Posts Tagged ‘NRL’

Tiger Woods’ Big Lesson

Friday, December 4th, 2009

Does everyone have a right to their own privacy? Absolutely but the game changes when you’re in the spotlight.

I’m not going to excuse the behaviour of Tiger Woods. His transgressions are morally and ethically wrong. But is it really our business?

The public have this week reconfirmed their insatiable appetite for drama and scandal involving high profile people.

The wake up call for Tiger and every high profile athlete around the world is obvious. The lines between athlete and celebrity are blurred and have been for a while now. These days people are not only interested in how you perform your talent, but they are interested in how you live your life.

Sometimes this sucks, but its reality.

One prominent Australian who can probably relate to what Tiger Woods is going through is former NRL player and media personality Matthew Johns. Earlier this year, Johns was hammered in the Australian media for an incident that happened years ago. By the time the public put their swords away, the common feeling towards Johns was one of remorse. Looking back, the majority of people thought he was hard done by. Yes the same people who at the time poured petrol on the media’s fire.

The media know the public are gagging for these kind of scandals. So from now on, they’re not going to sit around and wait for someone to kiss and tell. They’re going to chase it. And chase it hard.

Athletes beware. Your private life is someone else’s gateway to a big pay day. Michael Phelps learnt that last year and now its Tiger’s turn.

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Posted in Communication, Media, Uncategorized, golf | 2 Comments »

Make Your Sponsorship Proposal Stand Out

Tuesday, October 13th, 2009

What is one major difference between the two sponsorship proposals below.

- AFL pitching to Company X

- Individual athlete manager pitching to Company X

The answer: One has extensive market research about their product, the other does not.

When the AFL, NRL or FFA pitches for sponsorship, they have qualitative and quantitative market research to present. This includes demographics about their key customers and what their brand represents in the marketplace among others things. Most importantly, they have the data to back it up.

Athlete managers on the other hand don’t have any solid market research to present. They can guesswork the brand values of their athlete but they don’t have the kind of data that makes a proposal compelling.

Sponsors are very strategic in their approach. They know their brand inside and out. They know exactly who their target market is. They know demographics. They know exactly what their brand represents to their customers. They know the buying behaviour and what influences their target market. They know what kind of marketing and advertising works and why. And they expect you to have similar level of understanding about the product you’re selling.

Athlete managers never include this kind of data in their proposals. So the managers that do will stand head and shoulders above everyone else.

Now market research doesn’t need to be peace and war and it doesn’t have to be expensive. Most sports will give you this information for free. So if you manage a rugby union player, you could ask the ARU for some market research. (Tell them you’re doing a uni assignment or you’re interested in sponsorship opportunities).

This will give you some hard data about your athlete’s target market which you can present to potential sponsors. They’ll be shocked but delighted and it may just get your proposal over the line.

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Posted in AFL, Communication, Football, Sponsorship, Strategy, advertising | No Comments »

Be The Eye Of The Storm

Tuesday, September 8th, 2009

There are many qualities to leadership. But I want to talk about one crucial aspect and that is staying calm during a crisis.

The ability to keep your composure in a stressful situation is the benchmark for which others perceive you as a leader.

Read that line again.

Next time all hell breaks loose and everyone is running around frantically, try slowing your body movements down, breath deep and speak slowly. Changing up your body language like this will help you think logically rather than emotionally.

Doing this is a lot harder than you think. But doit well and you’ll notice something. People will naturally gravitate toward you for guidance. In their eyes you’ll be superior to those around you. Don’t believe me? Try it someday.

I’ve long admired NRL coach Wayne Bennett of having this trait. I’m sure there are times when he needs to apply the blowtorch, but watch him closely and you’ll notice he oozes a relaxed and calm presence amongst his players. Do you think this rubs off on his troops – you betcha!

It works the same for athlete managers. Most athletes get nervous before a sponsor appearance, photo shoot or press conference, let alone a crisis. It’s only natural. So it would make sense that they need someone around them who is composed and in control. That’s leadership.

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Posted in Client Relationship, Communication, Media, Personal Development, Sponsorship, Strategy | No Comments »

You Are Responsible For You

Wednesday, August 12th, 2009

Just when I thought rugby league was done and dusted with off field scandals this year, comes the news of assault charges against Melbourne Storm’s Greg Inglis.

Its unfortunate the game needs to be dragged through the mud over yet another issue that centers on the lack of respect to women. I say unfortunate because I feel sorry for the victims involved, but I also feel sorry for 95% of players who work their guts out to be good role models week in week out.

When something like this happens, it tarnishes every player and administrator in the game. And that’s not fair.

I understand rugby league has more of these issues than any other code and that can’t be ignored. What I can’t understand is the finger pointing towards the NRL and its deputy David Gallop.

People are quick to slam the NRL for not ‘preventing’ bad behaviour. But let me ask you this. When Joe Blow commits a murder, do we blame the police for not ‘preventing’ the murder? No, we lay the blame squarely on the criminal.

No one is responsible for your actions but you. It’s about time we focussed on the individual and not their babysitters.

As a sports manager I can educate players on best practices time and time again, I can put mentors in place, I can send them to seminars, I can read the rule book until I’m blue in the face. What I can’t do is walk them through life holding their hand. At some stage they need to take ownership of their actions and the decisions they make in critical situations. I can’t be there to do that for them.

Greg Inglis deserves his time in court, media and fans should give him that respect. At the same time, let’s not pretend the NRL could have done anything to prevent this from happening. And lastly, let’s not label all rugby league players as disrespectful trouble makers, most are accountable to their actions and make the right decisions. They understand the concept of ‘you are responsible for you.’

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Posted in Personal Development, Rugby League, Strategy | No Comments »

Social Networking for Football Clubs

Friday, June 12th, 2009

I read with interest last week that the Sydney Roosters have become the first NRL club to get on Facebook.

Let’s just say I was astonished.

If you’re serious about connecting with your Gen Y fans, and want to add value to your sponsors, then every NRL club should be on Facebook!!

Let me break it down this way.

More and more people are relying on the web for their daily news and entertainment. But guess what? The web is an extremely cluttered medium. So you have apply the 80/20 rule.

That is, 80% of people visit 20% of the websites online. Facebook is in that top 20%. An NRL club website is not.

Let’s say I’m at a big house party with all my friends. We’re interacting and having a great time. But my footy team lives down the road. Do I leave the party to go visit them? No, I invite them to come to my party!

My footy team gets to talk to me directly at the party, I talk back, and I even introduce them to my mates. Next thing you know, my footy team wants to introduce me to someone (club sponsor), the party kicks on.

Having a Facebook fan page is permission marketing at its best. And its in real time. I get your message on my phone. You come to me, I don’t have to chase you.

Regarding club websites. These are important for attracting young fans, but even then, the website needs to be hugely interactive to compete with the Nickolodoeon’s of the world.

If you’re a football club, don’t waste all of your time, energy and money on your website. Put more emphasis on social networking. It will pay bigger dividends.

Visit this website for more information on how you can utilise social networking.

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Posted in Communication, Media, Rugby League, Social Networking, Sponsorship, Strategy | No Comments »