The insatiable appetite for authentic, quality content from athletes and celebrities keeps rolling on, and in the basketball space, a new platform has emerged. CloseUp360 is a lifestyle media platform and production company focused exclusively on the growing world of NBA players off the court. It features weekly content (profiles, podcasts and series) and daily content (news and social posts), focusing on players and people behind the scenes who are leaders off the court.
The platform was established by Jared Zwerling, a 15-year NBA and basketball media and marketing veteran whose career has spanned the NBA, CBS Sports, ESPN, Bleacher Report, the National Basketball Players Association and Sports Illustrated. He has developed a passion and business focus around what he sees as an underserved market, especially in basketball, the storytelling around the lives of NBA players, family and staff both of the past and of today.
What will set CloseUP360 (@CloseUP360 apart? We asked Jared to lay it out for us.
There is so much content out there. How will CloseUp360 be different?
CloseUp360 is a new lifestyle media platform and production company focused exclusively on the growing world of NBA players off the court. We are different because we focus on all NBA players off the court—from the stars to the journeymen to the international contingent and more—and we work directly with players and their inner circles. We also have an “Insiders” series that highlights influential people around the game who impact players’ off-the-court development and success. This is the NBA and basketball’s time in all of American pro sports, and at the root of that growth is the NBA player. We are basically treating the off-the-court space as its own content and business entity, based on the diverse interests and popularity of players beyond the game around the world, and the increase in brands that want to align themselves with NBA players. That’s why we have different sections: Players, Global, Business, Community, Culture and Insiders. Along with my core team of seasoned content and business professionals — you can learn about them here: we have a combined 40 years of experience working with players in ways beyond traditional reporting. While we are a new brand, we all have been doing this a long time individually.
We know it is all about access. How have you selected the pieces thus far and how did you get the success to tell these stories?
We have relationships with hundreds of active and retired NBA players, and their representatives around the league. When I started the business planning process this spring, the first people I turned to were players I knew. Not only are they the inspiration for my work, but also their testimonials were important to sorting out how I should proceed. The response was all positive. Once we landed initial funding in July, we entered the content activation stage. When we launched in late October, we had already created content with around 25 players, about 10 of which were headlined by a video feature. That’s another separating factor for us—we produce mini-documentaries on NBA players off the court. We are long-form storytellers. As for how we select each piece? We look for stories with multiple angles and b-roll opportunities and tell them at length, while creating individual Player Pages that are one-stop shops for all current and archived content on each player. The Player Pages also include off-the-court “stats.” Instead of points per game, for example, our information covers the player’s interests, businesses, endeavors and more off the court.
The goal is to go beyond NBA players. What can we expect from a global storytelling level around basketball?
Everything NBA players do off the court can be covered entirely through one destination. That’s us. The arena beyond the game of basketball has become a league of its own. NBA players have never been more active and diverse outside of the sport globally—from entrepreneurial endeavors and philanthropic efforts to global initiatives and social activism, and much more. They are also among the world’s most popular celebrities, most captivating young stars and most marketable athletes. Taking a 360-degree view of all things off the court, CloseUp360 offers an immersive and comprehensive look inside players’ lives outside the lines. Main subjects include players’ journeys, personal branding, career development, hometown impact, international growth and lifestyle interests. Specifically with international storytelling, we have a section called Global where we’ll be featuring the league’s overseas contingent, and how players and the league are continuing to expand around the world.
Who is the audience?
Because we are a players-first brand, the key audience is the players themselves and their network (family members, inner circles, etc.). Every player we’ve worked with has promoted our content—and it’s all organic, through our personal relationships. In general, we are for the passionate basketball fan as we’re highlighting players off the court. Beyond that, we are already seeing that we can reach different audiences of all ages. We are establishing partnerships with media outlets with a slightly order demographic and those with a younger, teenage-centric demographic. We also have a global audience, and we’re working on some opportunities in China, for example. Because the NBA continues to expand with its international player pool, we want to have a global audience. As I said above, this is the most popular time for the game of basketball internationally. The audience potential is endless.
What makes a good story for the site?
We approach content from a 360-degree perspective—hence the name CloseUp360. For each player feature, we package the content in a magazine-like stylized presentation, with a long-form story, original photography and a sidebar. And the package will likely have a long-form video to headline the content. Overall, we work with each player in a comprehensive way. Our objective with each package is to humanize players and influencers by portraying their stories in greater depth—with videos, photos, words or some combination of those elements.
So far you have a pretty diverse lineup. What’s been the best piece you have done so far?
We spent a day with Danny Green in Toronto, capturing him adjusting to his new city after a sudden trade and seeing him take in the culture of Canada. Here’s the package. The video alone has attracted close to 130,000 views. We also spent a weekend with Karl Malone in Ruston, Louisiana, exploring his outdoor life and business investment in his hometown area for the first time. Here’s the package. Karl has been private through the years, and granted us access through our connections. Our creative and video director, Amir Ebrahimi, and editorial director, Josh Martin, managed the project.
We live in an ADD, mobile-first world now. How can you hold a viewers audience with longer-form pieces?
Storytelling is in and people around the world want to learn more about players as people. We are specifically in the business of finding and telling the best stories about all NBA players—active, retired and so on. However, we’re not only doing long-form content; we mix it up to appeal to all audiences. We have shorter features, our daily “Starting Five” on the home page for off-the-court player news, and we cut up our video features into short-form pieces for our social accounts. In general, though, we want to change the content game and become leaders in NBA player mini-documentaries. Media is in a disturbing state when it comes to truly understanding and profiling players. Today’s clouded climate—silly, sarcastic and lazy one-quote content—has caused more players to distance themselves from reporters. The result: an incomplete picture of who players are off the court, and a disservice to kids who need to be surrounded by thought and perspective to develop as students. The NBA is entertainment, yes, but its players and league insiders offer so much more than what happens on the court.
Where would you like the platform to be in a year? Is there the ability to go beyond just basketball into breaking news or other sports?
We want to be the leader in off-the-court content, simple as that. Our focus, for now, is basketball. In a year, we want to have an expanded national operation, work with more than half of the league and have a bigger international presence. Those are just a few things. Stay tuned — more to come!
