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"Timeline of events in the Ray Rice case"

From the Baltimore Sun

Analysis by Leah Travers in SRM 334 (section 2)

As a Maryland resident and Ravens fan, I decided to choose the handling of Ravens running back Ray Rice. This is a perfect example to look at when discussing the importance of public relations and media image. I want to look at how the NFL, the Ravens, and Ray Rice used different styles of media to communicate with fans and to clear up their image. The most used tools were news and press conferences, but others examples are commercials and interviews. They say actions speak louder than words and one image can redefine someone, but what is it about the second leaked video of Ray Rice punching his then-fiancé that got everyone changing their opinions about him? Could the league and the Ravens have pretend it wasn’t as bad because they didn’t see the action occur, even though we all know Rice punched her? 

“The decision to let Ray Rice go was unanimous. Seeing that video changed everything. We should have seen it earlier. We should have pursued our own investigation more vigorously. We didn’t and we were wrong” said Bisocitti. Image is everything now-a-days. The steps taken to shape a player, a team, or a leagues image is what will keep them successful in a business that all depends on what sponsors and fans think about them.

Mr. Goodell is in the hot spot after how he handled this scandal. Thoughts like “Why didn’t the NFL investigate the situation more?”, “do they even care about what the players do?”, and “are their apologizes sincere?” Mr. Goodell used a news conference to announce to the public that “he got it wrong” and “will get it right.” Another quote that I pulled from his news conference was his view of the NFL. "At our best, the NFL sets an example that makes a positive difference. Unfortunately over the past several weeks we have seen all too much of the NFL doing wrong and that starts with me." Personally, I wonder how many people really do see the NFL this way. But in attempt to clean up the leagues image they are now initiating a “long-term commitment to help people affected by domestic violence and sexual assault.” They are partnering with the National Domestic violence Hotline and the Sexual violence resource center to help women who have suffered from abuse. Which the NFL is funding the resources that these centers have lacked. The NFL also created a commercial of players speaking about “no more” domestic abuse. This commercial shows the support of players in Goodell’s decision to make the disciplinary actions towards domestic violence harsher more effective (first-time offense = six-game unpaid suspension, repeat offender = lifetime NFL ban).

The Ravens called the press conference in May with Ray Rice and his wife Janay. They both publically apologized for their actions. The Ravens then proceeded to tweet “Janay Rice says she deeply regrets the role that she played the night of the incident.” Why was Janay Rice even at this press conference? One thought I came up with is that they wanted the press and fans to see that if his wife can forgive him so can the world. If his wife will stay with him, the Ravens will stay, and so should the sponsors. The Ravens deleted their tweet. Mrs. Rice recently has admitted in an interview that if it weren’t for the Ravens suggesting her presence at the press conference, she wouldn’t have gone. Janay Rice wouldn’t have apologized as well if it hadn’t been suggested it. What I don’t think the Ravens expected was the back lash towards this tweet. A #WhyIstayed- viral hashtag campaign began over Janay and Ray Rice’s relationship during the aftermath.

Ray Rice has reach out to the media many times in the form of press conferences, public apologies, interviews, and statements. We see him going to intervention programs, couples counseling, and the prospect of him advocating for domestic violence when the time is right. The situation is now out of his hands and in the fate of those around him. Do they believe his apologizes or do they see these tactics as a way to save his career? After fighting for the right to stay in the NFL, Rice is now waiting in limbo for someone to pick him up. The question is if anyone is willing to take Ray Rice into their brand and risk the consequences, positive or negative.

"Chris Jones Dismissed by Louisville: Latest Details, Comments and Reaction"

From Bleacher Report

Analysis by Tyler Murphy in SRM 334 (section 1)

Within the past two weeks the University of Louisville released a statement that their basketball player Chris Jones was being released due to his charges with the police department. Jones was charged with rape and sodomy, and a warrant has been issued for his arrest. Another issue arose when a female student reported Jones had texted her and threatened to “slap the f*** out of her.” The Louisville head basketball coach, Rick Pitino had come out and said that he will no longer be apart of the team and no further comments will be made.

We did our power point on crisis management and what the University could have done to further prevent this crisis. The athletic spokesman for Louisville, Kenny Klein, had no comment on the report and let the media be the first to tell the public. Travis and I both agreed that he should’ve addressed the fans and public before the media to keep the image at Louisville upheld. The university a have had multiple incidences in the past 2 years dealing with suspensions and releases of players on the team.

I commend the University for releasing the player after finding out the true evidence, but something needs to be done to prevent these accidents from occurring because its starting to become a regular occurrence. Background checks before scholarship offers, curfews during the season, and more strict rules to abide by are multiple options for actions that could be taken to limit these problems.

