News & Blog
November 19, 2019

Why playing with the pros is a great marketing boost for your business

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With tie-ins to professional teams like the 49ers, Mountain Mike’s Pizza franchise opportunities may be a smarter investment than trying to start your own pizza business

We kicked off football season in a big way this fall. As the Official Pizza of the San Francisco 49ers, Mountain Mike’s gave fans a chance to potentially win $49,000 if they’re selected to try to kick a field goal at halftime during the team’s game with the Green Bay Packers on Nov. 24.

Customers (and fans) merely had to fill out a form online, with no purchase necessary, before the Oct. 25 deadlines. A winner will be selected at random. And we’re hoping that all of our franchisees come out ahead with a big brand-awareness push through the Kick It With Mountain Mike’s sweepstakes. It’s the kind of major marketing move you tend to see only in much larger pizza franchise opportunities.

“In our second year as the official pizza partner of the San Francisco 49ers, we wanted to get fans involved in something fun and potentially life-changing with one lucky individual scoring the chance to win $49,000,” Mountain Mike’s President and COO Jim Metevier says.

Special deals + major promotions = more customer traffic

We paired our Kick It With Mountain Mike’s sweepstakes with a deal that gives customers 49% off any large one-topping pizza throughout football season. During football season, we air regional Network television commercials that promote our partnership with the NFL team.

“So many of our guests are die-hard 49ers fans, and we wanted to give them another reason to celebrate whenever their team scores,” Metevier says.

We are also proud of our partnerships with the Golden State Warriors, the San Francisco Giants and other professional teams over the years. Our brand identity is a natural tie-in to the sports-loving community, and franchisees appreciate the extra bump for pizza-loving sports fans in their territories.

Of course, our pro sports team partnerships are a way not just to raise brand awareness but to elevate our engagement in our communities. For instance, we are also the Presenting Sponsor of the community-based 49ers PREP Flag Football youth league, creating a positive and safe environment for kids to learn the game, while having fun.

“We really want to align our brand with what resonates with our sports-loving customers because there’s a lot of pride there, right?” says Carol DeNembo, Vice President of Marketing. “And a lot of emotion goes along with supporting your favorite teams, so when they think of the 49ers we want them to think of Mountain Mike’s Pizza, too.”

Explore our pizza franchise opportunities

Mountain Mike’s Pizza has been a West Coast favorite since 1978. We’ve got a family-friendly atmosphere, we’re strong on community involvement, and of course our legendary pizza is trademarked as “Pizza the Way it Oughta Be!®” We have more than 200 locations and we’re expanding our brand presence in the West.