As a lifelong fan of the Harlem Globetrotters, it’s truly exciting to witness their ambitious plans for expansion beyond the basketball court. Keith Dawkins’ vision for a multi-platform media brand feels like a dream come true for those who grew up watching the team on Saturday morning TV.
The Harlem Globetrotters want to become a true multi-platform media brand once more.
The Harlem Globetrotters’ basketball team keeps competing against their long-time rivals, the Washington Generals, in global matches, and they are now set to return as a regular feature on Saturday morning children’s TV programming. Starting October 5, the third season of the series Harlem Globetrotters: Play it Forward will air on NBC. According to reports from The Hollywood Reporter, Kenny Smith, who is an analyst for the NBA on TNT, will be hosting this upcoming season of the show.
As a diehard fan, I’m thrilled to hear from Keith Dawkins, president of the legendary Harlem Globetrotters, who’s sharing some exciting news. He’s embarking on a journey to enhance the team’s media profile as we approach their 100th anniversary in 2026!
Over the past 20-30 years, we’ve neglected several generations of our audience by focusing solely on tours. The only way to connect with the Globetrotters was through these tours, which involved approximately 250 stops in North America and another 150 worldwide. While this aspect is a significant part of our identity, it has its constraints. These constraints include limited consumer interactions due to our absence from retail, content platforms, streaming services, gaming, digital media, and social networks, among others,” Dawkins explains to THR.
Essentially, Dawkins is working on shifting the narrative, utilizing his background at Nickelodeon and Viacom to establish a self-sustaining system or “flywheel.” This system will be filled with an array of original content such as long and short documentaries, movies, and collaborative animated series. Additionally, these new projects can run concurrently with the NBC Saturday morning shows. Dawkins mentioned that their development pipeline currently contains between 20 to 40 projects in various stages.
When we manage to finalize these agreements and list the properties across various online marketplaces, it will undoubtedly boost our brand visibility and ignite other aspects of our operations, as Dawkins points out.
As a gaming enthusiast, I’ve noticed how streaming giants like Netflix, Peacock, and Prime Video are fiercely competing for sports content – not just live games, but also documentaries and series centered around sports themes. Dawkins suggests that the Globetrotters could easily align with this genre due to their unique blend of athleticism, entertainment, and rich history in the world of sports.
There are documentaries about Elvis, Michael Jackson, Tina Turner, Wu Tang Clan, and more – it’s only fair that there should be one about the Globetrotters too,” he remarks, further commenting on “Play it Forward” reaching 800,000 to a million people weekly across NBC, Telemundo, Cozi, Peacock, YouTube is simply amazing.
The NBC morning show harks back to the golden era of basketball fame, when cartoon shows starring athletes were common on Saturday mornings. Today, it functions as an introduction to the Globetrotters for enthusiasts, and a platform for basketball stars to showcase their charisma off the court.
Dawkins explains that our updates about our stars, their talents, recent activities with the Globetrotters, and our business practices help increase brand recognition and preference. As a result, some people become more inclined to attend our tours or purchase related merchandise because they view us more positively.
A decade-old brand is aggressively chasing its objectives with an approach more akin to a budding startup’s.
As a gamer, I can recall the Globetrotters on TV, a memory that’s deeply rooted in my childhood when they were at their peak. Their influence on me was profound, and I believe that’s the charm of having a brand as old and widely recognized as this one – there’s something for everyone. We have an amazing product, immense brand recognition, rich equity, and it evokes feelings of joy, happiness, and endless possibilities within people.
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2024-09-17 16:55