32 Countries. 736 Players. 64 Matches. 12 Stadiums. 4 Years In The Making. 1 Winner. Today is the start of the largest sporting competition in the world, the World Cup! For the next 32 days over 3 billion people will be glued to their TVs, laptops, ipad and smartphone screens to watch the tournament unfold in the host country of Brazil.

The pandemonium surrounding the World Cup seems like a win-win all around. People will be actively using social media, watching TV and going out to spend money on merchandise, food and drinks. But there is a problem here and that problem directly relates to you.

With all the commotion over the next month, a lot of peoples businesses will be put on hold. Employees will be less productive at work because they are watching and thinking about the games all day. Potential customers will ignore your email blasts about your new products or updates because they are in World Cup mode. No one wants to read through a sales pitch when Germany vs. Portugal comes on in 45 minutes.

So how do you take advantage of the World Cup amidst all of the noise?

In the above video newly acquired Beats by Dre shows a great use of marketing and advertising to highlight the World Cup festivities and their products at the same time. Let’s take a look at three strategies that you can use in your own business:

1. Be subtle

Although the video prominently shows the Beats headphones, it is not the main focus of the ad. The headphones play a backdrop to the magnetic atmosphere leading up to the world cup. Of course, your company won’t be able to hire superstar athletes and players to promote your brand but the key here is to remember to be subtle. You can try to relate to the atmosphere of the world cup and infuse that into a product launch or blog post. Remember the world cup is not just about soccer. It is also a time of community, fun and family. Remember that if you plan on releasing any content or products over the next month.

2. Watch The Time

Do not announce any new products or blog posts while a World Cup game is on. You should leave a two hour window between the start and end of an game before you start promoting something. I can assure you that a large percentage of your target audience and customers will miss that tweet, blog post or bitly link. Also remember that if a large base of your clientele is international you must take into account the time zone differences. Plan accordingly and try to time your scheduled launches or social media blasts while the games are not on. Of course people will still be talking about soccer in between games but you can leverage your chances of being heard amongst the noise if it’s not directly while the game is on.

3. Hack Social Media

The old saying goes that if you can’t beat ‘em then you should join ‘em. There is no better way to do that in this year’s world cup than hacking social media. There has never been a time when social media was as widely used during a sports competition as today and you can use this to your advantage even if you are not a fan of the sport yourself. Find relevant #hashtags on twitter and join in on the conversation. Make your brand more human by talking about something other than your product.

Denny’s has done a really good job of this over the last few months and have attracted new followers in troves by giving their brand a human voice. The essence of social media is to be social and if your brand is not doing that you will lose the game. Use this World Cup to your advantage by taking control of your brand and giving it a voice. Not only can it help you to attract more customers but it also builds a deeper relationship with the current ones.

Think about these three strategies as you move forward with your business this month. And remember that if your audience is talking about something, you should probably join the conversation.