As we know, the Super Bowl is one of the greatest spectacles in the sports world and fans from all over make a pilgrimage to experience it. The NFL has done a fantastic job of making it possible for the average fan to experience the Super Bowl, even if they don’t have a ticket to the game. They have done this by creating the NFL Experience for every Super Bowl. The NFL Experience is a giant NFL theme park of sorts that makes even grown men giddy with excitement. It has tons of exhibits about the history of the Super Bowl, a replica NFL draft stage where you can get “drafted” by your team of choice, the Lombardi Trophy on display, free autographs & kid’s clinics, and of course a plethora of games to test your football skills.

Naturally, such an event is a breeding ground for sponsorship. Brands desperately want to be a part of the NFL and the Super Bowl in some capacity, and the NFL Experience is a unique arena for brands to reach a wide variety of fans. This year’s NFL Experience in Indianapolis broke every attendance record to date with over 265,000 fans over the 10 days leading up to Super Bowl XLVI.

Here’s a recap of the major sponsors that made their brand known at the 2012 NFL Experience and their unique activations.

Major Sponsor Activations at NFL Experience

GMC

GMC was the presenting sponsor of the 2012 NFL Experience and certainly made their brand known. The GMC logo was on all volunteer and manager shirts along with a scattering of GMC vehicles on display throughout the convention center. GMC also brought in several big time players including Antonio Gates, Joe Montana, Maurice Jones-Drew, among others to sign autographs for a select amount of fans. In order to be eligible to receive an autograph, fans had to register ata kiosk within the area and proceed to answer questions about GMC vehicles that were on display. The idea was for fans to pay attention to the facts about each car, but this ended up being a huge hassle and fans just quickly browsed the information presented in order to get the answers. The idea that fans were going to “learn” about these cars didn’t work at all.

However, GMC had a very cool opportunity for fans to create their own “touchdown moment” as they captured a 3D photo of you lunging into the endzone. Fans could then share their 3D action shots on Facebook, Twitter or email at another kiosk in the exhibit (check out my amazing shot!). Great way to integrate social media as people love to share their cool experiences – I mean c’mon look at my shameless plug.

Verizon Wireless

Verizon had a major presence at the NFL Experience this year as they had one of the largest displays and interactive areas.They utilized Green Bay Packer, Clay Matthews, in many of their advertisments and even recorded a video of him introducing fans to the Verizon exhibit. Verizon naturally also pushed their NFL Mobile app and the ability to watch Super Bowl XLVI from a Verizon mobile device, which was a perfect opportunity to educate this demographic in an intimate atmosphere.Upon entrance of the exhibit, fans were required to register at kiosks in order to play the interactive games they had in their area. Fans were given replica quarterback playbook sweatbands where it displayed a unique barcode for each person to scan in order to play games. A pretty awesome giveaway and proved to be an effective way in order to gain customer data.

Bridgestone

Bridgestone was another major sponsor, but their display was tucked back in an odd corner where there wasn’t a ton of traffic. They were giving away mini foam footballs to fans and had a similar picture station that GMC had, but not nearly as cool as theirs wasn’t a 3D picture. Their activation was definitely overshadowed by GMC and was ultimately pretty weak and not memorable – which is one of the goals of every sponsorship.

Under Armour

Under Armour had another sponsor exhibit that was tucked away from many fans. I’m not sure if this was just the luck of the draw due to the different set-up of the NFL Experience than in years past or if it was due to the cost of the sponsorship. Regardless, their main exhibit area was pretty lackluster as it was small and only featured a few combine type drills where fans could test their skills (i.e. vertical jump, broad jump, agility ladders, etc.).However, Under Armour sponsored a few games in the main activities area called “Run to Daylight” aka the 40 yard dash and the “QB Quick Release” which were actually a big hit. But Under Armour really missed the mark as they didn’t display their new product lines anywhere. Besides the Under Armour and GMC employees who wore UA shirts and shoes, there was no product to show the customer anywhere.

Pepsi/Doritos

The Pepsi/Doritos exhibit featured product samples of Pepsi Max and Doritos and an area in which fans could view and vote on their favorite entries from Doritos popular “Crash the Super Bowl” commercial contest. Other than that their exhibit also got lost in the fray of the others and didn’t really present anything unique to fans.

Minor Sponsor Activations

Gillette and Head & Shoulders are both apart of the P&G brand and these products were displayed in the rep
lica NFL locker room featuring a player’s “locker” from each team.They were also joined by Gatorade and Wrigley Gum products inside the locker.*Ambush Marketing ALERT*: Suave for MEN, a direct competitor of Head & Shoulders, was giving away Suave branded jerseys and wigs to mimic Clay Matthews’ hair (a Suave for MEN endorser) immediately outside of the NFL Experience in the NFL Village. Coincidence?  I think not. Here are a few more:

• Castrol Oil sponsored an agility drill
• Topps/Panini sponsored the official autograph stage
• There was also the NFL Rush Zone where there were mini-versions of games catered to kids. Cartoon Network, XBOX Kinect and Play 60 had exhibits targeted at kids and their families.
• MARS Candy (Snickers and M&M’s) sponsored the Field Goal Kick and the Punt/Pass/Kick station which always had the longest lines and was in prime position in the Experience. Also handed out free samples.
• Bud Light had beer pouring rights and branded several bars within the NFL Experience

Who Were The Sponsorship Winners At The NFL Experience?

Did anyone else find some unique sponsor activations at the NFL Experience or at any of the other Super Bowl XLVI festivities? Leave your comments below or feel free to tweet us!

About Holly Koski

Holly Koski is a recent grad from Indiana University majoring in Sports Marketing & Management. As the Sports Networker Marketing Intern, she is responsible for managing the Sports Networker Twitter, Facebook and YouTube pages while promoting Sports Networker content through various online and email marketing strategies.

Web | Twitter | LinkedIn | More Posts (4)

The Australian Open Grand Slam tennis tournament, which has reached half way stage as I write this,  has built on the progress of previous years to establish a strong, recognizable and credible online brand. According to Sam Laird, in a recent post on the US website Mashable, the Australian Open ‘may just be the most digitally connected major sporting event of all time’. High praise indeed.

So why is the event in Melbourne attracting such accolades for its digital presence?

