Archive for March, 2009

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Getting Into Bed with TV

Tuesday, March 31st, 2009

Australian media deals between TV networks and athletes are extremely lucrative (think Stephanie Rice and Channel Seven) but there are pros and cons. Let’s look at some of them.

Pros

  • Lucrative multi year contracts
  • Great exposure for the athlete that is nearly always positive
  • Broadens the athletes appeal as they are used across different programming
  • Invaluable on-camera experience which helps their presenting and media skills
  • Opportunity to cross promote the athlete’s other sponsors
  • Gives you an excuse to knock back other / unwanted media requests
  • Can help win potential sponsors (they see it as a channel for free and regular publicity)
  • Can help ease the athlete into a media career when they retire


Cons

  • Limits the athletes exposure across other media channels
  • Pushed into programming that may not fit the ‘brand’ of your athlete
  • Media burnout from appeasing the network + all other print, radio requests
  • Creates rivalries with other networks (they can turn against your athlete)
  • Creates friction with the media plans of other sponsors / club / sporting body
  • Disrupts your own media plan as the athlete is always on call for the network
  • You can’t sell paid exclusives to other media outlets
  • Can turn off potential sponsors by limiting the reach of PR campaigns

Personally I think the money on offer from the networks outweighs the cons. But it’s still important to evaluate everything when considering these deals.

For example, a media deal would suit an established athlete who is nearing the end of their career. It keeps them in the spotlight (which is good for sponsors), and helps develop their TV skills which can give them a crack at a career in the media when they do retire.

On the other hand, such a deal might restrict the up and coming athlete and can even make them look bad because they are inexperienced or pushed into uncomfortable roles. Just some points to think about when your evaluating your next media deal.

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Like Attracts Like

Friday, March 27th, 2009

Have you ever chosen a restaurant over another simply because you can see that there are more people eating there? You think “this place is popular, they must be better than the guys next door”! As silly as this sounds, the same principle can often apply in athlete sponsorship. Sometimes a brand will be attracted to an athlete simply because of the other brands that athlete is aligned with.

Brand benefits flow each way in sponsorship. Yes the athlete adds to the sponsor’s brand, but let’s not forget that the sponsor also adds to the athlete’s brand. If you’re an athlete with quality blue chip sponsors then your perceived market value is going to be a lot higher.

So what does this mean? Well sometimes athletes have to sell themselves short just to get in the door with a great brand. But hopefully in doing so, they will attract other great brands at the correct prices.

Let’s say I have an athlete with 1-2 sponsors who aren’t doing much in the way of leveraging the relationship. The money’s ok but I’m really trying to grow the athlete’s brand to attract better quality sponsors. Now let’s imagine a prestige brand comes to me in this situation and wants to sponsor my athlete. Perfect, however they want to pay under what the athlete is worth and use the savings to go above the line (eg. national print campaign and/or TVC featuring the athlete). Do I tell them to go jump or sell my athlete short?

I would take the latter option almost every time. You simply can’t buy the sort of brand positioning and exposure a major campaign with a prestige brand gives your athlete. How do I know this? Because I experienced a similar situation to the one above and the result for the athlete was a flow on effect of blue chip sponsors at the right prices.

Money shouldn’t be the sole consideration when looking at sponsorship deals. Look at the bigger picture. Sometimes you need to take a step back to leap forward.

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Small Talk

Wednesday, March 25th, 2009

What do you do when you meet someone for the first time? You quickly try and establish common ground right? Salespeople call this small talk.

Small talk eases the salesperson into the conversation and helps them make a connection with the person their trying to sell to which assists in developing rapport. A sales pitch won’t have the same punch without first establishing trust and rapport. Sometimes finding common ground is really easy, and you hit things off immediately. Other times it can be awkward, particular if the two people don’t share any interests, aren’t reading the same news or don’t share the same values.

So as salesperson, wouldn’t it be great if before you met a potential client, you knew a few things about that person? What if you knew their interests, passions, or what they’ve been up to lately? Wouldn’t this give you a huge advantage over the next sales guy?

Well with online social networking sites such as Twitter and personal blogs, now you can search for that information. I recently met with a sponsorship manager and before the meeting I checked if they were on Twitter. Turns out they were and I quickly discovered that we shared a passion for golf. Guess what, I just found common ground and I hadn’t even met the person yet!

Suffice to say the meeting went well. Our respective golf games dominated discussion for the early part which laid the platform for an extremely productive meeting.

You wouldn’t go to a job interview without first researching the company would you? So why wouldn’t you research the person you are meeting? In this day and age it’s possible so why not use the technology.

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Socceroos

Tuesday, March 24th, 2009

The Socceroos are on the verge of qualifying for the FIFA World Cup. If they beat Uzbekistan next Wednesday (1st April) and other results go their way then South Africa 2010 here we come.