Overall the crime has already been committed and there is nothing else to be done except serve your punishment. The university, along with Chris Jones, but can learn from this incidence and ensure that nothing like this happens again. On the university side, if it does happen again, they need to handle the situation better and address the media before the fans hear from other sources.

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Analysis by Travis Oyler in SRM 334 (section 1)

Over the past two weeks, The University of Louisville Men’s Basketball program has been in the media spotlight over the suspension and dismissal of one of their star players. Chris Jones, a senior at Louisville, was suspended and dismissed from the team for disciplinary reasons. Jones was first suspended from the team February 17 for sending threatening text messages to a female. With Jones out of the lineup, Louisville lost their following game to Syracuse by a score of 59-69. Jones was then allowed to rejoin the team under strict disciplinary measures, and in their next game, Jones led Louisville in a comeback to beat Miami. Jones was then dismissed from the team the next day after being charged with two counts of rape. Louisville will now go on this season without their star point guard.

This article is relevant to sports communication because the negative attention that Louisville now faces will have to be battled with good public relations and crisis management. Personally, I believe that Louisville did all of the right things before Jones was finally dismissed from the team. When Jones sent threatening text messages to his girlfriend on February 17th, Coach Rick Pitino did the right thing by immediately suspending Jones for one game. Louisville gave Jones a second chance to get his act together by placing him back on the team with strict disciplinary measures, but Jones slipped up again on February 22nd, when Jones allegedly raped and sodomized two women and broke his curfew. Louisville made the call to dismiss Jones the next morning which was the right move to protect their brand, but they could have done a better job of getting their version of the story out before the media could get a word in. Overall this situation is a great example of why organizations need to utilize good public relations and crisis management to protect their image.

"With Hill Holliday's Marketing Support, Boston Will Bid For 2024 Summer Olympic Games"

From MediaPost

Analysis by Margo Savage in KIN 501

Hosting the Olympics is an honor that is bestowed upon only a few select cities. There is certain criteria and many years of planning that go in to make the Olympics a success. Through a meticulous process, Boston has been chosen as the American Olympic bid for the 2024 Olympics. After reading “With Hill Holiday’s Marketing Support, Boston Will Bid For 2024 Summer Olympic Games,” it is easy to see the different layers that are present in the years leading up to the games.

Although Boston has not been chosen as the city for the 2024 Summer Olympics, there is already backlash surrounding the possibility of the city hosting the games. In the article, some of this backlash is addressed: It includes topics such as the cost attached with hosting the games, the security concerns after the recent terrorist attack during the 2013 Boston Marathon, and what the citizens of Boston think about hosting the games. On the flipside, the article also addresses some positive aspects. These positive components include the business that it will bring to the city, the notoriety that Boston will receive, and the perseverance that the city can show from rising from recent tragedy.

From a marketing standpoint, I think that Hill Holiday takes the right angle for Boston 2024. They present, in their “Beacon” video, the idea of patriotism. The video starts out showing a person in an old colonial outfit who passes off the “beacon” to an Olympic horse racer. From there, the beacon travels through the city visiting different athletes in a plethora of sports venues. The idea and theme behind the video is that patriotism is passed on and runs through the veins of the city in all aspects. It shows significant Boston landmarks such as the Charles River and Boylston Street.

I thought that the use of the blue light across the advertising was good for Hill Holiday. It gave different advertisements a sense of uniformity and something that people could easily identify as part of the Olympic brand. I also liked that the icon traveled around the city of Boston to show the highlights of the town. Finally, the aspect that I liked the most from these advertisements was the sense of perseverance and pure grit from the people of Boston. I think that Hill Holiday wanted to capitalize on the face that the people of Boston are “Boston Strong” and that they are determined to continue on, no matter what hardships come their way.

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"Emotional Marketing in Budweiser’s Super Bowl Ads"

From Adweek - article 1, article 2

Analysis by Taylor Mickelberry in KIN 501

In 2015, the third advertisement in a loosely connected plotline by Anheuser-Busch (A-B) featuring its famed Clydesdales and a little puppy will air during the Super Bowl. While the puppy didn’t appear in the first edition of the sequence featuring
A-B’s Budweiser brand, he will certainly be the focal point of this year’s ad named “Lost Dog” (Griner, 2015; McMains, 2015)

In the 2013 version and what is considered the first of this plotline, titled “Brotherhood”, a trainer raises up a tiny Clydesdale to become one of the main attractions of the Bud brand. When the trainer returns to see the Clydesdales in Chicago and sees his horse leading the pack, he holds on to some glimmer of hope that the horse will recognize him. When he realizes he is foolish to think so, he returns to his truck, only to find his horse running down a Chicago street to reunite with him in the emotional payoff viewers expected.

