adidas

Sportsbiz Weekly Buzz – 12.1.24

by |January 24th, 2012

The Sportsbiz Weekly Buzz is a collection of articles curated by Sports Networker’s Online Marketing Coordinator – Steve Richards  
Sportsbiz

Sports Business

IMG Worldwide Squashes Rumors of Being Up For Sale

“I immediately contacted Jim Gallagher, Senior Vice President of Corporate Communications at IMG Worldwide.  Gallagher quickly put the rumor to bed.  ”There aren’t ANY conversations going on with Lagardère, or any other company or individual for that matter, regarding a purchase of IMG,” said Gallagher.”

Nationals’ Negotiations With MASN Will Have Huge Impact on Franchise

“Television contracts and the money generated from media rights fees have become a crucial factor in how baseball teams are run. Along with ticket sales, they are a team’s primary form of income, and in recent years the fees across sports have skyrocketed. The Lerners have never had a say on their arrangement with MASN. Until now.”

Sports Networking

Sports Business Career Conference During The NFL Combine

“Participants will gain insight into careers in sports through presentations by successful sports executives, including GM’s, front office executives, Scouts, Sports Agents, player personnel, and well known media currently working in football. This event includes networking, information on breaking into the sports industry and advice on advancing your sports business career. College credit available for attending. ”

5 Tips to Turn Your Personal Profile Into A Professional Place

“Recently, Facebook introduced a few new features that will help someone who wants to use their personal profile for personal branding purposes. If you want to use the world’s most popular social network to promote what you do professionally, here are a few tips to get you started. ”

[click to continue…]

About Lewis Howes

Web | Twitter | Facebook | LinkedIn | More Posts (187)

{ 0 comments }

Read More

David Barton-Ginger on All Blacks Rugby and Social Media

by |November 1st, 2010

I recently had the pleasure of interviewing David Barton-Ginger, online social media manager for the New Zealand All Blacks Rugby team. Since we are based in the U.S, it was interesting to see what sports teams are doing all the way down in New Zealand.

For those of you who don’t follow rugby, the All Blacks are like the Manchester United of Rugby, only with cooler jerseys.

They have over half a million fans ‘liking’ their Facebook page, and considering all of New Zealand only has four million people, that’s a pretty good percentage. They’re also not afraid to push the envelope and have been extremely successful in getting their players involved with engaging the fan community.

Two things in particular stuck out at me, first that the amount of success they’ve achieved while running on a small budget. In my opinion, this is one of the core drivers behind sports 2.0 – a lot can be done with sweat equity. The second is their partnership with Adidas and how they have incorporated them into their marketing campaigns. Definitely take the time to watch this video interview and find out how David and his team are breaking barriers:

If you want to read our conversation instead of watching it, the transcript is below the fold. I’d love to hear your thoughts so please leave a comment down below! [click to continue…]

About Lewis Howes

Web | Twitter | Facebook | LinkedIn | More Posts (187)

{ 0 comments }

Read More

Top Brands Dive into Sports Sponsorships

by |August 13th, 2010

We have teamed up with Ben Sturner and his extraordinary crew at Leverage Agency to bring you the top five movers and shakers each week in the world of sports sponsorships and marketing.

American Eagle’s Sponsorship Program Takes Flight
Joining the growing number of apparel brands sponsoring to build visibility, gain differentiation and drive retail traffic, American Eagle Outfitters, Inc. is expanding its use of the medium. Looking to make a stronger connection with its 15-to-25-year-old target, AEO recently announced a three-year partnership with collegiate athletics’ Big East Conference, around which it will present the men’s and women’s basketball championships.

Munich 2018 bid announces Allianz as new partner
Global financial services provider Allianz was yesterday unveiled as the latest partner to support Munich’s bid to host the Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games in 2018.
[click to continue…]

About Ben Sturner

Ben Sturner is the Founder and CEO of Leverage Agency, one of the most respected, innovative, resourceful and ambitious sports and entertainment branding sponsorship agencies on Madison Avenue. Sturner has taken his multi-million dollar business from a small start-up in his New York City apartment to a premiere agency that has secured deals for clients including: Jimmy Kimmel Live, AVP Pro Beach Volleyball, KFC, Gillette, Progressive Insurance, Southwest Airlines, Reebok, Comcast, Anheuser Busch, Fremantle Media, Mark Burnett Productions and NBC’s Prime Time Celebrity Apprentice, Reveille, Radical Media, as well as other top-tier brands. Ben has been named NYC Entrepreneur of the month in TrueNYC.com and has been interviewed and featured on ESPN, NBC, CNBC, USA TODAY and WALL STREET JOURNAL as an expert in sports and entertainment sponsorship.

Web | More Posts (18)

{ 0 comments }

Read More

Sports Business Weekly Buzz

by |July 30th, 2010

Euroleague Basketball signs first-ever title sponsor

Europe’s main club basketball competition is going to be renamed Turkish Airlines Euroleague Basketball after a ground-breaking sponsorship agreement signed by the airline and the league.

