Helping Your Neighbor Is Good Karma
• For the second year, Good Karma Brands’ WKNR (ESPN Cleveland) has teamed up with KeyBank and the Cleveland Cavaliers to shine a spotlight on deserving local Cleveland-area businesses. The Moving Business Forward 2021 initiative will award one Veteran-Owned, Minority-Owned or Woman-Owned local business a $30,000 advertising campaign with ESPN Cleveland. The winning business will also receive use of a private suite at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse for a mutually-agreed-upon Cavaliers’ regular season home game.
As a new feature this year, ESPN Cleveland will purchase $2,500 in gift cards from a qualifying business from each category (Veteran-Owned, Minority-Owned, or Woman-Owned), which will be used in giveaways throughout the year to drive traffic and raise brand awareness for these local businesses. “We are excited to partner with KeyBank and the Cavs to create this special program for the local business community,” said Sam Pines, Market Manager of ESPN Cleveland & VP of Good Karma Brands. “This past year has been a challenging and innovative time for small business, and we look forward to connecting our loyal sports fans with these deserving Cleveland-based businesses to help them thrive in the future.”
ESPN Cleveland’s Moving Business Forward 2021, presented by KeyBank and the Cleveland Cavaliers, launched Monday, Aug. 9 and runs through Friday, Sept. 10. Eligible local businesses can enter by submitting a 300-word essay at MovingClevelandForward.com. Essays will be judged based on five criteria: 1) nominator’s passion for the business; 2) innovation during and response to the COVID-19 pandemic; 3) employee loyalty; 4) impact on businesses’ neighborhood/community, and 5) overall business culture.
All entries will be invited to the ESPN Cleveland Moving Business Forward Networking Mixer powered by KeyBank and the Cleveland Cavaliers at Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse where the qualifiers and grand prize winner will be announced. The winner will receive a customized marketing campaign, designed with ESPN Cleveland marketing consultants, to meet specific goals and objectives of the business.
