ARCHIVES: This is legacy content from before Marketing Dive acquired Mobile Marketer in early 2017. Some information, such as publication dates, may not have migrated over. Check out the new Marketing Dive site for the latest marketing news.

State Farm ups video advertising with Yahoo Sports partnership

Yahoo is upping its digital and mobile sports coverage with a new sponsorship from State Farm for its NBA news hub The Vertical.

The partnership will see State Farm sponsor the basketball-focused news blog. The insurance company will focus on video advertising spots on Yahoo?s desktop and mobile page.

"For State Farm, storytelling is at the heart of our advertising and Yahoo is a long-time collaborator that has helped us continue to share our brand story with an incredibly passionate, relevant audience of sports fans," said Ed Gold, Advertising Director, State Farm. "We recognized early on that there was huge potential with the launch of The Vertical to reach basketball fans and we?re continuing to align with the top-notch editorial content that?s available on Yahoo Sports."

The Woj Report
State Farm has sponsored the NBA since 2010. The brand has always supported various sports organizations and is looking to continue that level of support.

For basketball fans, there are a wide variety of places to get their news. New basketball blogs and sites pop up regularly.

But Yahoo has basketball coverage of particular note with its newest blog, The Vertical.


The Vertical with Woj, as it is called, is run by NBA insider and basketball aficionado Adrian Wojnarowski.

The blog is popular enough that State Farm has chosen it and Yahoo at large to collaborate as it expands its digital advertising budget and offerings.

These digital advertising spots will come mainly in the form of video ads, which will play on both desktop and mobile versions of The Vertical.

Additionally, The Vertical releases a regular video series called The Woj Report, which will now feature a new segment called the Right Combination Play that is branded by State Farm.

Insurance marketing
The partnership between State Farm and Yahoo represents the insurance company?s larger commitment to sponsoring sports content as part of its overall advertising and branding strategy.

This strategy is not unique to State Farm. Other insurance companies have been upping their marketing spends in recent months as well.

For example, American Family Insurance recently debuted a 360-degree virtual reality video campaign to promote its brand to potential customers (see story).

Meanwhile, Aflac resorted to different tactics in the form of a social media campaign that aimed to make millennials aware of the dangers of living without insurance (see story).

These campaigns all shows the different ways that insurance companies can choose to spend their marketing dollars.

While some focus on innovative new ad formats or social media campaigns, State Farm is going the traditional route with a media partnership with Yahoo Sports.


?Brands like State Farm have been quick to see the opportunity to connect with the millions of fans that visit Yahoo Sports every month for their insider news and updates on everything basketball,? said Lisa Utzschneider, Chief Revenue Officer, Yahoo. ?We?re thrilled to collaborate with State Farm because they are continuously pushing the creative boundaries and finding new ways to engage today?s passionate sports fans across screens.?