In my opinion, what the Australian Open is doing so well is leveraging digital assets to create deep and meaningful engagement with fans, while at the same time integrating its sponsors. Many sporting events, clubs and organizations across the globe strive to simultaneously achieve these two goals and the Grand Slam for Asia/Pacific has, arguably, pulled it off.

Fan Engagement at the Australian Open

In terms of fan engagement, the Aussie Open is actively utilizing its website, social media accounts and mobile applications.

The website is fully integrated with social media – essential for any event – and it keeps the fan abreast of pretty much everything that is going on. There is also Slamtracker, the live scoring application, Australian Open television (AOTV), with free live streaming from 7 courts, and an extensive vault of past great tennis matches. Fans also have the opportunity to opt-in for daily email updates and let’s not forget the Fan Centre.

The Fan Centre encourages fan participation and involvement in a number of innovative ways. The most notable is the Social Leaderboard where the social media activity of fans directly increases the points given to 40 popular players chosen by the Australian Open. If a fan tweets about one of these players using a hashtag that relates to the player’s name or likes content on the official Facebook page, that player receives points. As I write this, Rafael Nadal (#rafa) is ranked number 1, with a total of over 16,000 points. Overall, the number of tweets to the official hashtag (#ausopen) has reached over 110,000.

Additionally,  there is Pick Em. This competition encourages participation for daily prizes. There are also polls and trivia competitions to capture fan engagement. Another initiative creating fan involvement and fan voting is Fan of the Day, which enables Kia, the major sponsor, to take and upload photos of fans. Another practice is Caption It, which uses fan generated content to build buzz for the tournament. If that isn’t enough, fans can become ‘Fanbassadors’ and be included in the ‘On The Outer’ honor roll if they tweet a link to their blog or tag the Australian Open in one of their tweets. Popcorn Tennis (@popcorntennis) also provides fans with ‘bite-size pieces of on and off-court action’.

In social media, the official Facebook page has over 500,000 likes and a 54,000 ‘talking about this’ number, providing a 10% engagement ratio for the page. The Twitter feed (@AustralianOpen) is being covered 24 hours a day, for fans wherever they may be, and the account presently has over 67,000 followers.

In terms of sheer numbers, the Australian Open website exceeded 10 million unique visitors in 2011 and this number is likely to be surpassed in 2012.

For mobile applications, the Australian Open has free apps for the iPhone, iPad and this year, for the first time, the Android. The apps feature scores, schedules, players, an event guide, draws, news and a GPS feature to locate key points around the grounds and much more. The apps were developed by IBM. The presence of the IBM logo within the apps shows an example of sponsorship integration for an Official Partner – more of that below. In 2011, more than 700,000 fans updated or downloaded the official iPhone app.

Sponsorship Integration

Sponsors of the Australian Open are integrated both online (and in some cases offline) and, in my opinion, in a fairly unobtrusive way, which is really the key. As with any event, sponsor obligations have to be met – but  not to such an extent that the fan becomes disengaged, which would ultimately damage both the event and sponsor brands. On the website, scores are presented by IBM (technology partner), Video and Radio are presented by Rolex (watches – associate sponsor) and Tickets presented by Virgin Australia (airlines – official sponsor). All sponsors and partners also have permanent website presence at the foot of the homepage, as well as in a dedicated sponsors family section.

The ‘Open Drive’ feature, run on You Tube and from the major sponsor, Kia (motor vehicles), has returned again this year. The Open Drive is an entertaining way for fans to get to know players better through a series of questions asked while the player is driven around Melbourne in the back of a Kia vehicle. This year’s video with Nadal has already attracted over 38,000 views.  And, here’s another one with Novak Djokovic after his semi-final win vs Andy Murray.

Finally, a competition being run via Facebook, and sponsored by Jacob’s Creek, will enable a lucky fan to win a dinner with Andre Agassi. Agassi, a former Wimbledon winner, is also an ambassador for Jacob’s Creek (wine-associate sponsor), which is trying to reinforce its connections with the sport of tennis.

One thing that would probably do even more to deepen fan engagement while at the same time being highly attractive to sponsors? An Australian winner, of course. But some things just can’t be controlled through innovative digital marketing!

Have you noticed anything else that the Australian Open has done to engage their audience? Could they be doing anything better? Feel free to leave your comments below or tweet us your thoughts!

About Chris Conway

Chris is a strategic programs analyst at the Australian Rugby Union (ARU) focusing on, amongst other things, sponsorship research, analytics and acquisition. He holds a MBA from the Australian Graduate School of Business (AGSM). Chris took part in the school’s exchange program by completing a semester at Stern business school, NYU where he studied sports marketing and sports economics. Connect with him on Twitter and LinkedIn.

Web | Twitter | LinkedIn | More Posts (24)

Here in Australia, sporting clubs are only just realizing the massive potential of social media and beginning to understand the new opportunities they have to connect with their fans.

Er, so I’ll start a Facebook page then?

Finding the right tools and platform

The first step to getting involved in social media in sports is to figure out what exactly is the best network to use. It might be necessary to use a combination of networks, but if you are only going to focus on one, it’s crucial to use the one that fans use most.

Once the platform has been chosen, Sean says sports companies or events teams need to know how best to use it and understand what they want to get out of it.

“What’s the goal? Why exactly do you want your club to get involved in social media. Is it to build a fan base? Is it to grow membership numbers or is it to better promote sponsors?” he said.

“You have to get fans to like the FB page or follow the Twitter feed, get them to comment and then drive them back to your website,” he said. “Think of fans as long term customers. Essentially you are in a relationship with them – but you’re more of a friend than a sales representative.  Key numbers are active fans, it’s important to be engaging them, not just collecting them”.

Get Creative and Encourage Fans to Share on Social Media

Case study: West Coast Eagles (AFL)

The SportsDP model instructs fans to like, share or tweet West Coast Eagles content. In return for liking content and sharing in the social media space fans collect points and are effectively ‘rated’ on how big a fan they are.

Not only does this type of approach allow fans to get involved in the club and stay up to date on news, it also fosters a real sense of community and loyalty amongst fans and sponsors.

Incorporating sponsorship

“Just because a sports event or club has large numbers of followers doesn’t mean the sponsors will also become popular,” he said. “Of course there can be a flow on effect but you still have to give fans a reason to stay connected.”

