Sports Marketing and Public Relations — Sports Management Marketing

BUY THE BOOK-”SPORTS PUBLICITY: A PRACTICAL APPROACH”

"Sports Publicity: A Practical Approach" was published by Reed Elsevier in August of 2007. It is the most detailed, comprehensive step-by-step guide for sports publicity for the student, entry level publicist or marketer or even the seasoned pro who wants to learn more. The book is really a collection of great examples of some of the best in the business over time, and it has been very well accepted. Copies of the book are available for $39,95 USD on Amazon.com, for bulk to students at Elsevier.com and at a discount in the National Sports Marketing Network's bookstore. For more information about the book, ...

Services

Over 22 years of work in sports publicity and brand building have given me the opportunity to advise clients and individuals on a wide variety of topics that include: Crisis Management and Media Training Speech writing and effective messaging Local, national and regional story pitching and placement Identifying and developing effective story lines. Creating unique promotional campaigns. New media management and placement. Social networking and mentoring. Business plan creation, planning and writing. New business cultivation and pitching. Consensus building and product management. Troubleshooting and agency evaluation. Identifying and recruiting talent of all levels. Motivational speaking and coaching. International and multinational business development I am available to advise, create and tailor ideas, and kick around new ...

Legends of sports publicity and what we learned from them…

Some of the greats of the industry...feel free to email me more and tell me why... Joyce Aschenbrenner One of the trailblazers for women in the industry, Joyce Aschenbrenner made her first mark in the collegiate ranks at the University of Pittsburgh, having a hand in the publicity and promotion of future NFL stars Dan Marino and Tony Dorsett in a time when very few women were fulltime in the industry, especially on a major college level. A graduate of the University of West Virginia and a Pittsburgh native, Joyce moved on to the University of Nevada, Las Vegas from 1982 ...

The UFC Looks To Reinvent…

The smartest brands are always trying to reinvent themselves in the marketplace. In today’s economy staying fluid and satisfying your audience while looking to engage new partners or customers is key for success. One brand which seems to constantly be looking for new is the UFC. This is a preview of The UFC Looks To Reinvent…. Read the full post (633 words, estimated 2:32 mins reading... [Read more ...]

Not A Wise Choice….

Mike Wise of the Washington Post is a very good writer and has built a strong and solid following on the radio side at WJFK radio in Washington. He is a deep thinker who always looks for long form angles in his pieces and rarely follows the path that is easiest to tell a story. Recently he had an extensive piece on Olympian Rafer Johnson that showed the great value that senior athletes can have... [Read more ...]

Devils Make The Right Moves For The Brand…

Is there a professional team in the corridor from Philadelphia through Connecticut that has made more positive branding strides in the last year than the New Jersey Devils? While the Red Bulls make noise with a new stadium and Thierry Henry, the Nets constantly push for unique promotions and space during their transition, the Yankees make a huge splash with Hero Week and even Philly-area teams like... [Read more ...]

Football vs. Football…Parity Not Always Needed To Grow The Brand

With the Premier League now going in the UK and the NFL just a few weeks from kicking off in the United States, it is interesting to look at the two monster branding organizations and see how they run in parallel tracks in some ways and are apart in others still. Both have global aspirations, with soccer’s foothold as the world’s largest and most popular sport helping buoy the marketing,... [Read more ...]

The Open Scores Again…

It remains the only major sporting event that brands can point to every year, at the same time, in the same location in New York. And when it starts the main draw next Monday (free qualifying goes on this week for those who can’t afford or locate a ticket) the US Open will again begin the brand activation bonanza that takes place in and around New York every year as summer moves towards fall. This... [Read more ...]

Why The Yanks Win With Hope Week…

Yes they are the defending World Champions and as so have a responsibilty to give back to their fans year-round. And from expansive foundations run by Mariano rivera, Derek Jeter, Jorge Posada, Joe Girardi and many others, the New York Yankees do find ways to give back all year round, just like many teams on every level in every market. However what sets Hope Week apart for the Yankees is the expansive... [Read more ...]

Matching The Brand And The Athlete Not A New Challenge…

Recently writer Michael Sokolve had a piece in the New York Times about the issues today’s iconic athletes have from a public perspective. Sokolove’s argument is that today’s greatest on field athletes…Tiger Woods and LeBron James included…needed to tell the world themselves how great they were to build a public, and very lucrative persona. The iconic athletes of the past, he argued, let... [Read more ...]

The Latest Niche Sport Goes Down…RIP AVP

Late Friday afternoon, after most of the business world was done for the August week, came the release that the AVP had closed its doors. Despite the success of the Olympics, the marketability of its mature stars, the work of former head Leonard Armato and current head Jason Hodell to build interest and following as a lifestyle sport, the end came in mid-season. It was not for a lack of committment... [Read more ...]

The Voice of the Fan Gets Louder, Even at 9 a.m. on a Saturday

There are certain preconceptions that people, especially mainstream media, have about bloggers and those who are heavily engaged in fantasy sports , and well, many of them may be true. They hide behind a computer screen and never face those who they criticize…they live in their parents basement and use the written word as a cry out to all who have wronged them in the past…they have... [Read more ...]

Baseball Playing The Global Card, But Do Most Know?

There is perhaps no more global sport on the professional level than baseball. At some level of the professional game, over 35 countries on five continents are represented, and the number grows each year. Major league Baseball International spends millions developing players around the globe, and the results can be seen in recent weeks, when Chinese Taipei edged Australia for the World Junior title,... [Read more ...]

