The ETFMG Alternative Harvest ETF (MJ) is sponsoring UFC fighter Alexey Oleynik, deploying a new marketing strategy designed to reach targeted audiences.
By sponsoring the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) heavyweight who goes by the name “Boa Constrictor,” provider of the fund ETF Managers Group LLC, is looking to gain brand awareness among individual shareholders interested in mixed-martial arts, according to a Bloomberg article.
“It’s definitely not something you see as a common practice,” Tricia Vanderslice, ETFMG’s chief marketing officer, told Bloomberg. “We like to look at unique marketing that does justice to both the sector our product represents and the audience that we’re trying to hit and speak to and educate.”
Reaching targeted audiences is becoming more commonplace in the ETF world. Funds like the Roundhill BITKRAFT Esports & Digital Entertainment ETF (NERD) seek not only to attract traditional investors but also individual shareholders interested in e-sports.
While NERD tracks the the Roundhill BITKRAFT Esports Index (NERD Index), MJ follows the Prime Alternative Harvest Index, created to provide investors with a product that enables them to take advantage of both event-driven news and long-term trends in the cannabis industry as well as the industries likely to be influenced by the medicinal and recreational cannabis legalization initiatives taking place in many locations globally.
Time will tell if the marketing strategy will pay off for the marijuana ETF. In the meantime, MJ is up 30.93% YTD.
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