“We worked with a property investing company who obtained an excellent flow on to their social media accounts from a sports event they were sponsoring,” he said. “Even though they aren’t in the business of sport they now provide tips to fans and followers – so when they do decide to look at investing fans will go to them first. Social media in sports is simply a touchpoint – an opportunity to reach fans on a whole new level,” he said. “Clubs have to think differently as they can connect with fans on a daily basis.  Social media is a unique opportunity to engage with fans long term. It’s all about connecting and building relationships.”

He believes there are amazing opportunities for growth, and for sponsors, if clubs know how to develop and implement effective social media strategies.

Sean’s Top Tips for Developing an Effective Strategy for Social Media in Sports

• Determine what the goal is and why exactly you want to get involved in social media. Is it to build a fan base? Is it to grow membership numbers or is it to better promote sponsors?
• Identify the best platforms to support your campaign. Keep in mind that most people on Facebook just want to play. It’s important to understand that most people are not necessarily there to buy but they will be open to reading marketing messages.
• Engage, engage, engage. It’s important to keep social media and social networking ‘social’.  It’s not just a broadcast platform. It’s crucial to have a balance with quality content and marketing messages.

#Youtube140 – Google+ Brand Pages In Sports

Also, make sure to check out Sean’s Youtube channel where he produces a series called #Youtube140.  These are a series of videos where he discusses a topic in the world of sports and technology in 140 seconds while showing you live on his desktop.  Here’s an example of one of the most recent episodes.

Do you know of any other new programs designed to engage the fan and incorporate social media in sports sponsorship? Feel free to comment below, Tweet or Facebook us if you have any other ideas!

About Claire Kelly

Claire Kelly is a freelance writer, communications consultant and Australian beach volleyball player based on the Gold Coast, Australia. Experienced in social media marketing, conducting interviews, ghostwriting, editing, generating publicity and photography, Claire is passionate about about helping athletes and businesses grow through the power of the media and the internet. Follow Claire on Twitter @clairelkelly

Web | Twitter | LinkedIn | More Posts (12)

The world is changing rapidly and from now onwards the speed of that change is only going to further increase. We’re daily bombarded with thousands of images. Every photo can be worth a thousand words. But which images are the ones that stick and make a difference? Which (and whose) story is being told (and where) has almost become as important as the quality of the image. Choices about which professional images are created are increasingly made by executives, not necessarily creatives. At the same time, anyone can now take pictures. The quality of a sports photography image is no longer defined by its resolution or razor sharp focus. A picture made by a fan can travel all over the world and end up on the international front pages before you can say ‘bong’.

This post covers the changes in sports photography from the perspective of the photographers, media, sponsors, fans and athletes. Its not intended as a philosophical reflection of the value of a photograph. The digital revolution, which this blog is dedicated to, has resulted in lasting behavioral change as well as the way sports imagery is produced, distributed, and ultimately consumed. How do photographers find their audience, how do sponsors maximize their visibility, and how do athletes manage their exposure?

Photographers: Artists, Reporters or Editors?

The key application of professional sports photography is for editorial purposes; dedicated sports photographers generally work for papers, major wire agencies, or dedicated sports magazines. However, sports photography is also utilized for advertising purposes both to build a brand as well as to push a sport in a way that cannot be achieved by editorial means. Despite the fact that camera manufacturers have dramatically reduced the difficulty of focusing and nailing exposure, the photographer IS the difference between ‘just any picture’ and a great picture. Whether you’re shooting action, commercial, feature, or portrait photography the underlying image structure, composition, dodging and burning (selective lightening and darkening), gesture, color and originality of an image celebrate the true skill of a talented photographer.

One of the single most difficult aspects of being a sports photographer is to capture the “decisive moment”. It involves a deep understanding of the sport and what is newsworthy. The media are looking for news, the decisive moment, perfectly illustrating the story of that game. It’s all about the goal or the sending-off. Capturing that moment requires experience, anticipation, skill, and probably even a little bit of predicting the future.

Technology

However, in a couple of years from now, there might not be a shutter to press anymore. Some camera models are now processing “image capture” before you depress the shutter – enabling recall of prior moments even before you’ve shot the image. This technology is becoming available in consumer cameras like the new Nikon 1. According to French American photographer Vincent Laforet , @vincentlaforet, technological developments are leaning strongly towards further convergence between the photo and the film camera. Current cameras capture up to120 (!) frames per second (at an incredible resolution). Stills from video might not be good enough for usage yet, but they soon will be. Due to increases in quality and file size, it’s the storage and delivery which is now sometimes problematic. Original files are too large to even email, so Media Manager solutions are becoming more prevalent. In the near future cameras will simply be recording all the time, thus evolving the job of capturing “the moment” into editing it. There’s going to be such an incredible amount of data coming in that editor is going to become one of the most important job positions out there.

Google images and Flickr are rapidly turning great imagery into a commodity. How would you have searched for images before those platforms, or rather; were you even looking for images in the first place? Today images of professional photographers quickly find their way into a wide variety of social channels and they should think carefully about the risk of losing control over their photographs. Who actually owns these photos in social media? Some agencies like WENN own the rights to all imagery uploaded to Twitter via the TwitPics app. Creators of this unique content may be giving away their rights without even knowing this! It’s all in the small print. Kathy E Gill (@kegill) formulates an insightful answer to this rather complicated question in this great post.

On the back of digitally enhanced films like 300, the post-production of imagery is rapidly increasing in importance. 3-D photography has been around since the early 1900’s, but it’s only now that we have the applications to use the content for consumers through cinema, tv, mobile phones, tablets, etc. Another new technological option is the 360 degrees photography panoramic image, (which could also have relevance to sports). A 360 pan  of a big play in the endzone of the Superbowl would be awesome! Maybe we should be holding out until this is available.

Distribution & Global Sports Events

Pictures are distributed worldwide and no longer geographically constrained. The big agencies, such as Reuters, Associated Press, and Getty Images are dominating the photography marketplace worldwide. In sports photography access is the key. Without proper accreditation, entering and photographing at a major sports event has virtually become impossible. Getting hold of these accreditations is increasingly challenging. The question is whether that is a problem. I personally do not think so. How many photographers does it take to photograph the world’s largest sports event? The 2010 FIFA World Cup hosted exactly 943 accredited photographers from all over the world. The 2010 FIFA World Cup final was covered by 233 photographers on the pitch and an additional 128 on the tribune.

