August 2009

Building a Digital Brand Universe is a fundamental part of the Digital Royalty philosophy.  We created the concept to serve as a road map for digital integration.  This video is an example of how social media is done on the move.

About Amy Martin

Amy Martin spent eight years living the agency life working with clients such as the Arizona Cardinals, Phoenix Coyotes and the the Super Bowl XLIII Host Committee. She recently spent three seasons with the Phoenix Suns developing and monetizing their digital media platform. During her time with the Suns, she was responsible for concepting, pitching, executing and measuring digital marketing partnerships (sponsorships). Digital Royalty, Amy’s Digital Integration and Social Marketing agency, focuses on developing strategies to help corporate brands, professional sports leagues, teams and athletes build, measure and monetize their digital universe. She has developed a proprietary Return on Influence (ROI) measurement formula to demonstrate the value of social marketing. Her most recent example of social media success is the growth of Shaquille O’Neal’s digital brand via social media and implementing measurable strategies which have resulted in securing major endorsement deals.

More Posts (7)

{ 2 comments }

Read More

bill guertinI had the pleasure to meet with fellow SportsNetworker.com writer, Bill Guertin, during one of my business networking events that I hold around the country.  This event happened to be in Cleveland where Bill was doing some ticket sales consulting with the Cleveland Cavs and meeting with the Cleveland Browns as well.

I already knew that Bill was a great writer and had a wealth of information on how to boost ticket sales, and I was pleasantly surprised when we met in person and I realized he was a great guy to be around.  Check out this brief video below where Bill shares with you a few of his tips on how to increase ticket sales.

{ 0 comments }

Read More

Sports Agent CartoonIn roughly four months, Bob Ruxin and I will be releasing a new book: An Athlete’s Guide to Agents, 5th Edition.  The book will cover everything from NCAA rules and regulations to turning pro early…and it even discusses the agent selection process.  That process is not a one-way street.  The principal is the athlete, who has control over his agent; however, the agent also has to agree to represent the athlete.

Athletes are often asked, “What influenced you to pick the particular agent/agency you chose for contractual and/or marketing representation,” but a question that is rarely asked of an agent is, “Why did you choose to recruit that particular player to be your client?”  Some agents, especially those first starting on their own, do not have the luxury of being picky.  But once an agent has a firm client-base, he is not going to go after twenty players in all fifty states. [click to continue…]

About Darren Heitner

Darren Heitner is a CEO, sports agent, journalist, entrepreneur, and innovator. Darren created the first sports agent blog on the internet, SportsAgentBlog.com, which receives upwards of 5,000 unique visits per day from sports agents, athletes, media sources, and the general public. In the blog, everything from contract negotiations to endorsement deals are examined, providing the framework for a great deal of information upon which he has been able to depend. In 2009, Darren created EntertainmentAgentBlog.com, which has the same purpose of SAB, but focuses on the entertainment industry. Darren is also the CEO and Founder of Dynasty Athlete Representation, a full service sports and talent agency that handles contract negotiations, marketing endorsements, financial planning, legal services, etc. Darren graduated from the University of Florida in May 2007 with a Political Science Major and was valedictorian of his class. He is a member of many Honors Societies including, Florida Blue Key, Phi Beta Kappa, and Phi Kappa Phi. He is now in his third and final year at the University of Florida Levin School of Law, where he is serving his second consecutive term as the President of the Entertainment and Sports Law Society.

Web | More Posts (9)

{ 3 comments }

Read More

peter robert caseyPeter Robert Casey, a fellow Sports Networker member who recently attended the Sports Networker NYC event has been getting a lot of attention online at mashable, Brian Solis, the St. John’s site (along with many others) for his recent “acceptance in the press” credentials he has received because of his powerful Twitter presence. Let’s just say, as a social media sports community that we are extremely proud of him for leading the way into this new opportunity.

Casey, according to the press release, is currently among the Top 10 most-followed basketball-related users on Twitter. The Brooklyn, N.Y., native and Bronx resident trails only NBA superstar Shaquille O’Neal of the Cleveland Cavaliers, Dwight Howard of the Orlando Magic, the Los Angeles Lakers, University of Kentucky coach John Calipari, Chris Bosh of the Toronto Raptors, Charlie Villanueva of the Detroit Pistons and a few others among those associated with professional, collegiate and youth basketball. Casey is, by far, the most-followed basketball-related individual who is not a professional basketball player, team or coach. [click to continue…]

{ 7 comments }

Read More

Social MediaSoutheastern Conference associate commissioner for media relations, Charles Bloom, has had better weeks. Actually, so has everyone in the SEC offices in Birmingham, Ala.

Just days after a conference ticket policy went into place, the SEC began to receive unprecedented criticism from season ticket holders at its 12 member schools to media nationwide. The primary complaint stemmed from language that when taken at face value, said that fans could not share their game experiences via social media – Twitter, Facebook and other outlets on which people like to post photos and comments during games. The league, which had signed an exclusive, lucrative, broadcast contract with ESPN and CBS in August 2008, that would take effect with the 2009-2010 sports season, was accused of prioritizing corporate dollars en route to disrespecting its fans. [click to continue…]

About Gail Sideman

Twenty years of public relations experience, including 10 in NCAA Division I sports information during which she received national awards for her work, have helped Gail Sideman emerge as a nationally-respected publicity professional in sports, social media and publishing. She is also a veteran support staffer of sports television crews for events that include the NFL, NBA, MLB, NCAA regular and postseason and others. You may learn more information about Sideman's business at www.publiside.com or follow her at www.twitter.com/PUBLISIDE and www.facebook.com/gail.sideman.

