Posts Tagged ‘Media’

Retrospect

Tuesday, November 24th, 2009

Australian cricketer Mitchell Johnson has revealed that personal dramas led to his Ashes meltdown.

At the time, I knew this was the case. Having worked with elite athletes I know that personal issues affect performance more than the public can ever imagine. Especially when those personal issues are played out in the media.

Some athletes can block it out. Some simply cannot. For Johnson, this was the first time his personal life was put in the spotlight. Not only that, he was in the middle of an Ashes Series in England where the tabloids a ruthless and the crowds spiteful. He was always going to struggle.

As a sports manager the best thing you can do for an athlete in this situation, is minimise the longevity of the issue in the media. You need to put the issue to rest and avoid anything that may prolong debate. And I don’t mean hiding under the covers. You need to give the media something to chew. It can be as simple as saying “this is the situation or facts” and “this is my position” and “this is how I’m going to handle it” and “I don’t have anything else to say until I take the next step.”

The media will respect this and treat the athlete a lot better than if they were to hide in the corner.

Minimising the longevity of the issue helps but it’s an external solution to what is an internal issue for the athlete. That’s where mentors come in.

Having one’s personal life thrown into the spotlight is nothing new. There are millions of people who have gone through the same experience. People who have survived and come out the other side. Your job as a manager is to find these people and ask one to speak with your athlete. A simple phonecall can make the world of difference.

When faced with a personal problem, people get so focussed on themselves that they feel like nobody can relate to them and what they are going through. Wrong. There are people out who have gone through the exact same thing and they are only too happy to offer their advice.

If you look at another cricketer Michael Clarke, he has Shane Warne as a mentor. Warne has dealt with fame for a long time and can duly offer sound advice to a younger Clarke in that area. A manager can only wear so many hats, sometimes a manager must seek mentors for an athlete. People that can better relate to what an athlete is going through.

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Posted in Client Relationship, Communication, Cricket, Media, Strategy | No Comments »

Are Coaches Marketable Enough to Sponsor?

Monday, August 10th, 2009

Someone asked me this the other day and I must admit, I think they are. In fact, I’m surprised there aren’t more coaches with personal sponsors.

Think about it. Along with star players, coaches are often the face and voice of a club or organisation. They have a considerable media profile and represent values such as winning, integrity, discipline, respect, hard work and leadership.

Through years of media experience, they are also well groomed for interviews and appearances and have the nous to promote key messages of a sponsor.

On top of that, 99% are clean skins. So sponsors can sleep easy at night.

If you need another reason why coaches can be a good sponsorship proposition then look no further than budget. They come much cheaper than players.

Before I leave you with this thought, anyone remember Guus Hiddink? The man who took Australia to the last FIFA World Cup?

I’m pretty sure he was an adopted Australian by the end of the World Cup. Everyone loved him. He even had his own chant. I dare say that if Guus had stuck around for another World Cup campaign his face would be on a breakfast cereal. I’m not sure I can say the same for Pim Verbeek, I really like the guy but it would take a unique brand to benefit from his name, image and likeness.

Coaches are already very popular for speaking gigs and are accessible to club sponsors for networking and appearances. But it’s not often an outside sponsor will come knocking for a coach. Maybe its time they did?

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What Do Athletes Really Want?

Wednesday, April 22nd, 2009

In a perfect world for athlete managers, every professional sportsperson would have the hunger and drive to blitz the commercial world just as they have the same hunger and drive to succeed on-field.

But unfortunately we don’t live in a perfect world. Not every athlete wants to build their public profile and do the work that is required to earn massive money from endorsements, appearances and media deals.

The main focus of an athlete manager’s job is to make their client money. After all that’s how managers make their money. So when a manager has an athlete that doesn’t have the same commercial drive it can be incredibly frustrating.

Before you sign an athlete it’s important to ask them what they think you’re job is. If they think your job is to earn them as much money as possible and they are willing to work really hard for the endorsement dollars, then great, you are both on the same page. You can confidently chase opportunities knowing your athlete will go to work.