The choreography following the final whistle in a Champions League or World Cup final has become a returning comedy. Dozens of stewards run around the field holding cords in an attempt to ‘cage’ the photographers. At the same time dozens of photographers fight each other for what they believe is ‘the best place’ to shoot their shot. This system basically facilitates that the (physically) strongest photographer is allowed to shoot from ‘pole position’.

Of course I highly respect and greatly appreciate the dedication, perspective, artistic eye, and sense for news that most individual  photographers bring to their work. They’re extremely passionate about their photography and really into their sport. However, one wonders if we are approaching the point where the sheer amount of photographers becomes directly detrimental to quality of the photography. Does more really result in better? In the meantime, changes seem inevitable.

Click here for a tutorial with sports photographer Craig Golding (sponsored by Canon) or here for the Getty Images Blog which highlights a whole host of events, photographers, and shoots. In this one created last week, sports photographer Dean Moutharopoulos talks about shooting boxing.

Sponsors: “If you do not shoot, you cannot score!”

Although Dutch soccer legend Johan Cruijff was talking about soccer in this ‘Yoda-like’ quote above, his words are equally appropriate for today’s topic. Simply put:  photography that isn’t shot will never be seen. Sponsors often (also) aim for maximum exposure, and photography that remains un-shot, in many cases, equals missed opportunities.

Hiring famous or influential people to represent your products is not enough to create a deep and true connection. It’s also why sponsors use strong imagery to equate products with positive cultural and social experiences. There have been many shots that have emulated a star in their own sport from Michael Jordan’s many clutch shots to David Beckham bending in one of his legendary free-kicks. Sponsors connect their brand and /or their product(s) with events and individuals, using imagery to equate products with positive cultural and social experiences. The images we perceive take these associations out of their representational realms and make them live realities. Simply put, “If I wear the same football shoes as the world’s best player, I’ll probably be a better athlete”.

I  Heart My Sponsor

Whether it’s Jamaican Usain Bolt kissing his Puma Complete Theseus II spike at the 2008 Olympic Games, or Leo Messi kissing his adidas Adizero F50’s in the UEFA Champions League final, a well-timed, authentic image celebrating the athlete as well as a sponsor’s product can make all the difference. Research shows that strong brand imagery, in particular images of ‘celebrational athletes’ , results in the most favourable brand-associated coverage achievable.

At the world’s largest sports events photographers are usually well represented. While sponsors might not have to worry about imagery being shot, they do have to ensure the capability, structure, rights, and process to allow immediate, integrated activation of such tactical opportunities.

Measuring Results

Thoughtfully executed evaluations allow sponsors to formulate meaningful and measurable objectives. Usually such objectives would include visibility, favorability, and reach in a previously defined media sample. Such research is able to monitor a brand’s ongoing performance on a daily basis, over consecutive quarters, or year to year. It also allows them to compare their performance vs. its main competitors or its fellow sponsors.

Depending on its objectives, a brand can choose to monitor the use of photography and the impact its use has on the favorability of the coverage. Also tracking which images get used where will allow sponsors to develop the creation and distribution of their images.

Media: Destination or Distribution?

The internet is a key influence on the future of photography as we know it. Editorial photography is in the doldrums; magazine and newspaper publishing is going down. The quality, news value, or printability of an image is no longer defined by its resolution, and distribution has become at least as important as your company-owned destination. Kids rarely read magazines; instead they spend all day on their phone or ipad. Still photography is important, Sports Illustrated’s Swimsuit edition proves it year after year and so does the annual Body Issue of ESPN.

Some of you might have already seen this video featuring a 1-year-old playing with an iPad. She then gets confused and disappointed when paper magazines don’t respond the same way to being tapped or slid on. “For my 1-year-old daughter, a magazine is an iPad that does not work”.

Sport Illustrated is an aggressive innovator in the tablet space, and photography is a key component of its strategy. As this post by Lauren Indvik (@laureni) for mashable points out, Sports Illustrated has produced a digital edition for the iPad every week since it debuted last June, produces daily content for www.si.com, and created “SI Snapshot” , a chrome app delivering the best sports pictures of the day – every day. At Time they certainly realize that great photography has the ability to ignite conversations (and drive sales). Terry McDonell (@SI_TMcDonell), the editor of the Time Inc. Sports Group explains; “We used to do 3,500 pages per year. Now we do more than 100,000 pages, maybe 200,000 if you count different aspect ratios and slideshows as pages. Digital now accounts for 30% of overall revenue. Print generates 55%, and other marketing efforts bring in 15%”. Here’s another Mashable post by Lauren on Sports illustrated.

Too Slow?

Here’s an interesting post on invocus by Brent Treworgy on how social media is changing the media landscape. His point of view is that if consumers are finding daily newspapers too slow for their liking, monthly sports magazines seem positively irrelevant!

Social media, and Twitter in particular, has had an enormous impact on sports coverage over the past five years. It’s hard to talk about breaking news on Twitter without mentioning Captain Sully and his heroic landing on the Hudson River. Twitter had the news – and the pictures – before any of the major news outlets started reporting what transpired. It brought Twitter into the spotlight as a legitimate news source. Twitter has certainly brought sports figures, those who cover them, and consumers all closer together, and opened up new channels of communication between them. While it is true that print coverage of sports has continued to suffer, social media has also allowed new business models to emerge.

Gone are the days of refreshing ESPN.com’s front page during half time of the Super Bowl. For both reporting and photojournalism there are two ways to get ahead: be the first or be the best. For most, it’s easier to be first. To break a story, a photographer has to deliver his pictures the instant they’re shot. However before distributing imagery or information you learned on Twitter – before you hit RT – check the source of the story before you become part of the problem.

Fans: You love to watch, don’t you?

Fans love autographs, re-tweets, and having their pictures taken with their favourite athletes. They literally fall over themselves to take a picture with their idol, take a moment in the middle of the coin toss or even invite the coach of the opposing team to snap their photograph . Photography is everywhere and fans are sharing 24/7.

Fans have become an important source of imagery. According to a study by Panasonic, a stunning 175 million minutes of video from the 2012 Games will be captured by fans, equal to 334 years of footage. It estimates fans will snap 466 million photos of athletes and events in London! These numbers imply that each of the 8.8 million ticket-holding Olympic fans will take 53 photographs and about 20 minutes of video.