Web | More Posts (39)

{ 4 comments }

Read More

TextPerception is reality I am told and recently sports sponsorship has taken it on the chin. Do we need to rehabilitate our image and if so, how?  Some have suggested we should change the terms we use to describe our practice.  Is this managing perception or folding in the face of uninformed critics?   Jason Peck had a spirited discussion on the topic a while back on his blog.  With that in mind, I thought it would be a decent enough time to take a look at a few of the terms we use day in and day out while networking in the biz.  [click to continue…]

About Kris Mathis

Kris Mathis is the Founder/CEO of SponsorPitch.com, a New York City-based sponsorship networking start-up. Kris started his career in sponsorship representing Fortune 500 clients at Edelman PR's sponsorship consulting division prior to jumping to a brand management position at Paris-based mobile gaming startup, Gameloft. In between, Kris attended graduate school in Nashville (Music City!), Tennessee. In his spare time, Kris enjoys eating, running, the beach, UFC and Bryant Park. Follow Kris on Twitter @Sponsorpitch!

Web | More Posts (6)

{ 3 comments }

Read More

Sit-down with Amy Martin, of Digital Royalty. She shares her professional experience and offers tips on how to use your existing social marketing space to find and recruit your brand’s next Sports Social Media Manager.

About Amy Martin

Amy Martin spent eight years living the agency life working with clients such as the Arizona Cardinals, Phoenix Coyotes and the the Super Bowl XLIII Host Committee. She recently spent three seasons with the Phoenix Suns developing and monetizing their digital media platform. During her time with the Suns, she was responsible for concepting, pitching, executing and measuring digital marketing partnerships (sponsorships). Digital Royalty, Amy’s Digital Integration and Social Marketing agency, focuses on developing strategies to help corporate brands, professional sports leagues, teams and athletes build, measure and monetize their digital universe. She has developed a proprietary Return on Influence (ROI) measurement formula to demonstrate the value of social marketing. Her most recent example of social media success is the growth of Shaquille O’Neal’s digital brand via social media and implementing measurable strategies which have resulted in securing major endorsement deals.

More Posts (7)

{ 3 comments }

Read More

Sports FanSports marketing thought leader, Jason Peck, said something two weeks ago that really resonated with me. After hearing a company say they controlled their brand in social media he said this, “The words influence, facilitate and protect your brand should replace control.”

Frankly, I couldn’t agree more…

… Provided it’s your fans who pay money to come see your games/events and who are already having the conversations you’re trying to control, and will have them regardless. Seriously, get over it. Better yet embrace it!

[click to continue…]

About Ryan Stephens

Ryan is an Associate Media Analyst at Sports Media Challenge where he helps champion social media strategies for sports, lifestyle and entertainment brands. In his spare time he serves as a social media consultant who is passionate about the power of web 2.0 and its ability to cultivate conversations, build relationships and spread of ideas. Feel free to leave your thoughts on his article in the comments section below, connect with him on his blog at Ryan Stephens Marketing or on Twitter @ryanstephens, and read the rest of his bio here.

Web | More Posts (13)

{ 6 comments }

Read More

gilbert arenas basketball

When you think of social media and basketball, you think Shaquille O’Neal. He has over 2 million followers on Twitter and about 900,000 fans on Facebook. He is hilarious, innovative, active, and engaging. He was one of the first athletes to get involved with social media and his personality has helped make him one of social media’s biggest stars.

Shaq gets a lot of love for being the pioneer athlete in this space, but people fail to acknowledge the one who came before him and all other athletes: Gilbert Arenas.

In October 2006, Gilbert Arenas began blogging on NBA.com. He used the blog, “Agent Zero: The Blog File,” to complement his entertaining personality by making scoring predictions, writing about his experiences on and off the court, and giving the fans a true look into the life of an NBA star.  He interacted with fans, even making bets with them, and got into trouble from time to time for what he said. Most importantly, he was not afraid to push the envelope and he was transparent and honest. He was nothing more than Gilbert Arenas, and that is what made his blog so fun to read and follow. [click to continue…]

About Sam Taggart

Sam is a Creative Strategist for VaynerMedia, a social media agency based in New York City. Sam previously worked as an Account Executive for the New York Jets as well as the New Jersey Nets and spent time working with former NBA player Jalen Rose as well as NFL safety Kerry Rhodes. He now focuses on creative strategy across VaynerMedia's portfolio. You can follow Sam at http://twitter.com/gosam & visit VaynerMedia at http://www.vaynermedia.com.

Web | Twitter | LinkedIn | More Posts (49)

{ 3 comments }

Read More

Usain BoltCan Usain Bolt really be that much of a freak to break two of his own world records in one week?  He didn’t just break his world records in the 100m and 200m, he smashed them!  What does this mean for his sponsorship opportunities for the future?  Should brands hop on the wagon and spend multi-million dollar campaigns on him, take out full page ads and post his image on billboards around the world?  Maybe an Internet company should use his name as a new type of high speed service?  Or maybe Usain himself should come out with a fast food joint and call it “Bolts”.

How do you see Bolt and his new world breaking efforts changing the sports industry as we see it today… or will nothing change at all?

{ 1 comment }

Read More