Transcript Building Involvement & Identification The sports marketing manager’s take….

Building Involvement &
Identification
The sports marketing manager’s
take….
Identification: The Manager's Take
The Sports Marketing Manager’s
Take
Thomas Federl
1.
ATP tour players are required
to participate in the "stars"
program set up by the ATP
Tour. Every player has to
spend several hours per week
signing autographs or
participating in other
promotional activities. In
Cincinnati many players attend
visits to Children's Hospital.
Cincinnati's Children's
Hospital is the countries
premier facility in that regard
and it is the tournament's main
charity. The tournament has
donated close to $ 5 million to
the hospital over the years.
The funds go to a program
called "plus 5", to support
children free of cancer for five
years or plus
Identification: The Manager's Take
ATP tennis
2. The tournament also organizes
several autograph sessions
every day. The tournament
offers additional promotions
such as kid's day, high school
day, ladies day, .... Kid's day
(top right), for example, offers
reduced ticket prices for kids
under 14 and a practice
session is set up including the
kids. Lady's day (below right)
includes a fashion show
moderated by players and an
additional autograph session
at the end.
Identification: The Manager's Take
ATP tennis
3. Several on court promotions
include fan and players
involvement, such as Spees
Serv contests (top) and this
years "Serve Up a
Warsteiner" contest with a
chance to win $1 million
during a contest on the Semi
finals or Finals day of the
2002 tournament. Other
examples for player - fan
exposure is a fan tip to a
Cincinnati Reds game with
Andy Roddick throwing the
first pitch (bottom).
Identification: The Manager's Take
ATP tennis
4. The picture (right) shows
the players' entrance at
the stadium with a
number of fans waiting
for an autograph
opportunity. Most of
these highly identified
fans will spend the most
of their time waiting for
autograph and photo
opportunities no matter
who is currently playing
on one of the three
stadium courts.
Identification: The Manager's Take
ATP Fans
Identification: The Manager's Take
Matt Fitzgerald
 1) Creating, building, and maintaining connections are a
top marketing priority for our organization. However, it
doesn't just start and end with our players. And the
connections are not solely with the fans. In addition to fan
connections, it's also critical to develop connections with
members of the media, sponsors, arena operations staff,
etc......basically anyone that comes in contact or
represents the Maverick organization. It's everyone's
job....owner, coaches, players, and other members of the
organization to facilitate and nurture these connections.
Identification: The Manager's Take
Matt Fitzgerald
With respect to specific fan/player connections, we develop and execute a number of initiatives
over the year to help build these types of connections. Here are just a few:
 a) Mavericks Fan Jam: The Mavs Fan Jam is a free event open to all fans. The event is held
on a weekend day before the pre-season starts and features a team autograph/photo
session and an inter-squad scrimmage. The carnival like atmosphere allows fans to meet,
interact, take pictures with and get autographs from the players, coaches and owner.
 b) Pre-season games: At every home pre-season game, 6 players meet-n-greet fans as they
enter the arena. Before the tip-off, one member of the team and one member of the
coaching staff address the crowd and thank them for their support. There are 4 home preseason games so each player does at least 2 meet-n-greets.
 c) Personal appearances: Each Maverick player is required to make a minimum of 10
personal appearances in DFW Metroplex through-out the season. These appearances tend
to be community service oriented ranging from visiting sick children at hospitals; to reading
to children at schools and libraries; to building/remodeling a home for the Habitat For
Humanity. So over the course of the season, the sum total of Maverick player appearances
in the community will be over 150.
 d) Our Internet site: dallasmavericks.com offers fans the opportunity to learn more about the
organization and their favorite players. A key component to establishing any fan/player
connection is providing fans with personal knowledge and information about players so that
they feel like they personally know the player. Example: How many people know the story
that Michael Jordan was cut from his high school basketball team. The internet is a quick,
efficient way to deliver this information.
