WNBA

The Latest Niche Sport Goes Down…RIP AVP

August 15, 2010 by Joe Favorito · 1 Comment 

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 by those running the business, or by its players or its fans.  The AVP had even scored a big victory in January by keeping beach volleyball as an NCAA sport, and a flood of new sponsors…KFC, Nivea…had come on in recent months.  So why did the AVP join the ranks of the AFL, the IFL, the MISL, the USL,  the AAFL and so many other niche leagues?  It is more a reflection of the continued issues in the economic climate which still has yet to recover.  If major sports that have massive audiences, long term media partners, and major brands behind them are struggling to find ROI, then the smaller guys are still the first and the easiest to go.  For all the spending that is done at the highest levels of sport…World Cup, NASCAR, the four major sports in the North America, and even now in MLS…the decision makers can still point to millions, not thousands, who will see the product and the brands that are associated with them. While it is true that there are smaller brands looking to activate against a core audience, you still need major exposure to generate the kind of revenue needed to support and sustain an organization for the long run.  The AVP was also burdened with the problem of facility…each week a new stadium had to be built and configured in a new site to make the sport run well.  It would be like moving a golf course or tennis courts from one place to the next each week.  very, very expensive and very cost prohibitive.

“Netting” Some New Global Partners

July 13, 2010 by Joe Favorito · Leave a Comment 

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 League has done for cricket.  Will it work?

A “Saintly” Display Of Being A Public Trust…

June 10, 2010 by Joe Favorito · Leave a Comment 

One of the toughest elements for a sports entity to maintain these days is the balance between being a multifaceted, revenue generating business and being a public trust, like other community institutions that evoke emotion, passion and support in addition to brining in dollars. The endless media presence, a never ending season, the transient nature of athletes have all contributed to the drive to having franchises be more big business and less part of the community as they were in earlier generations.  There is a need to find every way to engage partners and fans these days, and the balance between quality and quantity of brand positioning can sometimes get lost in the dollar search, especially when partners are under continuous pressure to justify their spends, and teams are under constant pressure to deliver more return for the dollars spent by fans. Now it is true that teams have realized this issue and have taken strides to restore community trust and interest, but the true integration into the community is still a very tough balance in these challenging times.

New real estate in sports brands expands…

June 5, 2010 by Joe Favorito · 2 Comments 

As the scramble to get the best value for sponsorship dollars, as well as added eyeballs for products and services, continues on in a challenged economy, two brands took a leap step forward in the New York sports marketing scene this week.

More Expensive Real Estate Up For Grabs For Brands? NFL and WNBA…

April 23, 2010 by Joe Favorito · Leave a Comment 

The continued quest for landing valuable real estate in the sports space got another nice pop this week, when Microsoft’s Bing became the latest brand to make its way to a WNBA uniform, landing a partnership with the Seattle Storm.  The jersey signage, especially for MLS and the WNBA, has been a boon to sponsorship, and last year patches made it on to the front of NFL and NBA practice jerseys as well, bringing some brands additional incremental value and teams some added revenue. While the four major team sports still are backing off from jersey signage which is common elsewhere, it is starting to seem more like an inevitability that the integration occurs, the question is porobably where, when and at what price.  Would it start with minor league baseball and hockey, like it already has for the UFL and the D-League?  And who would be the first to test the licensing waters?  All to be seen, but certainly the backlash from the WNBA and MLS has been minimal (although it is true neither has invested the millions in brand development that the four major leagues have over an extended period of time).

