On January 26, Full Sail University was fortunate to host the Founder's Dinner for the National Sports Forum, the largest sports marketing conference in the country. Several of my colleagues and team members were then able to attend the conference itself over the following three days. The Forum itself is an interesting convergence of sports businesses -- teams, marketers, agencies, college, technology companies and more -- all vying to create business for the business of sports. One of my students, attending such a conference for the first time, met up with me at lunch. "Josh," he said, with his eyes opened wide, like one of Willy Wonka's children visiting the chocolate factory for the first time. "I never knew there were so many different kinds of businesses connected to sports."
I was thrilled to see that he got it.
The business of sports has never been more interesting. The world used to be simply about the games -- how many people could you get into the stadium, and at what price per ticket? Teams would play for three hours, add up the score, and tally the gate receipts. The math ended there. Front offices were filled with ex-players who had never been to college or studied much finance or business. Businesses operated on salesmanship, charisma and intuition.
Now, the geeks run the show. Big data rules the day. Athletic performance is measurable by biofeedback rather than mythology. Consumer behavior is trackable through RFID chips and GPS technology. Businesses can operate towards maximum efficiency because they know when to push certain initiatives towards whom, as well as when to do it, and to what specific point inside the ballpark or stadium.
Franchises and agencies have the ability, and maybe the necessity, to be their own media companies. To be relevant, they need to engage their fans 24 hours a day 7 days a week. They need to create relevant content by converting old agate type box scores into modern visual infographics. They connect by creating e-cards for posting on over 130 different media streams. They make films, run events and productions, and create a variety of different kinds of engageable media that allows them to produce their own message, rather than run it through the filter of conventional electronic media. The good ones see the interconnectivity between music, video, content, storytelling and the ultimate product on the field of play. They understand how it drives business.
Because of these developments, sponsors have more opportunities to connect with properties than ever before, if the properties can figure out how to manage and sell them, and if potential sponsors, particularly those business that have never been in sponsorship before, can see the light shining on potential new clients.
Even at the Forum, supposedly a gathering of the elite of the business, it is clear that there are those who bask in the glow of these new opportunities, and those who are blinded by the brightness of the light. It is obvious who truly understands the concept, and who is just selling something. It is a time for the true standard bearers to rise and lead the industry into this brand new world.
I plan to be one of them.
Resources
Bradley, M. (2012, April 03). [Web log message]. Retrieved from http://sportsjournalism.org/sports-media-news/professional-sports-teams-becoming-their-own-media-entities/
Fischer-Baum, R. (2013, January 02). The best sports infographics of 2012. Retrieved from deadspin.com
Laird, S. (2011, December 02). How microchipped jerseys are changing hockey fans' experience. Retrieved from Mashable.com
Seaver, R. (2013, January 31). Retrieved from sports-forum.com
Tom, C. & Fienlieb, D. (2012, October 5). Big sports: Powered by big data. Forbes, DOI: Forbes.com
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