In 2014, we find the same trainer (yes, he’s back! And he’ll offer some of the best analysis that could be found later on!), still raising Clydesdales, but this time he’s living near a puppy farm; And one of those pesky puppies keeps getting out to hang out with his friend, a Clydesdale in a stall. Finally, the puppy is getting adopted, but he’s not happy about this. The Clydesdale gang helps to stop the adoption and walks the puppy back to his friend in the epitome of the title of the ad: “Puppy Love.”

Those ads both won the top spot in the USA Today Super Bowl Ad Meter and “Puppy Love” won an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Commercial (Horovitz, 2014).

And so, that leaves 2015 as the perfect conclusion to the trilogy of stories here (unless A-B goes all Star Wars on this plotline). This year, A-B has put out a few GIF’s and photos and told us the name of the ad early, “Lost Dog,” unlike last year when our little puppy friend stole America’s heart early, garnering 23 million YouTube views by the Friday before the spot actually aired (Judkis, 2014). The GIF’s show the trainer, played by actor Don Jeanes, tacking up a missing dog poster and struggling with a unruly Clydesdale while simultaneously we see photos of a dirty and scared Labrador pup (presumably the one from last year) running around town.

But did they sell beer?

Odds are, they didn’t.

In fact, A-B is trying to bring back the Budweiser brand, which fell to the third-best selling beer since 2001 and has been declining in sales for almost 25 years, mainly thanks to the fact that the younger generations prefer Coors Light and Bud Light (another A-B product)(Brown, 2015).

But it was, nonetheless, a brilliant marketing campaign and still was successful in its secondary function: cementing Budweiser as an All-American company and reminding its consumers that it knows about life and love in America.

Mark Schaeffer sums it up for us in a 2013 St. Louis Times-Dispatch article by Lisa Brown.

"I don't think beer drinkers are going to buy more Budweiser next weekend because of it," Mark Schaeffer, president of the Clayton office of ad agency Hoffman Lewis, said of the Clydesdale spot [the 2013 “Brotherhood” ad]. "But a long-standing brand like Budweiser has to do an ad like that, that reminds customers of its heritage”(Brown, 2013).

So there’s that secondary function playing its role: A-B is reminding the public of the company’s image and that in and of itself can go much farther than selling a few 6-packs in the immediate days after the Super Bowl.

Basis for analysis on the emotions in these advertisements comes from Kelsey Libert and Kristin Tynski’s article from October 2013 in the Harvard Business Review titled “The Emotions that Make Marketing Campaigns Go Viral."

Libert and Tynski highlight multiple key elements in order to leave a lasting impression on consumers. The first they highlight is to leave branding to a minimum as to not come off as “salesy.” Next, they say to take viewers on an emotional roller coaster in order to keep the viewer interested and to ensure that the viewer is never bored. Finally, Libert and Tynski suggest a company should emotionally connect the marketing that you are doing to the position of your brand.

The Budweiser ads are able to do all of these things; The commonalities being that they never indicate they are Budweiser ads until the last few seconds; they usually have a happy feeling until somewhere between half and 75 percent of the way through, in which they jerk the viewer to somewhere not pretty; and finally Budweiser always positions themselves (via a logo or some other type of identification) alongside a happy ending in order to ensure customers that their company can be connected with the same emotions they just felt throughout their commercial.

Additional great analysis comes from Jeanes, the actor who plays the trainer-rancher in A-B’s ads. In a Forbes article from 2014 by Gay Gaddis, Jeanes says “No one wants to be sold to anymore. The American people voted [the Budweiser ad] as their favorite because it touched their emotions. Budweiser found that Super Bowl XLVIII was the perfect opportunity to entertain and meet people’s needs for that emotion (Gaddis, 2014).”

Marc Wayshak of Entrepreneur is able to further this though in his 2014 article as he says that these type of marketing campaigns are more memorable because of the emotion brought up. Wayshak continues by saying that A-B is trying to create an idea that connects more to the life of the consumer, rather than the product you offer.

Creating an emotional appeal, even one that does not heavily feature your brand could help enhance your brand anyway via the good feelings it leaves consumers. This is possible when consumers talk about your marketing campaign and therefore your company in good terms. A positive public image goes very far in selling products, even if the original consumer of that saw the ad doesn’t buy it. It could be his friend, his mother or his spouse that decides to purchase an item based on the positive vibes he felt while watching a marketing campaign.