The Mascot Fills A Bigger Branding Role…

February 17, 2010 by Joe Favorito · 2 Comments 

So it’s the middle of winter and you have no idea who your players are…or you are having a terrible season and the trade deadline looms and you need to keep your brand fresh and identifiable.  What to do?  The mascot. Now more than ever, with brands looking for more ROI, fans looking for personal engagement and athletes time limited, the value of having a fun, interesting and marketable mascot is higher than ever.  Ben Hill’s blog on milb.com points out dozens of minor league teams that trotted out nascot’s for Valentine’s Promotions or other teams that have unveiled new or updated mascots during the last few weeks to keep their brand top of mind with consumers.  The New Jersey Nets worked not a player, but their mascot, into a Super Bowl commercial, while NHL teams are trotting out mascots while their players are away or off during the Olympic break.  Now that it is so important to engage the entire family, older alumni may not always work as a compelling interraction, and the ability to have mascots in multiple places works as a fund rasier and a brand awareness tool.  It is true that many major market or more established brands (the Knicks, the Rangers, the Cowboys, the Dodgers) have never embraced the mascot theme, instead relying on the power of their brand and all the pieces around it to drive interest.  However for those really needing relevance, the investment in picking the right looking mascot and then marketing him, her or it appropriately, has become as valuable as any other brand campaign and one that is not taken lightly.

Be It Snow or “Sol,” Niche Sports Continue To Struggle To Build Brand

February 4, 2010 by Joe Favorito · Leave a Comment 

Even as we move to some of the most lucrative, buzz-filled and highly anticpated events of the year in the next few weeks…Super Bowl, Daytona 500, Vancouver Olympics, NBA All-Star Game…the struggles for second tier and niche sports continue.  This past week, the Los Angeles Sol, arguably WPS’ most successful franchise in year one, folded despite leading the league in attendance.  Then a story in Wednesday’s New York Times pointed out the financial struggles of one of the world’s biggest niche sports…The Iditarod…which has now lost a great deal of its sponsorship and its television contract. While not seemingly linked, both losses show that especially in challenging times, the need to over deliver on brand value is bigger than ever, and the idea that even the most loyal investors will continue to put dollars into an event on an emotional or passionate buy are long gone.  The Sol’s problems are endemic of any start-up league or brand. Despite a solid product and a significant one year investment, the parent company did not see brand growth in the future and decided to cut its losses without finding a buyer in the marketplace.  The troubling thing is that the team is perhaps in the most marketable area, in a soccer-specific stadium and with marketable stars.  Like the recent demise of the Houston Comets and Sacramento Monarchs of the WNBA, both franchises that seemingly had all the outer appearances of success, ownership made the bold decision to cut losees and move on.  What does this say for the future of WPS?  Chalking the loss up to churn would be OK if it wasn’t in the second largest media market in the country.  The question will be answered over the course of this summer, when soccer mania heats up with the men’s World Cup.  Seeing if WPS gets some of the halo effect with brands is going to be very important to see if the league grows, or if it sets, just like it’s Sol.

MLK Day A Missed Branding Oppt. For Sports?

January 18, 2010 by Joe Favorito · Leave a Comment 

Monday is a National Holiday honoring the late Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.  It would seem a perfect time…NFL in full postseason, NBA and NHL gearing up for All-Star, college sports pushing ahead, the Olympics on the horizon, the holidays in the distance…for a brand or an organization to take ownership of the weekend, especially in the area of community service and philanthropy. Yes, the NBA does do a good job of playing during the day and looking at projects that serve the spirit of Dr. King well.  Yes, some NFL teams like the 48ers are doing community service events Monday.  However, as brands look to be more community oriented and find opportunities to partner on community programs that give back, there remains no national push.  Maybe it should not be the professional teams or leagues, who would find it hard to muster full support on a Monday in January.  Maybe it should be the NCAA or High Schools that should find a brand to turn the day into one where young athletes and coaches each give back in their community. Maybe it should be the announcement of a mentoring program by each or any of the leagues, with some kind of tie to Dr. King’s spirit. Maybe it should be MLS, coming off their draft and meetings last week, or the PBR, who just started, or tennis or golf, both looking for more diversity. It just seems like with the issues of elite athletes today, and the obvious need for brands to connect to the community, that this mid-January weekend would be a prime spot to reflect, connect and reenergize the spirit and influence that athletes can have, especially young people looking for role models on any level.

Liverpool Again Shows Value Of Premium Real Estate….