However if they don’t care much for the spotlight, aren’t willing to go over and beyond for sponsors, network themselves, or simply have an attitude of wanting to earn money but don’t really want to put in the work required, then you have a problem.

It’s important to ask an athlete the big questions up front. Know exactly what your role is with every client you represent. You will not only save yourself a lot of time and heartache, but you can really concentrate on rewarding those clients who have the hunger to succeed commercially.

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Posted in Client Relationship, Communication, Media, Sponsorship, Strategy | 3 Comments »

Mr Bic-ket

Thursday, April 9th, 2009

BIC Australia is going to create a new national campaign, featuring Australian cricketer Mike Hussey. Hussey will be seen in a range of off-field scenarios, including a book and cricket-bat signing, backyard BBQ, and preparing for a sports awards night – all featuring BIC products.

There is no doubting Mike Hussy’s popularity among cricket fans. He is a working class hero who appeals to both genders and is a great talent with the media and fans alike. He also personifies the values of everyday Australian’s which makes him easy to relate to. It also helps that he plays in a national sport on free to air television. These are all great reasons for a brand to align with Hussey but I’m guessing it was his slightly nerdy nature that gave him the nod with BIC.

Pens aren’t the most exciting product especially in this digital age so it helps to have a celebrity face to catch people’s attention. I’m sure BIC will play on Hussey’s nerdy good guy nature in their creative. In the meantime, let’s hope Hussey scores some runs, god knows (and BIC) he needs them.

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Posted in Cricket, Sponsorship | No Comments »

Plug It

Tuesday, April 7th, 2009

It makes sense that athletes should be passionate about the products / services / brands they endorse. And no, using the product isn’t the same as being passionate about it.

Brands love it when their consumers talk positively to other consumers about their products and services. So when a brand sees, reads or hears a celebrity talking about their product in the media they take extra notice.

It’s not uncommon for potential sponsors to come knocking when they know a celebrity is passionate about their brand. So the big question is, how do you communicate this passion to the marketplace? Well you don’t. This is the athlete’s job.

As a manager, you can tell a potential sponsor the passion your client has for their product (this is common in any sponsorship proposal). But it doesn’t have the same impact as the athlete plugging the product in the media.

Before you debate the merit of giving brands free plugs in the media, think about the risk verse reward. Don’t get me wrong, free plugs should be discreet and used only once but nonetheless they should be put out there. This lets the brand know they have a high profile fan and it momentarily shows the power of having a public ambassador. “Wow, that was great endorsement, how does our brand get more of that?”

When looking at individual sponsorship, brands value this ‘passion’ from ambassadors over anything else. So don’t be shy, educate your athletes on the benefits of talking about their favourite products and services in the media. What do you have to lose?

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Posted in Communication, Media, Sponsorship, Strategy | No Comments »

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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Posted in Media, Strategy | No Comments »

MEDIA SHY

Friday, February 27th, 2009

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There are many coaches and athletes out there who are absolutely brilliant at what they do on the pitch but when it comes to media they don’t want to know about it. These people can be a real challenge for managers and sport administrators. The fact is that if you’re in a high profile sport that generates enormous income from broadcasters, advertisers, sponsors and fans and you are being rewarded appropriately because of the money that sport brings in then you have an obligation to the media, like it or not. The media aren’t always fair, they aren’t always kind and they may even have hidden agendas from time to time, but they are a crucial cog in the money making machine that sport is. No coverage = less interest from fans = less interest from sponsors = less advertising dollars = pay cut for you the athlete.

While I’m on the subject, it’s amazing how many sports stars shun the media when competing only to look for job opportunities in the media when they retire?? Everyone has parts of their job they don’t like, media can be one of those for athletes but that doesn’t mean you can ignore it. In future posts I will comment on the how to deal with it part.

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Posted in Media, Sponsorship | No Comments »