The positivity behind a brand is such a powerful tool for companies to position themselves in the fast-paced world of tweets, YouTube, viral videos and other digital marketing that is all over the place these days. These emotions help the marketing campaign to stand out over all others.

This is a key topic for this class for two reasons. The first reason is that as sports professionals, we will have to work with these individuals and companies and the positive image could be reflected onto us if we enter into sponsorship agreements with them. Secondly, if we are marketing our own entities, we could use these skills to help forge an emotional connection within our own communities, which could help sell tickets or do whatever our entity’s mission statement is.

Emotional marketing is something that always seems to have successes, and it is no more highlighted than on Super Bowl Sunday, much like it will be this week.

"Social media push erupts to 'dim lights for Tark'"

From KLAS-TV Las Vegas

Analysis by Samantha O'Brien in SRM 334 (section 2)

Hall of Fame coach of the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, Jerry Tarkanian passed away last Wednesday, February 11th. He had taken the Runnin’ Rebels to four Final Fours and won the national championship in 1990. Over the course of his coaching career with the Rebels, he had a win-loss ratio of 509-105. His entire coaching career consisted of a 7.90 winning percentage, which is extremely high. He fought and received $2.5 million after a long battle over suing the NCAA for trying to kick him out of college basketball.

After the death of “Tark the Shark,” two Las Vegas locals Tony Cordasco and Scott Gulbransen felt that his life meant much more to Las Vegas than to simply have a public and private funeral. They felt the community, as a whole, should celebrate the life of Coach Jerry Tarkanian. They thought, what better way to do that than to honor him with one of the most noble Las Vegas tributes there is: having the Las Vegas strip dim their lights for a few minutes. This is usually only done for entertainers and Earth Day, but many people believe Coach Tark deserved it too.

The social media, or more specifically, Twitter, blew up once the #DimTheLights4Tark hashtag began trending. Once news spread of his death, it took less than a week for it to take over twitter and actually got most of the hotels and casinos to agree to dim their lights for three minutes in his honor.

Not only was that trending, but there is now also a twitter page called Dim The Lights 4 Tark furthering the campaign. There is now a #PackTheMackInBlack hashtag. This one is to spread the word about the blackout in the gym for the Runnin’ Rebels game this Wednesday (tonight). All players will be wearing black, and they want all of the fans to do it as well, out of respect for Coach Tark. The dimming of the lights will take place a few hours after the game at 10:30 pm PT for three minutes.

This is important to our class because it shows the power of social media. We often see a lot of stories about negative things that athletes, coaches, and administrators do or say, and they spread like wild fire. The same goes for good things too. Two men wanted to do something special for Coach Tark. Less than a week later, they get approval for this tribute, and the news spread through the entire United States. It only took one week for the message to reach all areas of the country, and probably other countries as well. The Internet, social media, is a very powerful tool. When used the right way, we can do great things with it.

Media and the NBA All-Star Weekend

From ESPN.com - article 1, article 2, article 3

Anlaysis by Max Swartz in SRM 334 (section 1)

For our current event, we decided to do things a little bit differently and choose one huge event with a couple of smaller stories that happened during the event. The event we focused on was the 2015 NBA All Star Weekend that occurred over the past weekend. The specific articles that we chose to focus in on were Carmelo Anthony’s decision on how much he was going to play in the All Star game, Kevin Durant firing back at the Media on Saturday, and Saturday Night Live dominating the ratings versus the All Star Game. Carmelo Anthony has had an injured knee all season, and he told reporters on Friday that he was going to shut his season down after he played for a couple of minutes. From a media standpoint, I believe that this story shows a break in the chain from the owner/management side of communication to the player side. If Anthony truly believes that he should not play any more then the team’s personal media staff should have came out with a statement regarding Carmelo’s health, and then they should have consulted with him about future statements that he should make to the media. The next smaller article that we focused on was Kevin Durant of the Oklahoma City Thunder lashing out at the media at first in defense of his coach, Scott Brooks, but eventually ranting a little bit more on the award voting process and talking to the media in general. From a media standpoint, I believe this story is important because the way that we see players interacting with the media within the next 5- 10 years could completely change. It is becoming clearer and clearer that many players are beginning to have a problem with the media and how the media is misrepresenting the players. Also it is very different to have a player like Marshawn Lynch, who has been someone who has never been in the limelight and doesn’t enjoy talking to the media, and a player like Kevin Durant who is one of the young faces that will make up the face of the entire NBA, and someone like him needs to be able to talk to the media. The last article we did was about the television ratings during last Sunday night’s All Star Game; during the game, Saturday Night Live aired it’s 40th Season reunion special, and the ratings at the end of the night ranked the All Star Game with a 5.5 and SNL ended with a rating of 14.2. From a media communications standpoint I believe this story is relevant because if one of the league’s marquee events during the season gets that outshined, then there is a problem. Right now the NBA is making the most money, has more viewers, and there are more marketable stars then the league has ever had before, but that can all be overlooked if you cannot keep your viewers for one of the best events of the season. The key is to make the game itself more interesting and more enticing for the players to actually try, watching a little bit of that game like I did, it was easy to tell the lack of willingness to play the game and more just going through the motions.

