• Loading stock data...
Friday, September 12, 2025
Tuned In is Almost Sold Out! Limited Tickets Remain!

‘Climb With Us’ Moniker Leads Marketing Efforts for Penn State

marketing - penn state

Oftentimes, marketing slogans are simple ways to create a narrative around a given year and create excitement in the lead-up to a new season.

For Penn State men’s basketball, not only has the fanbase embraced their “Climb With Us” slogan, the team has bought into it as well.

It’s this type of buy-in that has allowed the marketing department to take the moniker and build it into some new initiatives, “100 Days of Climbing” and more recently, the aptly named “Random Acts of Climbness.” From paying for people’s parking, to buying them breakfast, the random acts of “climbness” have impacted people across State College.

Like many great ideas, this one came when Marketing Manager PJ Mullen wasn’t even at work. Sitting on a beach in Florida, the idea hit him like a ray of Florida sunshine.

“Last year I was sitting on the beach and the thought of 100 days of climbing came to mind to kind of help fans gear up for the season. I had just gotten into my role as marketing manager for men’s basketball and I had sold the whole ‘Climb With Us’ idea to a lot of people who bought into it.”

For all of last year, “Climb With Us” became the rallying cry for not only the department, but the students and the team itself.

Then, this year when the marketing department was looking to take “Climb With Us” to the next level, Mullen was hit with another idea.

“I was actually walking down the street coming from a car wash where someone had handed a random person a $100 bill because their brother died that day and they said that they did this every year on that day as a way to honor him. I happened to walk into Wegmans right after that and our basketball coach was sitting there and I said that we should do random acts of kindness. Then I said we might as well make it into ‘random acts of climbness’ and he loved it.”

READ MORE: University of Florida Looks to Drive Engagement With On-Court Projection

With the coach bought in, the department bought in, and the team bought in, Mullen set out to set up “random acts of climbness” in and around State College.

So far, coach Chambers and the team have helped pay for people’s parking, bought them breakfast at Dunkin Donuts, brought a whole elementary school ice cream and even treated some lucky fans to lunch at Chick-fil-A.

As expected, the gestures have been a hit both in person and on social media.

“People have loved it,” said Mullen. “We even had the news stations ask if we were going to keep going with it and at the time we said yes, so we will at least be doing it until the season starts.”

[mc4wp_form id=”8260″]

Outside of being a hit on social media and driving solid PR for a program fresh off an NIT Championship, the entire “Climb With Us” campaign has impacted the department where it matters most, the bottom line.

“Ever since PJ and the team put this together last year our student season tickets are up over 100 percent of what they were last year and our new season ticket sales have been great,” said Chris Grosse, assistant AD for Marketing for Penn State. “It really shows that having buy-in from across the board with a campaign like this can create tangible results, which isn’t something everyone can say.”

Simple, effective, and impactful. When it comes to marketing initiatives, sometimes those are the best types of campaigns.  

Linkedin
Whatsapp
Copy Link
Link Copied
Link Copied

What to Read

Eagles-Chiefs Super Bowl Rematch Could Set More NFL Ratings Records

Fox will nationally televise Sunday afternoon’s matchup.
[Subscription Customers Only] Jul 9, 2025; East Rutherford, New Jersey, USA; Real Madrid CF forward Kylian Mbappe (9) reacts after a semifinal match of the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup at MetLife Stadium.

CVC Builds Out Sports Division Amid Crowded PE Market

The firm’s sports portfolio is reportedly worth $13.6 billion.

ESPN’s ‘MNF’ Ratings Up 8% As NFL Surges to Strong Start

ESPN posts its second-best Week 1 “Monday Night Football” audience.
Sep 7, 2025; Orchard Park, New York, USA; Buffalo Bills fans react during the fourth quarter against the Baltimore Ravens at Highmark Stadium.

As Bills Ascend, Their Next Frontier Lies in Canada

Buffalo and the powerful Canadian entity MLSE come together in a new pact.

Featured Today

opinion

The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly from NFL’s Week 1 Broadcasts

Many viewers decried the addition of ads to “NFL RedZone.”
Aug 23, 2025; Tampa, Florida, USA; Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen (17) leads the team onto the field for warm ups before a game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Raymond James Stadium.
September 7, 2025

Slow Burn: The NFL’s Private-Equity Era So Far

Three deals have been struck to date. But the league is bullish.
Tennis
September 5, 2025

The US Open Is Groaning Under the Weight of Its Own Success

New York’s tennis major is more popular than ever.
Dec 21, 2024; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes (15) gets ready to take the field prior to a game against the Houston Texans at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium.
September 5, 2025

How Brazil Game Fits Into NFL’s Plans for World Domination

Friday night’s Chiefs-Chargers game in São Paulo is big by design.

How Rolex Paved the Way for Luxury’s Love Affair With Tennis

“It’s almost impossible to think about tennis without thinking about Rolex.”
Athlos
May 4, 2025

Nike Wants to Pull Off the First Women’s Sub-4:00 Mile

Experts speak on whether Nike’s “moonshot” is realistic or a gimmick.
Jul 19, 2024; Phoenix, Ariz., United States; Sheryl Swoopes hosts a WBNA All-Star brunch in honor of her former teammate, Nikki McCray Penson, at Thea in Phoenix on July 19, 2024
May 12, 2025

Sheryl Swoopes: A’ja Wilson Shoe Campaign Shows Nike Sea Change

Nike released the Air Swoopes in 1995.
Sponsored

How World Series Champ Dexter Fowler Became a Premier League Team Owner

Dexter Fowler discusses navigating retirement and embracing new roles as an owner & investor.
Apr 12, 2025; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; MLB umpire Ron Kulpa (46) calls a third strike during a game between the Cleveland Guardians and the Kansas City Royals at Progressive Field
May 4, 2025

Pro Refs Get Offered Free Lasik for Better Calls. Some Took It

Some pro officials have sprung for the offer for free corrective surgery.
January 15, 2025

State Farm Cancels Planned Super Bowl Ad Amid California Fires Controversy

State Farm’s Super Bowl ad last year featured Arnold Schwarzenegger and Danny DeVito.
Nov 25, 2024; Inglewood, California, USA; From left: Scott Van Pelt, Ryan Clark, Jason Kelce and Marcus Spears on the ESPN Monday Night Football Countdown set before the game between the Baltimore Ravens and the Los Angeles Chargers at SoFi Stadium.
December 17, 2024

A ‘Wave’ of Sports Content Is Coming to TikTok

The next generation is consuming sports in a different way.
Apr 7, 2022; Augusta, Georgia, USA; Rory McIlroy (left) and Brooks Koepka set up to putt on no. 9 during the first round of The Masters golf tournament.
exclusive
November 27, 2024

PGA Tour vs. LIV Golf TV ‘Showdown’ Will Pay Out $10M Crypto..

Two golfers from each tour will face off in Las Vegas.