Pretty, Partying, Planking, Police & Playboy

Athlete photography simply fascinates fans– whether it’s the top 20 of most embarrassing athletes pictures, a gallery of the 20 prettiest female athletes, athletes planking, athletes partying, pictures shot by playboy or even the police. Today every single shot is only one quick click away.

Corporate technology is now firmly in the hands of consumers. Altering imagery has become as easy as photographing itself. However the main change is not technical, it’s sociological. It’s not about the tools that have become available to all, it’s about consumer behavior that has fundamentally changed. The democratization of images has resulted in self-controlled broadcast. As an example, here’s a post by @amymaeelliott featuring 10 stunning sport photographs taken on an i-phone (some of the iphone apps for image creation are excellent) and here are 8 tips for taking better sports pictures by @dakdillon.

The 2010 FIFA World Cup

The power of the network has turned the audience you reach into the people who are reached by the people who are reached by the people you reach (ehm, please do feel free to read that sentence once again…). A typical example is that despite the small army of 948 officially accredited FIFA World Cup photographers, the most memorable image of last year’s tournament was a viral image created by an unnamed fan. Within hours of England’s disastrous 4-1 2010 FIFA World Cup loss against Germany, the internet was awash with references to a controversial referee decision, including one doctored image featuring a white line showing just how far the ball had made it past the goal posts.

These internet memes are a relatively new phenomenon, often an (altered) photograph (video, site, phrase or word). Internet memes will move from person to person via social networking websites, blogs, news sources and other web-based services. Internet memes can spread very rapidly by ‘word-of-mouse’, sometimes reaching world-wide popularity and vanishing in a few days. Incidents surrounding major sports event have proven an exceptionally rich inspiration source for memes.

Athletes & Sports Photography:  Trick, Treat or Thread?

People love looking at attractive people and fans love looking at (and photographing) attractive athletes. Looks matter. With the available research it’s fair to conclude that attractive athletes make significantly more money than lesser attractive colleagues. According to this post on ABCNews by @ewencallaway better-looking sportsmen are even more likely to win matches!

While some (in most cases most) of an athlete’s income is generated by his or her athletic skills, a significant percentage of their money comes from being a public figure. Many people consider athletes’ brands. As such, athletes are not only representing themselves but also their school, team, club, league, or sponsor(s). Most athletes appreciate that most fans are genuinely interested in what is going on in their lives. Clearly none of today’s well-known athletes would be where they are without cameras.

Paparazzi

However, paparazzi are increasingly turning their attention to athletes. ESPN quotes Gary Morgan, the CEO of Splash, a paparazzi agency that employs upwards of 2,000 photographers worldwide, “Sports stars now are really the big Hollywood actors and actresses, they’re the new celebrities.” NFL prospect Colt McCoy already is keenly aware that “you got to be on your guard all the time, no matter where you are or what you’re doing, just be smart.” NASCAR’s four-time Sprint Cup champion, Jimmie Johnson, knows the tabloid world is training its eye on athletes and the “magnifying glass is intensifying in the sports world.” Athletes surely do have the right to a private life too, don’t they?

Privacy?

A survey conducted by PR Week in the UK  in September 2010 amongst 3,000 respondents showed that, in the eyes of the public, celebrities who make money from their private lives have fewer rights to privacy. 36% of respondents believed the public had the right to know about a sports star’s private life. An additional 49% (85%!) feels the public has the right to know about a sports star’s private life if “it” was something that undermined their sports performance. In addition, 68% said celebrities do not have the same rights to privacy in the future if they made money by revealing details of their private lives to the media.

That’s probably why these 2,000 paparazzi have jobs! But hey, wait a second, who’ll need paparazzi anyway?! With every second fan feeling entitled to photograph an athlete around the clock, paparazzi might quickly become obsolete. Athletes are not superhuman and – with a camera density of close to 100% – every athlete will (eventually or inevitably) be photographed under ‘sub-optimal circumstances’. As one of the world’s most famous cases, here’s a link to the NBC coverage of the Micheal Phelps ‘Bong picture’.

 Watch & Learn

Not only pictures shot by fans and paparazzi are making headlines, also pictures taken by athletes such as: Brett Favre, Martellus Bennett, Dorell Wright, George Hill, Greg Oden, Sean Salisbury, Grady Sizemore, Chris Cooley, Mark Ingram, Ron Artest or Ray Edwards are creating news. It’s fair to assume their pictures were not intended for mass publication or large scale distribution.

In some of the above cases the pictures were taken years ago and shared (leaked) by trusted contacts. Nobody needs to be taught not to publicize naked pictures. Not everybody is aware of hackers stealing your private images though. According to LA Late, a man was arrested early October 2011 for committing a digital breach of many celebrities’ mobile and computing devices to steal photos and then leak them online. Officials confirmed that the pictures were being looted from traditional devices like laptops and computers, not just mobile devices like cell phones.

In retrospect, no matter how these images got out, an athlete’s assumption that his (or her) private pictures will remain unseen by the common public has clearly been proven mildly naive. Should we all agree that from now onwards a “momentary lack of judgment” and “naivety about the Internet” are no longer valid excuses? Athletes can read too and should definitely be learning from the experience of others in sports photography.   Therefore the most sensible guidance to (aspiring) athletes that do not want to get “caught with their pants down” remains that the images that you do not want seen should probably never be shot.

What are your thoughts on sports photography today and social media’s impact?  Let us know in the comments below and please feel free to share this article with your friends on Facebook and Twitter.

Special thanks to Brendan Kemp, aka @bjnkemp.

About Thomas van Schaik

Thomas studied Communications in Amsterdam and has been working in international sports for over 15 years. He started his professional career at the Amsterdam Admirals in the NFL Europe and moved to Dutch professional soccer champions PSV Eindhoven in 1997. In 2001 he moved to Southern Germany to join Adidas. He's filled a variety of roles with the sporting goods brand, including 'Head of Global PR'. In 2011 he moved into the role of Global Brand Director.

Twitter | LinkedIn | More Posts (14)

The latest cause marketing deal in sports was announced in Kansas City on Tuesday last week.