 2) The highly identified, fanatical fans at our arena tend to paint their faces and body with
Maverick colors, wear Maverick merchandise, hold up signs or banners and pretty much
stand-up and cheer the entire game. Also, we are seeing more and more of these highly
identified, fanatical fans get Mavs
logo permanent tattoos.
Identification: The Manager's Take
David Stivers
From a resort perspective, Pebble
Beach fans are our past guests
who frequent our resorts on an
annual basis. We connect with
these fans using traditional
marketing vehicles -- newsletters,
direct mail offers, our website,
email and limited advertising. We
create loyalty and passion for
Pebble Beach first through great,
tailored customer
service. We know our customer's
preferences and deliver
personalized service to
him. Comment cards, quantitative
past guest research and focus
groups help us score how we are
doing.
Identification: The Manager's Take
David Stivers
 Loyalty and passion is further
enhanced for our very best customers
through participation in our two main
golf tournaments (the AT&T Pebble
Beach National Pro Am and Callaway
Pebble Beach Invitational). We invite
our very best customers (guests and
sponsors) to play along side the
pros. Unique to professional golf, the
amateurs play at least three of the four
rounds and have the chance to make
the cut and play on Sunday as well. A
very strong bond between these
customers and Pebble Beach occurs
when they experience playing our golf
courses along side the best golfers in
the world.
Identification: The Manager's Take
David Stivers
 For spectators at our tournaments, it has
become more difficult in recent years for
fans to get close to the pro's during the
tournament. So, we've created smaller
events prior to the start of tournament play
to help fans get closer. The pro and
celebrity golfers are much more
comfortable in this environment interacting
with the fans. We have a junior clinic, a
past champions shoot out for pros and
celebrity shoot out for celebrities.
 The best example of a highly identified fan
is a gentlemen who spent his month-long
summer vacation here, bringing in a
different group of friends each week to
play golf. Over 30 straight days of golf! I
want his job!
Identification: The Manager's Take
Lance Scheetz
 The SaberCats try to connect with the fans as much as
possible. We start the season with a
team/cheerleader/season ticket holder BBQ at our practice
facility. This gives our fans a chance to meet the new
players, and identify a little with them. Players,
cheerleaders, coaches, and front office personnel mingle
with the fans. Once the season begins, we open our
practices to the public. During the season players are
required to make two public service appearances. After our
last regular season game, we invite the fans to the ring
around the field for a autograph session with players and
cheerleaders. At each event, our marketing table has
SaberStats for fans. This sheet has all the current stats on
our players, and the opposition.
Identification: The Manager's Take
Identification: The Manager's Take
Lance Scheetz
 For the extreme fan, we have the Extra Point Bonus
Package. This package is sold before the season, and
consist of one gameday program at each regular season
game (with the fans name in it), one media guide, and a
special gift. Previous gifts have been, a team foto football,
2001 Western Division Champion Sweatshirt, and this year
a team travel sports bag. We will have increased our
gameday program sales by close to 100% in three years.
New this year, due to poor local media coverage of the
team, we have started an email program. Our media
relations director now sends electronically a season ticket
holder press release twice each month. The key or theme
is to touch our fans in anyway possible. We want the fan to
tell their family members, friends, and co-workers that they
are part of the SaberCat family.
Identification: The Manager's Take
Lance Scheetz
 Arena Football is a game made for fans. In fact, fans are so
close to the action, they could touch players on the field as
the game is being played. This rarely happens, but players
occasionally are blocked into the seats, or celebrate in
them after touchdowns. Most of fanatical fans sit in the first
five rows of the corner endzone seats, hoping for their
chance to touch a player after a big play. These fans dress
in war paints (team colors), color their hair, wear
outrageous SaberCat outfits, and a few have megaphones.
These fans are loud, and passionate. Quite a few are
members of the SaberClaws (team booster club) and make
one road trip once each season. In addition, there are
approximately five fans who follow the team on the road.
Our success has been built on our most loyal fans.
Identification: The Manager's Take
Identification: The Manager's Take