Analysis by Jacob Orpin in SRM 435 (section 2)
The article talks about how Michael Sam coming out gay will affect his marketability. Now a days things like this can benefit your marketability unlike 15 years ago. It use to be to high of a risk for players to come out gay, now the risk reward it so high you can really benefit from it. There is already a ton of people and companies trying to get a deal out of Michael. Michael doesn’t want to sign a ton of deals just wants the usually shoe and apparel deal. The thing that struck me the most after reading the article is the increase in gay sports bars in New York. The article says 15 years ago gay sports bars were failures now they are getting franchised. Michael Sam helps open an entire new market for the NFL that will only help increase the fan base and help the LBGT community.
From a marketing standpoint Michael Sam is a dream come true to many people. Everyone is going to want a piece of the first openly gay NFL player. Being a first can go a long way in the marketing world. Nike has already signed two openly gay athletes in Jason Collins and Brittney Griner. Neither one has done much when it comes to making money. Just coming out gay isn’t enough you still have to perform on the field. The Brooklyn Nets just signed Jason Collins to a 10-day contract. Before that he didn’t have a contact with any team and in turn wasn’t during must in a sales point. Coming out gay will help Michael get opportunities for endorsements but there is still work to do on the field. If Michael Sam performs on the field the endorsements will start rolling out faster than he ever imagined. Whatever team ends up drafting Michael I feel like there sales will go up with they just tapped another fan base. There might be more media coverage around your team but from a sales point I don’t see any ways it could hurt.
Michael coming out gay is very courageous especially doing it before the combine. It took a lot of guts to be able to do that and be able to talk about it in front of the media. Time will tell if this move was smart in terms of being drafted and being marketable. I truly believe Michael will contribute to an NFL team in the next few years. You don’t go from being SEC player of the year to a benchwarmer. The SEC is to good and the last six SEC defensive player of the years were first round picks, he will be the first to not be.
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Analysis by Will Taylor in SRM 435 (section 2)
Michael Sam could possibly be the most revolutionary athlete in the sports world since Jackie Robinson. As the first NFL draft prospect that has come out as gay, the day he is drafted and steps foot on the field for the first time will be monumental and will be forever remembered in sports history. With this culture change happening in the sports world, Michael Sam’s marketability rises with every interview he gives. This article describes how many companies are all trying to gain entry into the LGBT brand, but are biding their time waiting to see how he performs on the field. The article also discusses how difficult it will be trying to have Michael Sam represent them, as he only wants to sign a couple deals. It also discusses the market as a whole, and how the LGBT community would fit into sports, and how they would be accepted within the sports industry.
Michael Sam has marketing potential without a doubt being the first openly gay NFL draft prospect. However, his true marketing value will be determined with his play on the field. As seen with Jason Collins, the first openly gay NBA player, performance is what drives the market. Because Jason Collins has never had too much on-court success, he hasn’t seen the big marketing deals you would expect. This will also be true for Michael Sam, whose career is in the balance after his poor performance at the combine. The impact on the NFL culture and sports industry in general will be massive; however it would be very difficult to market a player who sits the bench. Another aspect mentioned in the article is the fact that no just any company can use Michael Sam effectively to market their business. Only companies with a strong base in the LGBT community already can effectively reach out to the market that follows Michael Sam.
This article is very relevant to this course because it discusses the marketability of a high profile athlete in a new market to the sports industry. The article discusses how Michael Sam will go about signing deals, and how companies will try and use him to market their business. It discusses how difficult it will be to market to the LGBT community because of how new the market is to the sports world. This is very relevant because this will change the sports world and how sports and athletes are marketed to a new group of sports fans.
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