There is no doubting the popularity and strength of the Socceroos brand. How many other brands can unite the nation with as much passion and excitement as this mob? Who else can pack out bars at 3am on weekdays? Who else inspires people to hang flags from their car windows, to wear yellow, and to hug total strangers in the street?

Along with the Olympic Games, the FIFA World Cup is the biggest sporting event on the planet. It only comes around every four years, but when it does, it’s a huge deal. Before the last World Cup, a lot of Australian’s didn’t know the names Mark Bresciano, John Aloisi, Mark Schwarzer and Tim Cahill. Now they do and they are superstars.

So how will Australian brands leverage Australia’s participation in the 2010 World Cup? Well, some will spend all their money with the broadcaster (SBS), some will partner with the FFA and others will align themselves with individual Socceroos and a few will do all of the above.

For those looking to sponsor individual players, keep in mind the category restrictions with FFA partners and also be aware that many Socceroos are based overseas in the lead up to the big event. That means agreements that are heavily appearance based won’t work, rather agreements that use the intellectual property (IP) of the athlete are best (think TVC’s, on pack branding, consumer promotions and print ads). But remember, non FFA partners cannot use Socceroo IP (team uniform, the word Socceroos etc).

If you’re a brand with the budget to be involved with the Socceroos or it’s players then lucky you. Just make sure that you understand what rights you have before you enter into any agreement.

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Posted in Football, Sponsorship | No Comments »

Are You An Outstanding Communicator?

Friday, March 20th, 2009

I think we all know people who are slack communicators. You find them in business and personal relationships. You know the ones. You send an email, text or leave them a voice message and they take days to get back to you, or they simply don’t respond which leaves you having to follow them up. How frustrating, not to mention damaging to the relationship. But then again, we also know outstanding communicators, people who keep you updated, people you can trust for a timely response. I’m betting you enjoy dealing with these people a lot more?

The difference between being a slack communicator and an outstanding one is all about keeping people informed.

Let’s say someone contact’s me with a business proposition. But in order for me to give them an answer I need to do some research. At this point in time, I have two communication options A) I can wait until I have the information I need before responding (which could take days or even weeks) or B) I could contact them and TELL them I’m currently doing research and won’t have an answer until that research is completed (and then keep them updated on the process along the way).

Instead of being left in the dark, this person now knows what’s going on and why I’m unable to give them an imminent answer.

Sounds simple doesn’t it, yet so many people don’t get it.

Don’t assume others know why you can’t respond in good time, TELL THEM WHY and then get back to them later. That’s all communication is, keeping the lines open and everyone informed. This is critical in both personal and business relationships.

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Posted in Client Relationship, Communication | 2 Comments »

Networking

Wednesday, March 18th, 2009

You go to an event, you meet people, you collect business cards, you return to your office and stash them with the 500 other business cards you have. Weeks go by and you don’t follow these people up. Why? Maybe they are in a totally different industry than yours, or maybe they’re not buying what you’re selling. I bet the only people you follow up are those that can directly benefit your business. Big mistake.

Networking is not about how YOU can benefit from the people in your address book. Networking is about how you can bring value by CONNECTING your network with each other.

Let’s imagine you meet someone at an event. This person offers you no benefits, you can’t sell to them and you don’t want what they’re selling. Try asking yourself a simple question. “Who in my network can benefit from this person”? You might be surprised, often there are plenty of people in your existing network that could benefit from knowing this person you’ve just met (or vice versa). Suddenly you have a valid reason to follow up with this new person and re-connect with someone in your existing network.

So where do you benefit? Well the business world is tough, not many people use their network to benefit others for zero return. So when someone does, people remember. And they will often find a way to return the favour. This is networking at its best.

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E-Sponsorship

Monday, March 16th, 2009

Harvey Norman, Ford, VB, Toyota and Coca Cola are all big sponsors of Australian sport, but what about online businesses such as Carsales.com, Ebay, RealEstate.Com, Stayz.com and CareerOne, why aren’t they big sponsors of Australian sport?

After all, the online world shares the same business objectives as the real world, both are about attracting and retaining a growing base of satisfied customers. Both face fierce competition in crowded marketplaces. And both involve individual brands that need to appeal and connect with people.

In this economy, a lot of traditional businesses (those that sponsor sport) are struggling. Yet this hasn’t stopped athlete managers pitching for sponsorship. And that means your sponsorship proposal is sitting on the desk with 100 other sponsorship proposals, for a brand with a limited budget.

