To nobody’s surprise, the New Jersey Nets lost another basketball game last night. After starting the season 0-18 and the losses continuing to pile up, this has become a very forgettable season for the Nets – at least on the court. While they may not end up with the worst record in NBA history, it’s unlikely they will win more than a couple of more games between now and the end of the year and as you might imagine, they are dead last in attendance. The marketing team at the New Jersey Nets however continues to be creative and innovative in an attempt to drive attendance and make the team once again relevant.

The latest promotion ties in with the upcoming tax season. Last Friday night, the Nets gave away free tax preparation for all New Jersey residents age 18 and over. Through a partnership with a fast-growing tax prep franchisee company, Ron Deutch Tax Center, the team was hoping it would encourage attendance to the game on that night. And it doesn’t end there. For every qualified individual who goes to a Net game between now and the end of the season there will receive a $50 coupon from Deutch for tax preparation. Hey, you gotta give the marketing folks at the NJ Nets credit.

Clearly, they have been the most creative and innovative marketing groups in all of sports. What I like most about their approach is the out of the box thinking and how well conceived their promotions are (i.e. tax prep at a time when this is top of mind with the general public). And it’s not the first time. Last year, at the height of the economic turndown, they hosted a job fair at one of the games – bringing in their corporate sponsors to help those unemployed find a job. Nice! I very much like both of these promotions and applaud the marketing team in New Jersey for its fresh, creative and innovative approach to marketing and promotions.

As the economy is still slow to rebound it will be out-of-the-box, creative thinking such as this latest Nets promotion, that will allow brands to break through the clutter. If nothing else, the Nets got major local and national media coverage for this promotion, and rightfully so. Like I said, you’ve gotta give them credit. Just think what they could come up with if and when the team actually starts to win!

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