Soccer club Sporting KC (formerly the Kansas City Wizards), which plays in Major League Soccer, did an historic and innovative deal with the Lance Armstrong Foundation. The club has handed over naming rights of its new $200 million stadium to the foundation. Sporting KC’s home ground and complex, which will open on the 9^th of June, will be called Livestrong Sporting Park. Additionally, for the length of the deal, the club will give a percentage of its earnings, such as all stadium revenues, including ticket sales and concessions, to the foundation’s advocacy work. The partnership will also assist the development of local cancer survivorship services for Kansas City residents. 

On Sporting KC’s website, Lance Armstrong, celebrated cancer survivor and winner of a record seven consecutive Tour de France cycle races, is quoted as saying:

“Professional sports provide a powerful vehicle to affect positive change in the world.  LIVESTRONG’s partnership with Sporting Club gives us an innovative opportunity to advance the cancer fight in this region and we are eager to get started.”

So what exactly is cause marketing? It is defined as marketing communications utilizing a non-profit cause. Put simply, it is sponsorship of a non-profit cause. Cause marketing has become a mainstream form of marketing. Many organizations are beginning to integrate cause-related marketing programs (CRMPs) into their sports marketing strategies as they realize the huge emotional resonance these programs create. CRMPs can achieve objectives for the sports rights holder such as:

• improving overall corporate image
• differentiating the brand
• building brand awareness
• building brand image
• stimulating brand preference and loyalty
• increasing profits

The largest cause marketing deal in sports, ever, was announced last December when Barcelona FC, the giants of European soccer, signed a deal with the Qatar Foundation worth €30m a year until 2016. The Qatar Foundation is a non-profit organization with a mission, according to the official website:

“To prepare the people of Qatar and the region to meet the challenges of an ever-changing world, and to make Qatar a leader in innovative education and research.”

As well as the Qatar Foundation, Barcelona FC will also have to find room on its jersey (or maybe shorts) to display the name of its other sponsor – UNICEF.

In September 2006, in a previous landmark sponsorship, Barcelona gave UNICEF the privilege of being the first name ever to appear on its famous jersey. Under the terms of that non-traditional sponsorship, Barcelona pays UNICEF €1.5m a year towards Aids projects.

Another notable example of cause marketing in sports comes from European soccer. Italian club Fiorentina played the second half of the 2010 season with a Save The Children logo on its jersey, after its sponsorship deal with Toyota had expired. When the club announced a multi-million dollar deal with Japanese car manufacturer Mazda in January this year, Mazda decided to allow the Save The Children logo to remain on the front of the club’s jersey. The club’s managing director, Sandro Menucci, in a quote on the official Mazda website, called the decision:

“…a tangible sign of the fact that, over and above the importance of this commercial agreement, Fiorentina’s commitment to support the charity work of this association, which we are linked to by great respect and a sense of responsibility, will not decrease at all. On the contrary, our own commitment to charity will be stepped up by important partnerships like this.”

Cause marketing in sports hasn’t always been about million dollar deals, large global charities, or well known sports entities. An intriguing and very different example of cause marketing goes back to as early as 1996, with the creation of the LPGA Girls Golf Club. The USGA (United States Golf Association) entered into a partnership with the LPGA (Ladies Professional Golf Association) and the Girl Scouts of the USA to create the LPGA Girls Golf Club. This program introduced more than 2,500 girls nationwide to the game of golf and as stated on the website, its mission is:

“Empowering and supporting girls and women through developmental and humanitarian golf initiatives”.

So, as you see, the cause marketing and sports partnership has been around for many years and is definitely here to stay. It communicates powerful messages, generates favorable attitudes on the part of the consumer and spectator and has a far bigger pull than sports and entertainment marketing alone.

The Sporting KC and Livestrong partnership is merely the latest example of cause marketing and as the Sporting KC website states, very powerfully:

“…whether you’re a fan of sports or entertainment, by attending events at LIVESTRONG sporting park, you will be directly contributing to the fight against cancer”.

Image from website zimbio.com

About Chris Conway

Chris is a strategic programs analyst at the Australian Rugby Union (ARU) focusing on, amongst other things, sponsorship research, analytics and acquisition. He holds a MBA from the Australian Graduate School of Business (AGSM). Chris took part in the school’s exchange program by completing a semester at Stern business school, NYU where he studied sports marketing and sports economics. Connect with him on Twitter and LinkedIn.

Web | Twitter | LinkedIn | More Posts (24)

A savvy athlete can today command huge endorsement and sponsorship deals.

A recent article on the BBC spoke of the endorsement riches awaiting British tennis star Andy Murray, despite his recent loss in the Australian Grand Slam final – his third unsuccessful attempt to win a major. In the Sports Illustrated feature on the 50 highest earning American athletes of 2010, it was revealed that golfer Phil Mickelson pocketed $52million in endorsements. Tiger Woods earned more, but I’ll come to him later.

Sports athletes and celebrities draw huge attention from corporate sponsors and media as they appeal to many demographics. An athlete endorsing a product can transform a brand (of course, it can also backfire and create an undesired outcome).

Initially the endorsement creates exposure for the brand. From that starting point, it can then achieve an array of positive brand impact factors – from association to recognition, consideration, favorability, loyalty and ultimately to increased sales of a product. It is thought that consumers purchase athlete endorsed products based on a bundle of perceived benefits and these can include knowledge of the sport, entertainment, nostalgia, affiliation and other benefits personal to the buyer.

So, if that is the logic of endorsements, who would you choose to endorse your product? What attributes do brands look for in an athlete?

In a successful product endorsement, the athlete does so much more than sell the product. The athlete actually becomes a ‘human brand’ in his or her own right. The key attributes can be broken down into two groupings – those you see on the field and those off of it – and these two groupings have to be wrapped in consistency and authenticity. Derek Jeter’s endorsement of Gillette Fusion, for instance, must appear genuine and authentic. If not, then Jeter won’t persuade you to buy the razors. The perceived benefits will not be there.

On-field attributes

1. Performance quality
2. Winning record
3. Skill
4. Style
5. Potential

These attributes speak for themselves. Brands want their endorsers to be successful, to be skillful and to play the game in style.  This explains why champion basketball player Michael Jordan’s association with Nike was so successful. Linking with the very best in the game proved to be a successful strategy for Nike. Jordan became arguably the most recognized athlete on the planet and Nike became the stand alone leader in sports shoe sales.

