Is There A Doctor In The House…Individual MD’s Step Up Branding…

January 27, 2009 by Joe Favorito · Leave a Comment 

We have all seen the doctor “tips” usually affiliated with sports medicine sponsorships with teams and leagues.  The obligatory in-arena and on-air quick factoids on injury “sponsored by” have been around for years.  However it seems like the indicidual doctors have looked to sports more as a way to more directly reach the consumer on their own.  Maybe its the affordability of space, the need for individuals to stand out more as the competition for the health dollar gets more competitive or media and brands looking to create more one on one contact between a fan base that needs to exercise and is more health conscious these days, but the doctor as brand is on the rise, especially on the recreational side.  Some examples include the Florida Panthers afternoon game sponsored by dentist Dr. Larry Kawa, a new “X-Ray Vision” column in the New York Daily News by two prominent New York sports doctors, and a new website with expert information directed to the active recreational athlete, Sportsmd.com.   In each case the doctor, not the health care group or his own group, is stepping out on his or her own as the expert, and marketing to the sports fan directly.  It is not unlike other professions which work direct to consumer through sports, and could be a new larger revenue stream for teams and brands as they look for new money away from the traditional advertiser.

A Look At The Favre Saga To Date…

August 9, 2008 by Joe Favorito · Leave a Comment 

As has been pointed out at the trade deadline, the firing of Willie Randolph by the Mets and countless other high profile moves that are scrutinized 24/7 by the media and the fans, the real long term impact of what Brett Favre means to New York, the Jets, the Packers, retailers, business partners and anyone else involved with the business of football won’t be known until all is played out on the field.  However the immediate impact for buzz, sales, long-term purchase of seat licenses and ratings has already been felt by the Jets, and was clearly laid out by Richard Sandomir in the Times and Darren Rovell in his blog on msnbc.con. The Jets found great ways to spin and have Favre positioned well in the first go-round, from getting news and jersey sales up immediately on their website to taking a slow Friday news day and getting an opportunity with Favre and Mayor Bloomberg at City Hall.  They also did a very good job of making sure GM Mike Tannenbaum stayed on message and that Favre stuck to the positive script with the same questions…there were no scenes of him being surly or running away from cameras, ala Randy Johnson in his first go-round in New York.  Conversely, the Packers did a good job of staying on message and moving on in Green Bay as well, and the Wisconsin State News did a good job of talking to many members and looking for holes…and finding very few…in the Packer family.  Even former Jet Chad Pennington, who moved on to the Dolphins, handled himself very well.  Now obviously this was a win-win for most people involved, and even the Packers now have a distraction put behind them. All the perceived silliness and airing of dirty laundry publicly has ended with the news cycle.  However what it does show is the well thought-out scenarios that NFL teams can orchastrate, especially when something is able to be played out for a period of days.  Now if this was midseason and the performance would be judged on field could the fallout been more controversial?  Yes.  But with the luxury of a preseason, the distraction of the Olympics, and the fact that the real impact of Brett Favre in NY on the field won’t be felt for some time, all the bells and whistles rang (as did the cash register) and the NFL and the Jets scored big points in buzz and partner growth.  The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel also had a good summary of what other markets said about the trade.  Mark Kriegel also has his take on the move on Foxsports.com thats always a good read.