All of these articles are relevant to this course in slightly different ways; the first story about Carmelo Anthony was about keeping possible injury announcements internal within the organization, and if an announcement is going to be made, then it should come from a team official so there is no grey area in the report. The next story regarding Durant is relevant because as possible members of the media someday, the player-media relationship is something that is going to change and we need to be ahead of the curve for it. The last story is relevant because every league has an All Star Game, and it should be must see TV, but with the way things are going, All Star Games are more out than in right now, and that is something that needs to be changed.

---

Analysis by Jesse Moses in SRM 334 (section 1)

Our current event focused on the NBA All Star weekend, and more specifically three articles of events that occurred during the weekend. It was a star studded weekend with some very interesting topics that we got to cover. The first article that we will discuss is about Carmelo Anthony dictating his minutes in the All Star Game. He has been fighting a knee injury basically the whole season. In the article they quote Carmelo saying that it is “very likely” that he will not play the rest of the season after the All Star break, even though later in the interview he told reporters that he will play in the All Star Game, “Even if I come out and just play a couple minutes and just wave”. The second article is about Kevin Durant and his comments about the media and the voting for the MVP. He lashes out at the media saying that he is only talking to them because he has to. He then goes further into the whole media relationship with the players and comments on how they should not be the ones voting on the MVP, that in fact it should be the players because they play with the candidates. Finally in the third article, they discuss the competition between Saturday Night Live Forty and the NBA All Star Game (the two broadcast at the same time on Sunday). SNL stole many viewers from the All Star game and the article goes in depth into that competition.

In the first article there is a direct tie into the media and communication standpoint of this course. Carmelo Anthony went onto ESPN Radio and told them his plans for the rest of this year and more importantly the future. It is directly associated with communications between the player and the coach/front office and the team’s media sources. He went through an outside source of media instead of talking directly to the New York Knick’s reporters. On the coach/front office side, we wonder if he spoke to them before going through with this interview. We wonder if the team was blindsided or not by this comment. This ties directly to our course because we might someday have to deal with an athlete that is going through a similar situation. In the second article they speak about the tie between the media and professional athletes. Kevin Durant spoke out at the media telling them “"You guys really don't know s---". This was a direct shot at the media, that really got out Durant’s opinions. He believes that they are glorified and that they do not deserve the power that they are given. This article and story relates to our course because someday we could be the media and this is a statement directed at us. We have to know how to cover a statement like this and how to evaluate the situation and not let it get out of hand. Finally in the third article, they speak of SNL 40 and how it stole views from the All Star Game. The media/communication aspect of this article and of this story is very important in our field. As a part of the media we will have to promote events, such as the All Star break, and be successful in competition with other shows. This directly ties into our course because of the fact that we have to be able to deal with a situation like this and draw viewers to our program. We may face a very similar task at some point in our career and we need to mull down the situation and find a solution.

The NBA All Star Weekend was a long one with many different events. It was entertaining at parts and others were bland. The events were only half of the excitement, with Durant and Melo being in the headlines as well as the SNL 40 dominating the TV ratings. All in all it was better than it has been and people will definitely continue to talk about it.

"Bleacher Report and Snapchat Form Unique New Sports Media Partnership"

From Bleacher Report

Analysis by Andrew Brownlee in SRM 334 (section 2)

From the start of sports being played, people have been trying to figure out the most popular and effective way to cover and report on them. From newspapers and radio, to television and Internet, sports have become both easier to follow and quicker to get results. Two companies have gotten together (Snapchat & Bleacher Report) to form a new way to report live sporting events that might just leave the current media networks in the past.

Snapchat is a photo messaging application that users can take pictures, record short videos, (10 seconds max) then text or drawing and send them to a controlled list of receivers. Bleacher Report is an American digital media company that has the task of covering hundreds of teams and sports all over the globe. These two companies have partnered up to create a new unique method to cover sports.