Tim Tebow Gets Chance To Take On Michael Jordan

  • Jockey announced the signing of Tim Tebow to a multi-year endorsement deal to endorse its line of products, including what it calls its new “Staycool” collection, which will hit stores in the spring of next year.
  • It’s the brand’s biggest sports endorser since the company signed Baltimore Orioles pitcher Jim Palmer to start posing in briefs exactly 30 years ago.

TaylorMade-Adidas Pits Two to Twitter Way Into a Job

How far would you go for a job? Would you eat a bug or wash an elephant? Both those challenges were presented to two contenders for the title of social-media catalyst at golf juggernaut TaylorMade-Adidas. To test the social-media mettle of its two finalists, the company dispensed with round-robin interviews and luncheons and dispatched them on the ultimate job tryout: a 50-day, nine-country golfing trip chronicled on Facebook, Twitter and other sites. Along the way, the contenders must respond to interactive challenges that include everything from creating a viral commercial to participating in user-generated contests — such as eating a bug or washing an elephant on their most recent stop in Thailand.

Want to Score in Sports? Create a Connection

And few people are more qualified to make sense of this turbulent and fascinating year than Michael Levine, co-head of CAA Sports since 2007. Mr. Levine leads a unit that not only represents more than 500 of the world’s most famous athletes, but is also active in the areas of corporate marketing, broadcast rights and sports-property sponsorship sales. Ad Age recently caught up with Mr. Levine for a wide-ranging conversation about the state of the sports world.

[click to continue…]

About Ben Sturner

Ben Sturner is the Founder and CEO of Leverage Agency, one of the most respected, innovative, resourceful and ambitious sports and entertainment branding sponsorship agencies on Madison Avenue. Sturner has taken his multi-million dollar business from a small start-up in his New York City apartment to a premiere agency that has secured deals for clients including: Jimmy Kimmel Live, AVP Pro Beach Volleyball, KFC, Gillette, Progressive Insurance, Southwest Airlines, Reebok, Comcast, Anheuser Busch, Fremantle Media, Mark Burnett Productions and NBC’s Prime Time Celebrity Apprentice, Reveille, Radical Media, as well as other top-tier brands. Ben has been named NYC Entrepreneur of the month in TrueNYC.com and has been interviewed and featured on ESPN, NBC, CNBC, USA TODAY and WALL STREET JOURNAL as an expert in sports and entertainment sponsorship.

Web | More Posts (18)

{ 1 comment }

Read More

The Importance of Brand Loyalty

by |June 18th, 2010

(This is a guest article by Anthony Alsop)

When it comes to basketball shoes (or as the kids call them, “kicks”) we all know the big brands like Nike, Adidas and Reebok, but there are some new players starting to enter the market.

In recent times the shoe industry has seen a ‘land grab’ of NBA players like Baron Davis, Jason Kidd, Shane Battier, Ron Artest and Damon Jones who have all signed with Chinese shoe companies. Recently, There was news that Kevin Garnett has reportedly signed with a Chinese company too, partnering with sports apparel firm ANTA. Garnett is leaving Adidas even though he signed a lifetime contract with the company back in 2003, and will be joining his fourth shoe company (he had previously been with Nike and And1).

Just like with traditional marketing, is there brand loyalty when it comes to sports apparel? [click to continue…]

About Lewis Howes

Web | Twitter | Facebook | LinkedIn | More Posts (187)

{ 2 comments }

Read More

Jeeks: Sports Technology Enthusiasts

by |May 25th, 2010

(This is a guest article by Anthony Alsop)

If you like sports and technology you have been given a name, you are a “Jeek”. According to a specific niche of Adidas’s company wide target market, you are a Jeek, in other words you are a mix between a jock and a geek. To qualify to be a jeek you are typically a sports-loving male, who is computer literate and in the 12-20 year age bracket (though the age range is a little too specific).

Market segmentation is the act of identifying and profiling distinct groups of buyers who might require separate products and/or marketing mixes. It is the process of splitting customers into different groups or segments, within which customers with similar characteristics have similar needs. For too long sports marketing firms were trying to segment us and tried to show that one market couldn’t merge with another.

Jocks and geeks could never merge into the same market, could they? Through market research and more powerful use of demographics, the answer is now a resounding yes, and brands are beginning to learn how to “niche-ify” their target markets accordingly.

[click to continue…]

About Lewis Howes

Web | Twitter | Facebook | LinkedIn | More Posts (187)

{ 1 comment }

Read More

adidas + UCF + Marcus Jordan – adidas = ???

by |January 12th, 2010

morbergIt came as no surprise to learn that adidas and the University of Central Florida ended their eight-year $3 million marketing relationship five years early, last month.

In what seemed to be a case of miscommunication and disagreement over whether UCF basketball player Marcus Jordan could wear his father Michael’s signature Nike shoes during Knights’ games, adidas, from the outside looking in, missed a huge public relations opportunity.

Last year when UCF told adidas that it was recruiting the son of the aforementioned NBA superstar, school administrators reportedly asked the shoe company’s personnel if Marcus Jordan could wear his father’s Jordan Brand shoes, manufactured by Nike. adidas initially agreed to let the young Jordan wear his dad’s shoes without affecting the status of the school’s agreement with it, but adidas executives changed their minds.

[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)

{ 5 comments }

Read More