You also need to look at potential. Tennis champion Maria Sharapova signed endorsements with Nike and Prince rackets at the ages of 11 and 14, respectively. At the age of just 17 she won her first major and later became world number one. She quickly gave positive returns to those brands that supported her at a young age.

For me, another case of a brand spotting massive potential while understanding the importance of performance quality, style and skill is the recent contract signed between Adidas and New Zealand rugby player Sonny Bill Williams. Williams is a relatively new convert to the game of rugby union. He has only been in union two years after defecting from rugby league amid much controversy in 2008. Since then, he has only played 4 times for the All Blacks – the legendary New Zealand national team. With a huge year looming for the game, in which New Zealand will host the World Cup, the talented Williams is expected to be a sensation. Adidas have realized this and have added him to a group of global athletes including David Beckham and Lionel Messi, from soccer, and Dwight Howard and Derrick Rose, from the NBA.

Off-field attributes

1. Personality
2. Physical attractiveness
3. Uniqueness or unique personal background
4. Role model
5. Relationship with fans

Brands should look for athletes who possess most of the off-field attributes above. Even when one of these attributes is clearly not achieved, possessing the on-field attributes and the other off-field ones may just be enough.  Athletes can sometimes appear bullet proof.  For instance, Nike stood by Tiger Woods, no longer a role model, even after his much publicized extra-marital affairs. Despite losing about $22 million in endorsements, from lost deals with AT&T, Gatorade and Accenture, Woods is still the biggest earner in terms of product endorsements in world sport. Woods now earns $70 million in endorsements, according to Sports Illustrated.

David Beckham is a classic case of an athlete having a personality, the looks and a relationship with fans that strongly appeals to brands and products. Beckham, 35, no longer plays in the strongest leagues in soccer. So, you could argue that his on-field attributes are not as high as they once were. However, Beckham still earns $43.7 million a year and much of that income is derived from product endorsements.

A good example of an endorser leveraging physical attractiveness is tennis star Anna Kournikova, who could be regarded as a highly successful sports loser. Despite never winning a WTA singles tournament, the tennis player earned a reported $10 million a year back in 2002 and her sponsors included Lycos, Omega watches, Berlei lingerie, Adidas and Yonex.  In a press article in July 2002, David Schwab, a spokesman from her agency, Octagon, commented:

“She’s a great tennis player, has a great look, and has global appeal. Those are the combination of characteristics companies look for when they partner with athletes”.

The first part of his statement is debatable (particularly in hindsight), but you can’t argue with the remainder.

Talking of tennis brings me back to Andy Murray. The British tennis star will create something unique should he one day win a major. He’ll become the first male British Grand Slam tennis winner in living memory (the first since Fred Perry back in 1936) and – what is more – he’ll be a winner in a truly global sport. Already scoring well on the other attributes above, Murray will finally tick the boxes of ‘winning record’ and ‘performance quality’ and will become hot property. His agent – Simon Fuller, who created the Idol music franchise, and who has also represented Beckham – will then have a genuine opportunity to turn Murray into a global ‘human brand’.

###

Image by mirsasha

About Chris Conway

Chris is a strategic programs analyst at the Australian Rugby Union (ARU) focusing on, amongst other things, sponsorship research, analytics and acquisition. He holds a MBA from the Australian Graduate School of Business (AGSM). Chris took part in the school’s exchange program by completing a semester at Stern business school, NYU where he studied sports marketing and sports economics. Connect with him on Twitter and LinkedIn.

Web | Twitter | LinkedIn | More Posts (24)

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.

Visa Kicks Off Another Season With NFL Sponsorship

Visa is going into  its 15th year of sponsorship with the NFL and has new marketing plans including greater emphasis on local teams.

Visa has become the exclusive payment services sponsor of the Jacksonville Jaguars, Minnesota Vikings, Indianapolis Colts and Tennessee Titans — adding to its roster that already includes the Atlanta Falcons, Baltimore Ravens, Buffalo Bills, Carolina Panthers, Cleveland Browns, Denver Broncos, New England Patriots, New Orleans Saints and San Francisco 49ers.

Visa is the preferred card for ticket sales, concessions and merchandise and will have point-of-sale branding online and at all team payment terminals within the stadiums, including concession areas and team shops of 13 NFL teams.

Guinness Challenges Fans to Go ‘Head to Head’ With Jerome Bettis

Guinness® launched the Guinness Pro Challenge, a national contest to find consumers bold enough to go head-to-head with professional football legend Jerome “The Bus” Bettis. Consumers can share their most memorable athletic moment of character and courage at www.Guinness.com for the chance to win a trip to Dallas the week of pro football’s post-season finale and take on Bettis in a head-to-head Guinness pint pouring competition.

Between now and October 31 U.S. residents, who are at least 21 years of age at the time of entry, can visit the website and detail in 100 words or less a moment where they boldly stepped up to face an athletic challenge and persevered. Entries will be judged on originality, creativity and adherence to the theme; and one grand prize winner will be chosen.

JPMorgan Chase’s MSG blockbuster

JPMorgan Chase has agreed to a massive sponsorship deal with Madison Square Garden worth at least $30 million a year, which stands as the most lucrative annual building/team sponsorship agreement to date.

Multiple sources confirmed the top-level deal valued at $300 million over 10 years or more in securing rights to almost every asset in the Garden, which is undergoing an $800 million phased renovation with final completion expected by 2013. The precise timing of when the deal starts and the nature of Chase’s broad financial services rights could not be learned, but they are expected to include naming rights to areas inside the Garden, as well as a significant media component.

EA Enlists Wayne Gretzky To Sell ‘NHL Slapshot’

To advertise its first hockey game for the Wii gaming system, NHL Slapshot, EA Sports envisions what it’s like for Wayne Gretzky to be out of the action but wanting to be in it at the same time. A television spot, breaking this week, shows Gretzky watching an NHL game, stick in hand. As plays are made, Gretzky swings, destroying multiple items in his living room.

A housekeeper, obviously disgusted by the repeated destruction, plugs in the Wii game and gives him the game’s hockey-stick game controller (which is much smaller than a real stick). Gretzky and a young opponent (also supplied by the housekeeper) play the game with little further household destruction. The tagline is: “Authentic Hockey Action. Wii Hockey Stick.”