Bleacher Report and Snapchat plan on expanding their network to the United Kingdom, Canada, Europe, South America, Africa, and Asia. By giving a 10 second teasers, fans will be able to get a taste of the sporting events and have access to the full stories on Bleach Reports website. With increasing interest in American sports such as Football and Basketball in Europe, Snapchat will be a great way for people to get an idea of what goes on before, during, and after events. Large Companies such as the NFL and the MLB would love to expand their fan bases globally. By combining these to companies, the world audience will be able to follow sporting events live and feel like they are at the event.

Snapchat and Bleacher Report are not just inventing a new type of media outlet. They are created an innovation that will revolutionize sports media. As future sports managers, our class will be responsible for learning the best new ways to bring news to the public. I believe that the new innovation will compare to radio, television, and Internet in history. By educating the class on this subject, they will be more aware of this topic and be on the forefront of leading this new type of sports media.

"Atlanta Hawks Thriving Off Court Thanks to Rebranding, Embracing Social Media"

From Bleacher Report

PowerPoint by William Lin and Travis Oyler in SRM 435

Outspoken Athletes

From The Players' Tribune, The Cauldron, David-Wise.com, and Jacob Webster

Analysis by J. Reid Dickerson in SRM 334 (section 2)

Ever changing technology has allowed for significant growths in journalism and news reporting. News journalism has gone from regional reporting to international, from pens and paper to laptops and recording devices, and from newspapers and journals to radio and television then to internet reporting and cellphone news updates. Also with the improvements in technology, there is an increase in the amount of pundits putting forth their opinion on certain topics in the news. Nowadays, anyone can get or give opinions on certain news topics in a number of ways from comments on a news article to phone calls to a television station or radio station. The growing popularity of the public being interested in the opinions of former players and reporters on certain topics has led to many networks such as ESPN, ABC, NBC, and FOX News giving their analysts talk shows to voice their opinions to the tune of fantastic ratings and high listenerships. This occurrence is most popular in the sports reporting world with shows like Mike and Mike, First Take, and The Herd with Colin Cowherd, all on ESPN, featuring reporters giving their opinions on athletes and certain sports. This way of reporting has put the athlete at a disadvantage because it gives the athletes no real way to respond to their critics except in interviews and game news conferences where they have to field questions and can’t always respond the way they want. Because of this, more and more athletes have been writing first person articles to show their perspectives on certain sports topics, giving the fan a completely new way to interact with the athletes of their favorite sports.

When Derek Jeter retired in 2014, he quickly invested himself in life after baseball by starting a website called The Players Tribune, a website that gives current players a voice and a way to share their opinions, ideas and thoughts on their sports and athletics as a whole. Contributing writers and topics that have been tackled have been Derek Jeter on cleaning out his locker, Blake Griffin about Donald Sterling and the teams overall thoughts about the entire situation, and Danica Patrick on racing against her boyfriend. The Players Tribune seems to be the leading outlet for athletes to contribute their ideas and thoughts but is not the only way for athletes to let their voices be heard.

Blog posts and letters also are a way for athletes to give their view and outlook. Recently, Josh Gordon has published a letter he wrote to Stephen A. Smith, Charles Barkley, and other individuals who had criticized him for repeatedly getting suspended from the NFL for marijuana and alcohol related transgressions. In the letter, he describes why he got suspended most recently and why he doesn’t care what Stephen A. Smith or anyone else has to say about him because he has never met them. The article was hard to believe and seemed like a long string of excuses written by a hard-headed person who doesn’t want to stop living the life he is living but perhaps it is really the truth.

Other blog examples have come from the freeskiing community. Before the X Games one week ago, many people in the ski and snowboard community were in an uproar about the double booking of the FIS World Championships and the Winter X Games Aspen on the same weekend, making it nearly impossible for athletes to make both contests. Each contests has its merits. The FIS World Championships is the top competition offered by the FIS and has strong ties to Olympic qualifying. The X Games are the action sports world top contest and the first of its kind. Both David Wise, half pipe skier who is defending champion at both events, and Jacob Wester, who is not competing at either event, published articles describing the unprecedented problem, both with their own points. David Wise explained that the FIS were acting very arrogantly by expecting the top action sports stars in the world to skip the X Games, an event that was literally made for them, and attend the FIS World Championships. The X Games have always been held the weekend before the Super Bowl so as to obtain the greatest viewership and by the FIS scheduling their contest the same dates showed their pompous attitude and uncaring nature towards freestyle events. David Wise explained that he and other athletes tried to get the FIS to move the freeskiing events to the beginning of the contest so the athletes could make both events, to which they refused. The fact that the top 16 (16 riders is a full field) skiers and snowboarders for each discipline were on location in Aspen for X Games shows how much these athletes care about the X Games. In Jacob Wester’s post, he explained how he liked the comradery of the X Games because each athlete is competing for themselves instead of for their country as they are at the FIS World Championships which shows that the athletes are more supportive of each other doing well rather than winning for a country. Overall, the FIS hurt themselves by scheduling their event on top of the X Games because the best athletes were in Aspen and their competition was downgraded in intensity because of the lackluster attendees.

