From Concordia University St. Paul - Online Review by Jenny Hansberry in KIN 332 (section 2) I came across this article and found it to be an interesting topic to bring up in class. Growing up an avid Philadelphia Phillies fan, I certainly had my opinion about the New York Yankees and how they spend their organization’s money. I have always thought that the Yankees “buy their championships”, and it would be ridiculous if they did not win the World Series every year since they buy the top players. However, after this article, I realize that money does not always guarantee a ring at the end of the season.
One of the most interesting statistics I found from this article was that the MLB has more of a diverse result in championships than any other professional sport. I was surprised because I would think that since there is no salary cap in the MLB and wealthy organizations can get whichever players they want that they would have the same teams winning over and over again. Since this is not the case, it is hard to understand exactly why some teams spend such an immense amount of money every year. From a marketing standpoint, the teams who have more money within the organization for players, coaches, staff, the stadium, fans, etc. are also bringing in more money on a game to game basis. Tradition and history ensure teams such as the Yankees or Phillies to never have to worry about not having the fans behind them to make a profit every season.
Another reason why I thought this article was interesting is because the teams, especially in baseball, that are being focused on as the teams that spend the most are not currently playing anymore. This World Series is the Tigers and Giants, neither are which spoken about in this article. Therefore, it brings up tremendous marketing opportunities to help build up their teams to maybe one day become as historic as some other teams in the league.
Our current event discussion comes from an article titled, Making Headlines, from the September 2012 issue of Athletic Business. The article emphasizes the importance of helmet safety and the high occurrence of concussions. Concussions in high school sports have increased by 15% annually. Some professional organizations have implemented new regulations to help decrease injuries, such as Pop Warner football banning head to head hits, and the NCAA and National Federation of State High School Association requiring players to sit out the next play if they lose their helmet on the field during a game. The article also discusses advancements in technologies for helmets such as Force Cap Technology’s air-filled sack inside of a hockey helmet to exist as protectors during hits.
This article, written by Michael Popke, has a clear and decisive theme: to develop helmets for a safer athletic playing environment. It starts by reviewing the rules that have been put in place from the effect of concussion increases. Developing technologies assist the body of the article to flow with information that convinces the reader there are enough new precautions we can take to produce safer helmets. The conclusion is well written; focusing that the start of realizing there are flaws in helmets lies within an organization. Emphasis on the Youth Football Helmet Replacement Partnership’s pilot program wraps up the article in great detail to relay the message of safety concerns. Sports media and the article of helmet safety are relevant in a few ways. First, helmet safety and the rising concussion concern would not be spread if it weren’t for the media. They help to inform the public of the issues at hand. Second, if the media shows concern about the topic, it will seem important. Lastly, media can portray helmet safety in a way to persuade the need for future changes. --- Review by Danny Barto in SRM 334 There is no question that one of the main concerns for NFL commissioner, Roger Goodell, is the topic of helmet safety and concussions. The focus on helmet safety is not just at the professional level, but also at the youth, high school, collegiate, and semi-professional football leagues. Helmets play the most important role in the battle against concussions and their devastating effects on the brain. These effects can sometimes be immediate, such as short-term memory loss, or there can be long-term effects such as dementia. It’s not just football that parents and coaches are concerned about. Athletes that play soccer, lacrosse, or hockey are all just as vulnerable during play than any other sport involving contact. The topic of concussion safety is a very serious subject with the NFL, the media, as well as parents and the youth.
Many parents and players believe that if you are wearing a helmet you are automatically safe from head injury. These views are far from the truth according to Inez Tenebaum, chairman of the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission. Tenebaum stated that, “it is vital that parents, coaches, and players understand that there is no such thing as a concussion-proof helmet.” He goes on to say that the best answer is, “safer and smarter play.” This explains the rule changes that have been implemented at almost all levels of football. These changes that have occurred have prohibited headfirst tackles and result in stiffer penalties for violent hits in hockey and football. There have been many innovations in helmet manufacturing and design since the focus shifted to concussion prevention. The article explains that old helmets are designed to prevent structural injuries such as a broken nose or jaw, but a concussion is a functional injury that affects memory and motor skills while leaving the player disoriented after the impact.
The media has played a big role in informing parents, coaches, and athletes about the dangers of certain sports and how to play these sports safely so that concussions can be minimized. ESPN has done multiple documentaries on the health effects that a concussion has on the player immediately as well as the long-term effects. It seems that many stories in the news concerning sports is about player safety and how to prevent serious head injuries. The media along with the major sports leagues like the NFL and NHL have the biggest impact on how safe the game is played.
This article was extremely informative how concussions are being prevented by the use of new technologies and safer play. The sports media has done a great job lately at getting the word out about helmet safety and new rules and regulations being implemented in all types of sports leagues. Companies are developing new technologies that will make the game safer for our kids to play in the future, but like Inez Tenebaum stated in the article, “the best answer is safer and smarter play.”
From Advertising Age Review by Mandy Adkins in KIN 501 In the article “Will a Ring Finally Turn LeBron Into Michael Jordan of Marketing?” by Rich Thomaselli (2012), the author explains how LeBron James winning his first NBA title has earned him great exposure in the marketing world.
After LeBron lead the Miami Heat to a 15 point win over Oklahoma City Nike quickly put out a sixty second commercial showing a jeweler creating a championship ring for LeBron. The previous two years have been tough for Lebron due to his decision to leave Cleveland as a free agent to join Miami, as well as his poor performance in the 2011 finals. The decision to leave Cleveland paired with the unimpressive first year with Miami resulted in a low number of endorsements for the celebrity player who people believed would become the next Michael Jordan (on the court and in terms of excessive endorsement deals).
Fortunately for LeBron this year was a successful one. He was named Most Valuable Player and is now viewed as a winner, which is a desirable trait for any company looking for someone to endorse their product. This past year LeBron was making $30 million in endorsement deals. His major endorsements included McDonalds, Sprite, Vitamin Water, and Sheets Energy strips. However, he only appeared in ads during the NBA finals for State Farm and Nike. At the time the article was written, the belief was that other marketing partners of LeBron’s were holding off and putting more effort into marketing during the upcoming Olympics. Another belief was that marketing partners were hesitant to go all in during the finals due to the risk of LeBron losing a second consecutive NBA Championship.
Now that the final game has been won and LeBron is a ‘winner’, companies have a lot more opportunity for how they decide to brand LeBron. Sports marketing experts believe that LeBron could make an additional 30% to 40% on top of his current $30 million dollars in endorsements. LeBron also has great potential to gain increased exposure in the international market place. His Miami Heat jersey was the number three seller outside of the United States at the time the article was written.
All in all, LeBron’s NBA Championship win has cast him into the top levels of the marketing and endorsement world, creating an avenue for him to potentially become the Michael Jordan of marketing.
A critique of the article is that the author discusses LeBron becoming the next ‘Michael Jordan of marketing’ (even in going as far as making this the title), but does not discuss any details regarding Michael Jordan in the world of marketing. Clearly Michael Jordan is a very well known individual, but not everyone is knowledgeable on just how big Michael Jordan is in terms of NBA basketball and marketing products. The way the article is written assumes that everyone reading it knows what is meant by ‘LeBron becoming the next Michael Jordan’.
The concept of the sixty second commercial spot that was put out shortly after LeBron won the NBA final game was an excellent marketing move and increased the awareness of LeBron as finally a winner. I agree with the critics that this win has given him the potential to excel in terms of endorsements and product marketing.