But what about true online businesses and brands, those that are growing at a rapid rate in this economy (such as e-commerce)? No one thinks of selling to these guys. They probably don’t even know how to leverage a sponsorship! So why don’t you pitch to them and show them how your athlete / sporting club can benefit their business. With your athlete’s popularity and a host of free social media platforms to use, coming up with leveraging ideas shouldn’t be hard.

At least you won’t be competing with the masses.

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Posted in Social Networking, Sponsorship, Strategy | 1 Comment »

Car Sponsorships

Friday, March 13th, 2009

When you sit down with an athlete and ask them for a dream list of sponsors (effective way to learn about the products they believe in and admire) one of the most popular answers is a car sponsorship. Sounds reasonable, but is it worth it? Well if the car company is a manufacturer as opposed to a car yard, is a combination of cash and product and the partnership adds value to your athlete’s overall brand positioning then go for it. Otherwise tread carefully.

Firstly, if the car brand doesn’t align with your athlete’s brand then don’t do it, that’s a no brainer. If the car company is a car yard, they won’t have the budget to do quality advertising around the partnership, but that doesn’t mean they won’t try, and your talent will look ordinary. And lastly, if there is no cash incentive then you’re selling yourself short.

Unfortunately most car sponsorships in Australia are product only. What a great deal for the car company! While other sponsors are paying market value to be associated with your talent, the car company gets all the same rights for the price of a car that really doesn’t cost them much. If I’m an athlete do I really want to be doing X number of appearances and photo shoots for the equivalent of $35,000 (or less) when my market value is six figures?? I’d rather give my time and energy to sponsors who are paying me market value and then buy my own car without the headaches of additional commitments.

It’s also important for athlete’s to remember that managers don’t receive any benefit from product only deals, yet they have to service the relationship. This takes up valuable time and resources that could be better spent on more lucrative deals. Don’t get a car deal for the sake of getting a car, make sure it makes sense.

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Let’s Face It

Wednesday, March 11th, 2009

Technology these days means less face to face communication. We all know the benefits this provides but are your business relationships stronger because of it?

Gen Y doesn’t have an issue with this form of communication, in fact many don’t feel the need to meet face to face to get things done in the business world, and they are right. However, this type of communication is only ok if both you and your business client are from the same generation.

So what if your client is a couple of generations up the ladder? What if the CEO, marketing or sponsorship manager you regularly deal with is a baby boomer, does that change the communication game? You bet it does. Sure you can still have a good working relationship with this older business professional but if the majority of your communication is via email and the odd phone call then the value THEY place on the relationship won’t be as great.

If you can make a habit now of meeting more often with your business contacts then your business success, not to mention your social skills, will dramatically improve. And with the advance of video conferencing technology, you’re going to need those real time communication skills over the coming years anyway. It’s time to face the music, or in this case those relationships that matter most to your business.

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Crisis Management

Monday, March 9th, 2009

In light of the latest Rugby League drama surrounding Brett Stewart and Anthony Watmough let’s look at crisis management for athlete managers. These are just some of the key points in my experience.

  • Know your strategy. Brainstorm worst case scenarios. Then when the crisis breaks, you immediately know the steps you should be taking. This is about knowing people’s roles in a crisis. Who will be the media spokesperson, who will draft the media release, what are the processes to inform sponsors etc.
  • Inform key stakeholders. When a crisis breaks, consult the athlete’s lawyer (if it’s a legal matter) and then the sporting association or club. Clubs have a duty to know the full details and protect their sponsors and will often take over the management of the crisis – which saves you being the public face of the crisis (never a good look for a sports manager).
  • Be the first to know. Make sure that you are the first person your client contacts after any controversy. Get all the facts on the table. If you are the first to know, then you get a chance to break the news. This is not always possible, but if YOU break the news, then YOU get to control the message, which leads me to…..
  • Don’t ignore the crisis, or sweep it under the carpet. Always assume the crisis is bigger than what it is because in the eyes of the media it often is. The media will always find out eventually and then you’ll have two crises – the actual crisis and the way you’ve handled it.
  • Legal issues are not an excuse to run and hide. You have an obligation to publicly address the issue. It’s only the CONTENT of your public address that needs to be managed carefully. If you’re client is unable to comment due to a legal investigation then say so. Which brings me to…
  • Make sure everyone is briefed. If the media can’t get comment from the source they will go to a family member, former coach, current sponsors etc. So you need to brief all these people that the appointed ‘Spokesperson’ is the contact and any enquiries should be directed to that person.
  • Don’t blame the media for the trouble your client is in. This never achieves anything.
  • Don’t speculate in the media. Stick to the facts if there is an investigation going on. For example, don’t answer questions about possible consequences if your client is found guilty. This only adds more drama to the story.

It will be interesting to watch how the Sea Eagles manage the media as more details come to light over the coming week.

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