Due to the increase in these first person essays and blog posts written by current athletes who are in the middle of the sport and are most up to date on such topics rather than former athletes working for a news network, it seems that athletes are interested in sharing their opinions. The articles give fans an inside look at an athlete’s life and their feelings without the athlete feeling like they have to write the article or are writing it for someone else as they might feel in interview or news conferences. Hopefully, more athletes across all sports disciplines will join in and contribute their own pieces to continue this positive trend.

"Northwestern Football Puts Personal Touch On Videos Seeking Season-Ticket Renewals"

From SportsBusiness Daily

Analysis by Taylor Tuccito, Alyssa Hall, and Ashley Adams in SRM 435

"Adidas Goes Shopping for 500 Football and Baseball Players"

From Bloomberg Business

Analysis by Jeffrey Hajek and Xavia Gary in SRM 435

"NBC To Stream Super Bowl And More For Free Feb. 1 To Promote Online Offerings"

From Forbes.com

Analysis by Emily Buhl and Samantha Fisher in SRM 435

"Super Bowl XLIX Ad Chart: Who's Buying Commercials in Super Bowl 2015"

From Advertising Age

Analysis by Maura Gunning and Lindsay Butler in SRM 435

"Brewers selling awesome 'Timeless Ticket' for $1,000"

From USA Today

Analysis by Margo Savage in KIN 501

Tickets that never expire? Sounds like something that only Disney could pull off, but now the Milwaukee Brewers have joined the ranks of other everlasting tickets. According to an article published by the USA Today, the Milwaukee Brewers Organization had released a “Timeless Ticket” that has no expiration date attached to it. The article explains that the ticket costs $1,000 and is only available to the first 1,000 purchasers. The ticket was, originally, released in October, but it was not until January that the organization publically marketed the ticket. The tickets are good for any 10 future games, including one opening day or World Series game. Additionally, these Timeless Ticket Holders are able to purchase three additional tickets for the same game, if they are available.

As someone who works in marketing, I think that this is an innovative idea, and something that can bring added value to an organization. The concept of a timeless ticket has tangible financial value that fans will be able to see over the years. For the Brewer’s marketing team, just the fact that people are talking about them is positive for everyone involved. The more than people in the sports world are talking about a specific team or promotion, the more publicity it is bringing to the organization. I think that this promotion was targeted at life-long “die hard” fans, but I think that the buzz it is creating will bring other people to look at Brewer’s tickets. With this promotion, it is evident that the company wants in invest in the future of the team and help show the success that the team is striving for.

Additionally, with the purchase of the Timeless Ticket, fans receive a brass ticket that is engraved with their name and exclusive ticket number. This will sit on their desk, or somewhere in their house, and be a constant reminder of the investment they have taken part in. I think that it will also spawn questions from other people, and that will, in turn, bring more publicity to the Brewers. As this promotion continues, it will bring more lifelong fans and help people to invest in the Brewer’s organization as a whole. I think that the ticket will help the “most enthusiastic” Brewers fans share their love for the game with others, and aid in the building of the fan base in Milwaukee. Finally, I think that fans will see the value in this promotion because of the exclusivity associated with the tickets. There will only be 1,000 ticket sold which, in the grand scheme of the 41.900 seat stadium, is not that many. This ticket can also prove its worth simply if the Brewers make the World Series and host Game 7.

Brewer’s fans now have an opportunity to invest in their hometown baseball team and be a part of history if they ever go back to the World Series. By having a Timeless Ticket, they are able to attend any 10 games that they want during their lifetime, including a World Series game and a home opener. It provides an opportunity for people to talk about the Milwaukee organization and to bring publicity to their tickets. It also gives the organization an opportunity to break into the field with a promotion that hasn’t been seen before in the baseball world. I think that this promotion will definitely be one that other teams will take on in the future and it will bring a new and exciting element to the game for baseball fans across the country.

"Panthers playoffs: Building brand loyalty"

From Charlotte Business Journal

Analysis by Bethany Doman in KIN 501

Loyalty and fandom is the feeling of emotional attachment and connection that one develops towards a sports team, brand, company, etc. It may be passed down traditionally, may be dependent upon your location, or could be in support of a particular player, but nonetheless, loyalty can be expressed in many different ways and on many different levels.