September 17, 2009 by Joe Favorito · Leave a Comment 

It is perhaps the last clean piece of real estate on the sports landscape…the jerseys of the four professional teams in North America. A practice which is well accepted globally, brand advertising on the front of jerseys, still is off limits in the States with the NHL, NFL, MLB and the NBA as well as in the college ranks. Even minor league baseball and hockey have stayed away from jersey branding to date. Yet with Liverpool’s record announcement of jersey branding this week, following Manchester United’s deal with AON earlier this year, can the pro leagues here hold off much longer? The test marketing has been there now…MLS has integrated jersey sponsorship into their branding campaigns effectively, the WNBA has taken on the issue with success, the upcoming UFL season will have helmet sponsorship, and now the NFL with practice jersey signage (the value Spongetech received for being on the front of the Bengals jersey for the HBO series “Hard Knocks” in the preseason was a good testament to tasteful and effective) and the NBA (with the Nets being first in the signage pool) has followed suit. With so many teams now effectively using alternative jerseys, throwback jerseys, commemorative patches, and other new licensed product, can jersey signage be far away in the States? One thing the leagues have done, even in these challenged times, is still build a demand for that space by not letting be sold to the first bidder. The leagues are also best at protecting marks and doing the long term planning for their on-field and on-court look, so any decision will be carefully placed and effectively marketed and messaged to the consumer. Perhaps the first move will come as part of a media package when the next major TV and digital rights deal is negotiated by one of the four leagues. Perhaps it will be a mega brand which will try a buy-in all at once for an entire league, hence keeping the uniformity (no pun intended). Maybe it will be the start of a patch program which has been done effectively in tennis and golf for years. One thing is for certain, when teams look at the amount of money Liverpool pulled in for their sponsorship, the discussion has had to have been rekindled again. As brands cut back in hospitality, they need to find creative ways to support their programs through effective exposure, and at some point the virgin jersey space will become the next big option.

Deciding When The Envelope Has Been Pushed Too Far

April 9, 2009 by Joe Favorito · Leave a Comment 

A few recent instances have come up which show when sports or entertainment brands can test the waters to see what is acceptable for their fans and more importantly, their business partners. First was the UFC. CEO Dana White has done a phenomonal job of building that property to as close to mainstream as MMA may ever get, especially in a down economy where discretionary dollars will still go to the main four team sports, as well as NASCAR and soccer, in North America. Still, the UFC, with their great TV partner in Spike, have carved a niche with sponsors like Bud Light and Harley Davidson among others. Not huge spends, but very smart ones to access the demo and the UFC experience. Then last week, White went off on a video rant, aimed at a journalist, with profanity and anti-gay comments. It was premeditated, well thought out and then posted on the UFC website. Totally unprofessional and uncalled for and damaging to the brand for casual fans. Now White did recant some of his comments the next day after they received strong criticism, but there was no outcry from most MMA fans or from their brand partners, at least publicly, so perhaps the shock value outweighed the brand damage and the UFC got some edgy headlines with an edgy leader that they enjoy and can benefit from. Still it was way over the edge for a sport looking to be mainstream and poor leadership. Next comes a very interesting Yardbarker blog by the WNBA’s Chantelle Anderson on what the public perceives as sexy and what is not. It is a very well thought out post by a young female athlete and really oputs into perespective what can be edgy and damaging to a brand for women and what can be more acceptable, garner attention and be mainstream. Then Media Post today has an interesting piece on the letter writing campaigns around a too sexy Burger King commercial, aired during many sporting events, which is promoting a kids meal. Again, it is suggestive but not risque, but it caught the eye of a special interest and advocacy group during a sporting event which may make other groups sit up and take notice, and in these challenged times could create a problem for Burger King with the discretionary dollar of conservative families. So here we have a CEO dropping F Bombs and living to fight another day, we have a subtle mix of cartoon characters with a national popular brand being called on the carpet, and we have a top athlete wondering where the middle is. If you are a property, you hope you are smart to make sure partners stay in line but still speak to your clientel, and have leaders who are savvy enough to tow the line and still give your fan base what they want. End of the day, if the ticket buyers and the advertisers remain happy and engaged, then the envelope remains in a good spot. It is when the push becomes a distraction that the crisis management begins.

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