Turning Lemons into Lemonade Part I

Jan 26, 2009

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Let's face it: Economically speaking, 2009 is shaping up to be what can euphemistically be described as a tough year. Sure, there's a new team in power in the nation's capital. But unless they've been saving their really good ideas for some even more dramatic time, the coming months could be a long slog.

    Yet, as someone once famously said, the show must go on. And to that end, there is a growing chorus of voices in the sports marketing industry that is mustering the will to question the naysayers. Top executives from league properties, media companies and sports marketing agencies are now implementing strategies that they hope will turn 2009 into a year in which they can not only survive but thrive.

    Several important trends indicate these optimists might just be right. For one thing, with the spike in popularity of high-definition TVs and its equally advanced HD programming, it's an easy argument to suggest that there's never been a better time to watch sports on television. (Data from the Nielsen Company shows high-def sets were in 22 percent of U.S. homes as of October 2008.) For another thing, ironically enough, economic woes traditionally correlate with an upswing in TV viewing patterns. And finally, there's the never-ending expansion of sports programming and information that can be found online that goes way, way beyond sating even the most ravenous sports fans. (Nielsen Online reports that more than 75 million people tapped into sports related Web sites in October and that 10.6 million accessed sports content via a mobile Web platform such as a cell phone.)

    Put them all together, and these trends - as well as others - actually have some in the sports marketing sphere seriously bullish about the year ahead. Take Jon Diament, for example.

    "There is definitely reason for concern because the traditional sports categories, such as automotives, are challenged right now. But there are other categories - like pharmaceuticals and electronics and wireless and movies - that are realizing that sports is a very good place to be right now," says Diament, executive vice president/ad sales for Turner Sports. "So, looking ahead, we're feeling very positive about our assets."

    And those assets are indeed, formidable. While Turner Sports, the production and marketing arm of Turner Broadcasting, is not a consumer brand, its corporate siblings, TBS and TNT most certainly are. Through those two networks, the company's sports coverage includes Major League Baseball games, NASCAR races, National Basketball Association matchups and Professional Golf Association tournaments. Turner Sports also operates a number of Web sites, such as NBA.com, PGA.com and NASCAR.com.

    When a sports-related advertiser calls Diament, there is almost no shortage of ways he and his team can blend the colors on the palette to come up with a marketing masterpiece.

    "We don't do cookie-cutter solutions here," he says. "Right from the start, we get into a two-way dialogue with our clients about how we can create a customized marketing plan that goes way beyond the traditional.

    "The bar has been raised in the way marketers are integrated. You don't want to insult the viewer. You want it to be a natural integration. That's why we need to be as smart as possible, particularly in challenging economic times like these."

    Dave Rosenberg, the chief strategic officer at GMR Marketing in New Berlin, Wis., couldn't agree more. GMR specializes in stitching together innovative marketing campaigns and promotional events. The company recently completed projects for outfits such as the Green Bay Packers, ESPN and the Speed Channel. And Rosenberg, like Turner's Diament, believes it's time for sports marketing companies to focus on true partnerships that go beyond simply plugging a brand.

    "The point that I think the sponsors as well as the leagues have to take is that it's not just about advertising or marketing anymore," he says. "It's going to be about sharing business objectives to a much greater degree. In the past, it's been about brand building. But now it's going to have to be about that as well as partnerships and business objectives. That's where it's got to go, and I think that's one major bright spot in all
this."

    This sort of collaboration, Rosenberg adds, requires a high level of trust between the partners. It also will require a different type of executive who can broker these deals.

    "The individual who is necessary for this environment will have to be a more senior person and have a greater fluency with business philosophies," he believes. "The properties that get this will be putting people out there with a little higher sophistication level."

    Related to that, says colleague Greg Busch, GMR's senior vice president and group account director, is a stepped-up emphasis on valuation metrics. "In this economy, there's going to be much more scrutiny of these investments to make sure they're working and that the ROI is there," Busch says.

For more Sports Marketing coverage:
Turning Lemons into Lemonade Part I
Turning Lemons into Lemonade Part II
Sony Ericsson WTA Tour
Turner Sports