My friend Jay died Monday…

On Monday coming home on the train I got an email from my colleague Rich Sandomir of the New York Times who asked me if I had heard Jay Larkin died. It was so very sad news. Jay was one of the few mentors that I had…I learned more from him in a little over a year about learning to manage people and grow business at the now defunct International Fight League than I had in countless years... [Read more ...]

NASCAR to the New York area…why not?

The sport of racing, be it horse or auto, has always been very friendly to the Garden State. From legendary Raceway Park and Wall Stadium to the Meadowlands and Monmouth, local fans looking to get their fix of fast cars and horses have never really had to go far. This is a preview of NASCAR to the New York area…why not?. Read the full post (451 words, estimated 1:48 mins reading time)

On The Record…Sort Of…

This past week has seen two prominent sports names…LeBron James and Brett Favre…dragged into the middle of controversy by being invlved in stories that were sort of on the record sort of not, but both show the continued issues media have with ethics, the battle to get out unique content and the growing rift between those who want coverage and those who have all coverage thrust upon them. ... [Read more ...]

On Giving Back…

Many people may not know what UNICO is http://www.unico.org/, but millions have been touched by their support. The largest national Italian-American service organization with a large presence in New Jersey, the group spends countless hours fundraising thousands of dollars community by community for charities ranging from help for the elderly to cancer and life threatening disease research. This... [Read more ...]

Brand NFL Gets Stronger, Despite The Clouds On The Horizon…

Granted there is a labor dispute in the distance and the Jets still have issues in the New York marketplace with PSL’s, but it is hard to argue that even in a challenged economy the brand of the NFL remains strong and gets stronger. It can be argued that the opening of training camp has come close to eclipsing the reporting of “Pitchers and Catchers” as the day that fans look forward... [Read more ...]

Can the Pac 10 Make An Eastern Impact?

This spring and summer, perhaps more than any other offseason, the Pac 10 Conference and its schools have made headlines that have transcended game coverage across the nation. Whether it was the continued controversies surround USC, the expansion and shift of schools, television contracts, Bowl alliances, coaching shifts, the Pac 10 has grabbed its share of headlines. The latest came this week,... [Read more ...]

A Kinder, Gentler UFC?

The UFC has been a textbook example of brand growth using both the digital and traditional space in the past five years, even getting profiled by Mashable on their social media platforms. They have followed a playbook first se (and then abandoned) by boxing and then by the WWE in using traditional TV and media as the driver for large gate pay-per-view events and following that with a very unique experience... [Read more ...]

Captain Morgan Takes It Up A Notch…

It used to be that big tobacco was the premier advertiser in sports, with lavish commercials, promotional campaigns and funding for both traditional sports and especially for sports like tennis and auto racing. However with the scrutiny and regulation of the industry all that money disappeared in sponsorship in North America. At the same time the spirits industry was hamstrung in finding ways to... [Read more ...]

What’s New On The Isle…

The New York Islanders have had their issues trying to build a new arena on Long Island, and continue to look to find unique ways to build brand and regain some of the poition in the New York hockey market that they enjoyed during their glory days. That push is going to be made even more difficult by the on-ice and now-off ice promotion that the New Jersey Devils have been offering up to casual fans,... [Read more ...]

What Value Global Events? Ask Spain…

As the world moves on and experts look back on what value the World Cup brought to the African continent, perhaps they should look no further than the now reigning champion, Spain. Steadily over the last few years, the Spanish athletic programs across the board have transformed the Iberian Peninsula into a world power, whether that be in sports like golf and tennis or soccer and basketball. Why? ... [Read more ...]

“Netting” Some New Global Partners

To those fans of basketball, especially in North America, Netball may seem like hoops missing a few pieces with too many players on the court. However the game has passed its centennial, and is trying to make an aggressive push not just to expand it’s fan base, but to also bring the rules into a more modern faster pace that can help push the game forward, similar to what the Indian Premier... [Read more ...]

The Value Of Voices…

Sunday sports lost one of its touchstones, as legendary public address announced Bob Sheppard passed away at age 99. Sheppard, a gentleman, was the sound of the Yankees, the Giants, St. John’s, and was an instructor at St. John’s for many years. Like the passing of the great Ernie Harwell earloer this year and the Phillies Harry Kalas last year, another connection to the traditional... [Read more ...]

So We Now Move On…

Stephen King was once asked who his audience is for his novels, and his answer was that he writes for everyone who slows down to look at accidents. It is the sense of spectacle that makes events, no matter how bizarre or contrived they sometimes seem, that draws everyone to them. Case in point was the past week, or month, or year, and all the information, misinformation, rumors and talk about LeBron... [Read more ...]

Asking Forgiveness Not Permission: The Dallas Braden Tee’s

As baseball heads into the All-Star break, teams with distressed inventory continue to find innovative ways to rally fans and generate buzz, whether or not they are doing well on the field. Case in point is this week, where the Oakland A’s are looking to create some buzz and fan support around the visiting World Champion New York Yankees making their one trip to the Bay Area. Yes the Yanks... [Read more ...]

Owning The 4th…

As one goes through the sports calendar it is always interesting to note what the opportunities are that can still be “owned” or created by brands or teams. While the biggest days to still grab are those arounf the baseball all-star game next week, it is noteworthy that no one really hase grabbed the opportunity to activate around July 4. Maybe becuase the day is such one of leasure... [Read more ...]

Landon The Brand…

While France and Italy were wringing their hands and Nigeria was suspending their team for two years, the United States was moving on to figure out how to capitalize on the next step success that was realized in the World Cup. Despite the loss to Ghana, more casual fans tuned in, logged on and talked about World Cup in the States than ever before, giving the sport a new opportunity in its growth... [Read more ...]

Sports Marketing and Public Relations -- Sports Management Marketing -- Sports Event Marketing