The following post was written by Arjun Nirula and Matt Hibbert. Arjun and Matt attended the John Molson Sports Marketing Conference at Concordia University in Montreal through the CSA’s Conference and Competitions Program.
The John Molson Sports Marketing Conference has been the highlight of our semester so far. Thanks to the kindness of the John Molson committee, as well as the innovative and fun programming, it was a valuable and educational trip.
JMSM was well organized and had a great mix of academic sessions paired with practical insight into the sports marketing field. The panel that we found most valuable was between Peter Mansbridge and the president of Sports Net, John Litner. They discussed what characteristics a person must embody in order to be successful in this industry as well as different marketing strategies used in sport.
Our advice to anyone thinking about applying for the John Molson Sports Marketing Conference in 2017 would be to do it! With the support available from the CSA it is possible for anyone to have the same experience as I did and it will definitely prove invaluable to your degree.
Below are a few words of advice when it comes to getting a foot in door in the sports industry:
- Just get a foot in the door, Indianapolis Colts Rep started off by parking cars and then was recommended for an opening in ticketing
- Your network is your net-worth, Tampa Bay Buccaneers rep’s roommate got him an interview
- Create value proposition during the interviews, this could include doing some research beforehand and recommending a project you could work on if hired by the team
- Take any opportunity to get involved in sports: coaching, team manager, play by play for a university team, etc…
Throughout the conference there were a variety of workshops, focusing on different themes. Below is what we believed were the key points from each.
Box Suites
- Focus on offering multiyear deals 5-7
- It’s about giving the fans unique access, allowing them to fly on the team plane
- Getting all levels of fans involved, Detroit Lions offer youth training camp program for suite holders children
- Your teams record should not affect suite sales
- The mindset should be creating a lifelong fan & providing an experience you cannot get while watching at home
Player Involvement
- Be cautious, think about ROI how big is the chip?
- There are rules in the contract about number of appearances, but are rarely obligated, value the athletes time
- Leverage the use of social media, broadens your reach
- Involve alumni
- Recognize past players, ring of honour is becoming very popular among teams
Opening a New Stadium
- Learn from past mistakes
- Must consider the game day experience, as prices rises so do the expectations
- You must anticipate consider the current situation and also the future (growth, closed vs open roof)
- Have a test run, like a high school football game so you can iron out any kinks
- Look at the supply chain, who owns and operates the stadium, focus on relationship management
- Reinvent yourself and re-establish expectations
Social Media
- In 2008 the Montreal Canadiens did not have twitter, now they have 1.23 million followers
- Social media allows you to interact with fans worldwide
- Must be careful with what you post and when you post it (if there is a worldwide tragedy refrain from posting)
- Catch the trend while it is still on the rise, Sacramento Kings had Pokemon go meet ups
- Allows players to interact with players away from the game, Patrick Patterson often takes fans to the advance screenings of movies (social media contests)
- Use social media to enhance game day experience (fans tweets appear on jumbotron)
Working through Bad Times
- Show content that is effective regardless of the teams record (charitable initiatives)
- Must hit your targets regardless and keep fans happy, hold community events such as BBQ or carwash
- In game content should change, show players training (driving to the rink at 6:00am) and doing drills alone
- There should be full transparency with respect to the team, fans want the full story starting from top management
Minnesota Timberwolves Presidents Key Tips to Success
- Five pillars: Culture, profitability (finances, budgets), fan experience, community and business/strategic planning
- Access to data is huge, use any apps that provide data
- Controlling secondary data is huge too, control leaks in terms of social media etc…
- Know you area, data analytics and all that matters
- Read blogs and watch podcasts (very important source of info) top 12 get to participate in our teams media day
- The three F’s: Faith, Family and Franchises
Conclusion
Working in the sports industry is still not an easy task; however there are steps one can take to make themselves stand out from the average candidate. Start by getting involved at any level of sports at any capacity. Attend any sports marketing or networking conferences at your disposal. The notion that sports is a male dominated industry is a thing of the past, the VP of HR for the Miami Heat is a woman, Angela LaChica is the CEO of one of the most successful sports agencies. There are now Sports MBA programs both within Canada and USA that allow to students to internship with sports teams and groom you to one day be employed in the Sports Marketing industry.
The John Molson Sports Business Conference is a three-day event hosted in the heart of Montreal. It features two dozen distinguished sports industry executives and welcomes over 350 sports business impassioned students from across North America who aspire to pursue careers in the industry. For 20 years and counting, JMSM’s Sports Business Conference has given students the chance to broaden their sports business knowledge, interact with sports business professionals, network with fellow delegates as well as our corporate partners, and in between, take in everything this city has to offer. To learn more about JMSM, visit jmsm.ca.