything from design to content to the user experience.
“We don’t believe it’s necessary to re-invent the wheel, we just want to make the wheel most appropriate for our brand,” he said.
According to Silver, BarDown.com is intended to be a reflection of the TSN personality that is glimpsed on daily shows like SportsCentre but isn’t typically reflected on the main TSN.ca website.
Krikst said that BarDown.com would skew slightly younger than the core TSN demographic. “We’re looking at the next generation TSN audience,” he said.
Silver said that the BarDown.com name was selected from several other contenders. While acknowledging that it is an extremely hockey-specific name – the term “bar down” refers to a hockey goal that hits the underside of the crossbar and bounces down over the line – he said that content will come from all sports.
“I would say that TSN is a hockey-heavy network, and that’s because it’s what our audience wants,” he said. “We’re kidding ourselves if we don’t think that hockey’s our bread and butter.”
The site is launching with sponsorship from Coca-Cola Canada’s Sprite and Coke Zero brands. Sprite is currently running display and pre-roll ads, while the site is also hosting the latest installment of Coke Zero’s “Moment Zero” campaign. The latest installment features Tampa Bay Lightning star Steve Stamkos and TSN personality James Duthie.
Asked about the site’s viability as an advertising vehicle, Silver turned to a phrase made famous in the baseball movie Field of Dreams: “If you build it, they will come.”
“The prospects are terrific,” he said. “Like other digital plays out there, Canada is more of a responder than a driver, and we believe that through BarDown.com we do have a first-mover advantage. We expect to be copied, and at the end of the day we’re flattered to be copied, but nobody is going to be TSN except us, and there’s nothing anyone can do to change that.
“As long as we continue to lead with the voice of the brand, backed by our content, we believe advertisers will continue to choose TSN on television and digital to get their messages across.”
