Rutgers Awaits A “Big” Branding Decision…

April 25, 2010 by Joe Favorito · 1 Comment 

It was another roller coaster week in New Brunswick, New Jersey. As one Fred Hill achieved a milestone (in baseball), another was let go after a tortuous and painful process and another Scarlet Knight heard his name called in the first round of the NFL Draft. Maybe all of that activity is a harbinger of what lies ahead for the Scarlet Knights as a program and an institution as the Big Ten continues to ponder what’s going to happen next with the size of its conference.

Colleges To Take A Shot At Message Control? Be Careful What You Ask For…

January 10, 2010 by Joe Favorito · Leave a Comment 

Several years ago the Toronto Maple Leafs took what was then considered a very bold step by breaking a coaching hiring first on ther website, which at the time was unheard of.  Since then, the Washington Redskins have used their Daniel Snyder-owned sites, and radio stations to break and try and control news, a host of athletes, including Tiger Woods and Roger Clemens, have broken news with their own sites and have directed reporters there and only there for information, and many teams and  brands have gone about the business of hiring small but dedicated in-house staffs tp help tell the tale of their news from time to time.  It’s all about message control. Some teams…the Cincinnati Bengals,  Chicago Bulls, and Indiana Pacers to name a few of the first, went to the road of hiring former beat writers and columnists looking for new challenges or work to cover the team, and did not ask them to hold back during controversial times, with the thought being that it would add to the credibility and traffic for the site.  It has made for an interesting and compelling balance, with those looking to control and own media messaging (the haves) and those looking to drive interest across all media (the have nots).  Then you have colleges and even high schools.  In places where coverage and access is in great demand…major universities with large programs and large, professional-like followings…there may be value in message control, while at the Mid-Major and below, the need to drive coverage and find ways to get the information out is becoming more challenging.  Even at large Universities, the struggle to get stories told away from big time football and basketball can be tough in many instances.  So what is the solution?

Small Fish in a Big Sea…Maximizing The Niche Event Coverage…

November 19, 2008 by Joe Favorito · Leave a Comment 

Finding a great story is not that difficult.  If you know how to listen and ask the right questions, everyone has a story that is newsworthy.  Finding the story and then finding the ways to effectively tell it is not always the easiest task.  The amount of demands on the time of the media, the ability to find the right media members to reach the right audience, and the way to find “The Get,”  what sets the story apart from others, especially in a major marketplace, are always big challenges.  Timing, knowing when to place the story or make the call, is also so important in delivering media for a brand.  Sometimes the pitch works perfectly, and hits in multiple markets and with mulitple mediums, from digital to print to TV to radio.  A great example of all the pieces falling into place…a great story, a unique athlete branding opportunity, knowing and pitching the right media and then delivering compelling content…occurred last week in the Atlantic Ocean just off the coast of Miami, with a woman named Jennifer Figge, who is beginning a swim of the Atlantic Ocean.  The story, especially in an Olympic year where feats of endurance and unbelievable athletic accomplishment rise to the top of the public interest, was a great fit.  The time of year, right after the baseball playoffs and when both hockey and basketball in South Florida are yet to be top of mind, worked well.  The drama surrounding issues with Jennifer’s start added to the intrigue  However most importantly her team was able to land compelling video, posted on YouTube, as well as Associated Press stills and a print piece, which gave the story tremendous legs (no pun intended) on hundreds of sites worldwide.  Even by today’s standards where websites are king, the landing of an AP feature remains the elusive grail, and by landing that coverage and the video to match, the story was able to resonate globally with both the traditional and the YouTube generation.  Great placement of a niche story, and great potential for followup as the crossing continues.

Another Major Record In A Minor League Town…

August 4, 2008 by Joe Favorito · Leave a Comment 

Once again we have to credit  Ben Hill of milb.com for finding the unusual both on and off the field as minor league baseball teams hit the dog days of summer and search for ways to get exposure and lure fans.  This time he found the Class A Midwest league Kane County Cougars, who attempted and succeeded to break the record for the world’s largest pillow fight.  The event had over 3,500 participants, tied in a local bedding company, got the kids involved in a fun activity and extended the night for concessions and media coverage.  Nice idea, well planned and self sufficient with little to no overhead.   Once again could this be done at a higher level of play?  Our guess is the liability factor alone could be a deal killer, but for the lower minor leagues its a home run. 

Managing Expectations And Handling Adversity…

June 8, 2008 by Joe Favorito · Leave a Comment 

With Big Brown’s loss in the race for the Triple Crown on Saturday, publicists, madia and brand managers were left scrambling to find ways to fill voids, justify dollars spent, and re-jig lineups that were anticpated for the coronation and history that would have come for all involved with a Triple Crown winner.  The prep to take advantage is always important in business., but seizing the moment for sports is so much trickier becuase of the human element.  Therefore, being ready for both the sunny day and prepping for the rainy one are so key in finding ways to get exposure and ROI.  The expections, and the managing of those expectations, are really the key to being a good sports marketer or publicist.  Many of these points on managing expectations were handled really well in former MLB player Doug Glanville’s op-ed piece in the New York Times.  Glanville does a great job on how the assumption of winning and then living up to those expectations, is handled by media and athletes.  The spin of failure…how sponsors like UPS and Hooters, who rolled the dice with Big Brown, will handle the next phase, and what horse racing can do not to lose all that momentum, will be interesting to follow in the next few days.  Having the umbrella ready for the rainy day is more important than dealing correctly with the win, and making sure that all properly take pause to be messaged and that brands have gotten back what they invested prior to the unpredicatable results, are so important in the process, since marleters and publicists never have control over the ultimate result of a game, race or competition.  For example, Edelman PR did a great job in seizing the moment of a world record late at night in last week’s Reebok Track and Field Championships in New York, getting Usain Bolt to every media opportunity possible following his world record finish. Another great piece of spin was offered up by  legendary boxing promoter Don King, waxing positive on how boxing can benefit from the recent MMA success, in a piece in Sunday’s Daily News…both come from seasoned pros ready to take advantage of opportunites..the biggest challenge on the rainy day is finding ways to look through the adversity and create the unforseen chances.

A Bender At American U., Costumes With The Hoyas…All In D.C. Hoops Fun

January 29, 2008 by Joe Favorito · Leave a Comment 

PR Move of the Day:  The creativity that college students and the enterprising marketing and pr staffs on campus display is usually first rate.  Some of the off-beat examples of expression we have pointed out this year, from Booties 4 Booty to the Lady Vols doing a free tuition campaign, have been great.  Today we point to Washington D.C., where American University held their seventh annual “Phil Bender Day” this past weekend.  The promotion, which is really a great play on words for filling the seats with student pride for Bender Arena, has taken on a life of it’s own (as documented in Sunday’s Washington Post by Dan Steinberg, who has a great blog by the way), complete with the creation of the lovable (albeit fictional) character “Phil” himself and a host of merch that goes along with it.  Great play on words, great grassroots effort to create a unique promotion.  All we need is the “Where’s Phil?”  website.  By the way, a Google search for “Phil Bender” uncovers a Phil Bender, attorney, Phil Bender the Libertarian Party candidate, and  Phil “The Painting boxer” Bender.  Maybe the eighth annual game should be a Phil Bender reunion?