In my foundational article, “Panthers playoffs: Building brand loyalty”, the author Erik Spanberg discusses how playoff wins and appearances leave a larger impression on fans and ignite fan loyalty, especially for the Carolina Panthers. Being only 20 years old, the Panthers have not had an ample opportunity to develop a strong, deep fan base as other older teams like the Pittsburgh Steelers may have. The Panthers have never had consecutive winning seasons, with only six playoff appearances and one Super Bowl presence in their short life span. Team executives reported that because of the back-to-back playoff appearances (January 2014 and 2015), bonds between the Panthers, their fans, and their sponsors have been strengthened. Building off this postseason enthusiasm, the team is about to embark on a six-year, phased-in makeover of their stadium, backed by taxpayers’ dollars. Team executives believe that this stadium will also boost fan loyalty and additional fan interest.

Within that article, I derived three marketing factors that I felt the Carolina Panthers are contributing to their present and future increase of fan loyalty and engagement. Playoff appearances is the first factor and only recently have the team representatives been able to see the benefits. After losing a divisional matchup in January of 2014 and then a few weekends ago against the Seattle Seahawks, the national attention brought to Carolina has awoken and drawn in more of the fan base. As a marketer, it is crucial to play on the postseason wins and appearances because they are so fresh and a lot of fans are motivated by the intensity and enthusiasm built up during the postseason, regardless of the outcome. Historically, fans cling to those wins and appearances.

In 2013, the Emory Sports Marketing Analytics team conducted a study on the NFL’s fan bases and determined fan equity from historical data. They used winning percentage, pricing, stadium capacity, metro area population, metro area median income, etc. as the historical data. Then, they took model forecasts of each team’s last three years to determine fan equity. The researchers chose a three-year span because the sports world is constantly changing (i.e. player trades, new management and coaching, new rules) and they felt that three years would be enough ground to prove that postseason successes and championships are sources of long-term fan equity. In this analysis, they took the first three years of data (2002-2005) and compared it to last three years of data (2010-2012) and they were able to see the rises and drops in fan bases and loyalty. Since the Colts had seen a dramatic increase early on and then Denver climbing up to #4 in fan equity in the latter years, they determined that Peyton Manning was the common denominator and had an effect on both teams. In the video, Seinfeld jokingly says we are essentially cheering for the clothes of our favorite team since the players are constantly changing and the athletes aren’t necessarily loyal to the teams anymore. We love a player while he plays for our favorite team, then when he gets traded, we tend to hate him. It’s an interesting illogical trend that seems to hit the nail on the head when breaking down fan loyalty.

The second factor is social media chatter and engagement and with technology growing rampant, fans are able to voice their opinions and passions on numerous platforms. In a study at Emory University looking at sports franchises, fan interest, financial investment, and social media chatter, the Carolina Panthers rank in the bottom third, 23rd in fans’ financial willingness and 30th in social media equity. Manish Tripathi, one of the Emory marketing professors said in the article, “There is an opportunity to get better here. Postseason success has a strong impact in the NFL, especially for the younger fan base” (Spanberg, 2015). However, in the social media world, the Panthers may seem to lag in comparison to other teams, but according to the team president Danny Morrison, there have been consistent gains on all social media platforms, pointing to the recent attraction of the younger fan base. In the sports marketing realm, it is important to stay adaptable and up to date with the constant changes in society and technology. To strengthen fan bases, teams can inspire loyalty through social media promotions, athlete and fan interactions via social media, or encourage fans to contribute to the team through submitting photos, videos, suggestions, etc., all of which create value for the fan and ultimately builds an emotional connection towards a team. This is relevant because it is a route everyone can use towards creating a quality product or service, satisfying a customer, and promoting loyalty no matter what the position may be (i.e. sports, parks and recreation, retail, etc.).

A newly renovated stadium is the last piece that I drew from the article as means to the Carolina Panthers developing fan loyalty. Rather than make a sales pitch, the Panthers are going to use the postseason as an “affirmation of the excitement and impact the franchise has in the Carolinas” as a strategy towards renovating their stadium (Spanberg, 2015). The team believes that they will have the support, but also gain additional fan loyalty through this six-year, $87.5 million makeover funded by taxpayers. They hope to create a “Dallas Cowboys effect”, where Jerry Jones’ new stadium increased fan loyalty immensely over a three-year span. When trying to gain the physical, emotional, and financial support of the local fan base to build or renovate a sports facility, marketers need to paint a picture so the fans can see and feel the value and potential experiences throughout the whole process.