Canadian Solar And San Francisco Giants Announce Partnership

Canadian Solar Inc. (the “Company”, “we” or “Canadian Solar”), one of the world’s largest solar companies, announced today that it has become a sponsor of Major League Baseball’s San Francisco Giants. As part of the partnership, Canadian Solar and the Giants will launch the “Score with Canadian Solar” sweepstakes. Baseball and solar fans can go online at http://www.sfgiants.com to enter to win Giants tickets, authentic Major League baseballs autographed by a current Giants player and free solar installation quotes.

The San Francisco Giants are leaders in green business practices, making AT&T Park the first Major League ballpark to receive U.S Green Building Council certification for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) for Existing Buildings, Operations and Maintenance (EBO&M). The Giants have also led endeavors in water and energy efficiency and recycling and compost practices, including use of solar electricity, a stringent waste recycling system and a smart water system.

###

Image by video4net

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)

Tiger Woods delivering his 13-minute speech was finally what hundreds of millions of people were waiting to hear.  “I know I have bitterly disappointed all of you,” said Woods.  “I have made you question who I am and how I could have done all the things I did.  I am embarrassed I have put you in this position.  For all that I have done, I am deeply sorry.  I have a lot to atone for.”

Tiger screwed up, and he finally was doing what anyone who screws up badly should do; take ownership for your mistakes, and let people know what you plan to do to fix them.

As responsible salespeople, we can learn from Tiger’s example. On occasion, we’re going to screw up an order, type in a wrong seat number, forget some paperwork, or fail to follow up with a phone call we promised to make.  Rather than run and hide, the sooner we can recognize our mess-up, the better off everyone will be.

-  Be honest with your clients, no matter what. It’s hard enough to try to remember what your ‘story’ was for each person you sell, so make it easy on yourself: Tell the Truth. It really does set you free.

-  If you make a mistake, do your best to make it right immediately. The longer a problem festers, the larger the problem will be in the mind of the customer.    During a recent 5-day cruise I took with my family out of Miami, the cruise company kept hundreds of us outside on the pavement adjacent to the boarding area for several hours, without telling us why we couldn’t board the ship.  I was furious, and it was two days before we had anyone from customer service address the issue with us.  I had a chip on my shoulder during the entire cruise, and even though everything else was great, I still have a negative vibe about that cruise line.

- Find out what the client would prefer to do to make it right. Sometimes your solution isn’t the one that your client would prefer.  In the radio advertising business, on occasion we’d run the wrong commercial on the air for a client.  When we discovered the error, our responsibility would be to call the client to let them know, and to try to make amends.  We learned over time that if we asked our clients, ‘What do you think is fair as compensation for this mistake?’, we had much happier clients than if we tried to figure out what would be fair on our own.  Learn what would make the client feel special, and if you can say yes, then do it right away.

-  Take ownership of the mistake. Don’t blame any other departments or air your team’s dirty laundry to others.  Pointing fingers serves no purpose, and only makes the team look worse – and those are the kinds of negative word-of-mouth stories that travel fastest.

-  Don’t make yourself a hero at the expense of others around you. There is no victory in being number one in sales in your office if you also hold the title of Public Enemy number one to your service staff for having to clean up after you time after time.  Promise only what you can personally deliver, and partner with others in your organization to help with the rest.

If you do things right the first time, you’ll have very little to apologize for and you can be a hero to your clients and your co-workers far more often.

###

Image by LexnGer

Image by Keith Allison

About Bill Guertin

Bill Guertin is CEO (Chief Enthusiasm Officer) of The 800-Pound Gorilla, a dynamic sales training and consulting company whose list of blue-chip clients includes the ticket sales departments of dozens of teams from the NBA, NFL, NHL, Major League Baseball, and Major League Soccer.  He is the author of the Gold Medal-award-winning book Reality Sells, and The 800-Pound Gorilla of Sales: How to Dominate Your Market.  Subscribe to his Sports Ticket Sales Newsletter at www.The800PoundGorilla.com, or follow Bill on Twitter at www.twitter.com/800poundgorilla. 

Web | More Posts (19)

(This is a guest article by Cabe Flesher)

As the old saying goes, “it’s not what you know, it’s who you know” and this can’t ring more true than in the wide world of sports, specifically sponsorships sales.  We are out there everyday trying to get in the door somehow and we have all heard the phrase, “Oh, I know someone I can call or email”.

Well, speaking from the trenches, it’s best to build on that network as much as possible.  Networking now isn’t always about hitting the latest local networking event, which we all know is filled with the same sales people trying to sell each other and vying for the for real buyers in the room.  It’s more about reaching out to our peers on a national level trying to develop a bond there that will someday pay off.  Let’s face it we got into sponsorships because we want to get paid.  So however you can achieve that should be your goal.

Now I am not saying that we are all devious in our actions, but in order to reach the goals that have been set by our glorious managers and leaders, we must expand every possible aspect to our job.  So developing our national network is key to assisting in those goals.  How do we do that?  It’s up to you to figure that out as I have sat through enough day long seminars by so called “gurus” of the sales world to know that the only expert in how you hit your goals is you.  My advice though isn’t that you have to listen to it all and take what you want, how you want, to get what you want.

The ways that have worked for me include emails to peers within the league that I work in.  Just reaching out and saying hi works, but be prepared to swap some good leads.  This is a business and we all have to give in order to get.  To quote the great Bill Murray in Caddie Shack when he offers his infinite golf wisdom to the “Dali Lama himself” he too wants something in return when he asks, “How about a little something for da effort”.  Another successful strategy had been to milk social networking sites for all that they are worth.  Get to know sites like Linkedin.  Avoid reaching out excessively, because you don’t want to be known as “that guy”.  You know the one that is always posting things about what they are doing or constantly harassing his or her peers for leads or info.  We have all dealt with that person.

The economy is tough right now and in order to get in with new organizations we must do all we can.  This is just one man’s opinion, but any advice is worth listening to in this economic climate.  Especially coming from someone who is still in the trenches…

###

Cabe Flesher has been working in sports sales for more than five years now with knowledge of markets both large and small.  He has developed partnership plans at many levels to numerous organizations.  He currently is working in the NBA in the San Francisco Bay Area. Feel free to connect with him on LinkedIn.

.

Image by drakegoodman

Image by 10ch

About Lewis Howes

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