From MLBSydney2014.com and International Business Times
Analysis by Stephen Dombrowski in SRM 435 (section 2)
Major League Baseball has done a great job reaching out to the global market, but this year their target is a new country: Australia. This year marks the 100th anniversary of the exhibition game between the Chicago White Sox and the New York Giants. This year’s game will feature the globally prominent Los Angeles Dodgers and a young team that is on the rise, the Arizona Diamondbacks. Sydney officials are turning the Sydney Cricket Grounds into a Major League field for March 22 and 23.
From a marketing standpoint of the MLB, this is pure genius. Baseball is on the rise in Australia. There are numerous Australians now in the game including the Rays’ Grant Balfour. After going to Japan for the last several years, they have finally picked a country where there is more potential for growth. The Australian Baseball League was started back up in 2010 and is overlooked by MLB officials. The league’s purpose is to bridge the gap between generations and create a buzz about baseball to the youth to inspire young Australians to play the game. This year was perfect using the 100 year anniversary to bring the game back and to advertise the century mark. However, there are some downfalls to having the game here. Most Australians are more interested in cricket than they are baseball. To some, this game is completely foreign to them and might now understand some of the rules. Lastly, the playing conditions and stadiums in Australia are not adequate to field a Major League ball game.
From the Australian’s standpoint, their advertising of the game in local papers has been fantastic. By having a Major League baseball game here in Australia it shows that the country is serious about getting competitive in baseball. It has been called Aussies Chasing the Dream. The way it is being promoted is to show it is similar to cricket but it being shorter and a lot more convenient to play or watch if you have other things going on in your life. The downfall again for the growth from the Australian standpoint is the lack of adequate and convenient stadiums to play the games at. It is hard to get fans excited about going to a game that does not give the fans a great experience. Cricket again is the challenge facing the growth. David Smith says, “There simply isn’t enough room in people’s minds and lives for new sports.” However, by having this game Down Under, Major League Baseball and Australia are working hard together to overcome these obstacles.
Every professional sports league is trying to branch out and gain global popularity. The NFL in London, the NBA going overseas and in China, the NHL’s large amount of foreign players, and now the MLB playing the first games of the season in other countries. This article is relevant to the course because of the constant change that is occurring throughout sports and how each league is constantly trying to gain a larger audience. It is important for any of us going into the marketing profession to know that there is more to just marketing to your local fans. There is a bigger picture and the world of baseball is becoming a smaller and smaller place.
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Analysis by Griffin Waugh in SRM 435 (section 2)
This year opening day will come with a small twist. Most people can't wait to take the train into the Bronx and smell the fresh cut grass on April 1 of every year; that may just be me. This year the Opening Series of the 2014 MLB season will take place in Sydney, Australia on the 22nd-23rd of March. The Opening Series will feature a National League West match-up between the Arizona Diamondbacks and the Los Angeles Dodgers. The game will be played at the Sydney Cricket Ground. The last time a MLB game was played here was an exhibition game in 1914 featuring the Chicago White Sox and the New York Giants. Major League Baseball signed a $13 million deal to have the first season opener in Australia. By doing so they are passing up more money and a larger baseball market in Japan, a location that has frequently been used for the Opening Series.
This is all a part of MLB's initiative to push for more local enthusiasm for baseball in Australia. Four years ago, Major League Baseball bought a 75 percent stake in the Australian Baseball League (ABL). With Australia hosting the Opening Series, this is the first step in the process of marketing and promoting baseball in Australia. Major League Baseball Commissioner, Bud Selig recently was quoted as saying "the globalization of our game continues to be paramount to Major League Baseball, and Australia is an essential part our long-term efforts to grow the sport." (The Australian) Just by looking at MLB.com and the amount of jobs it offers with the ABL, it becomes evident that they are pushing for baseball in Australia. This untapped market offers a lot to the MLB in return as they provide a new area to grow the sport of baseball. Unlike other baseball dominant areas like Asia and the Caribbean, they lack established baseball academies. The ABL also provides minor league baseball players a chance to continue their craft as the season occurs from November to January. Many minor league players will go overseas and continue to get better during the winter months by playing in the ABL. Over the years, over 30 Major League players have come from Australia; most famously, Grant Balfour, the new closer for the Tampa Bay Rays. Major League Baseball will look to explore this new territory and market baseball in Australia in order to develop new talent in the hopes of players from Australia coming to play baseball professionally in the MLB.
This growth in baseball in Australia will create globalization for the game. Providing the MLB with new talent, fans, jobs, and revenue. The MLB is already a trillion dollar industry that could now help benefit the economy and the sport of baseball in Australia as well. New South Wales Premier Barry O'Farrell believes that their marketing and promotional efforts will pay off as "it is estimated that the matches will deliver a direct visitor impact of more than $13 million for the local economy." (International Business Times) The games will also be broadcast live in the US on ESPN. This will serve as a national stage promotion of what Australia has to offer and should increase tourism. It also will put a major sport on display for locals, which should in turn increase local enthusiasm for the game of baseball. The main reason the MLB choose Australia to host the Opening Series was to reestablish the sport of baseball in Australia. They will try to gain new fans and talent after their efforts to resurrect the ABL in 2010 were successful. The impact from the Opening Series along with the revenue generated from ticket sales and TV revenues will help provide the league with new facilities and the chance for continued expansion.
This pertains to this course because it shows what the end result of marketing and promotional efforts can be. It also sheds light on how smaller leagues and corporations grow to establish themselves as entities. I believe thanks to Major League Baseball’s dedication to this effort that baseball in Australia can be sustainable. I would even go as far as saying that it could rival Triple-A baseball, and the Caribbean Series for number of fans and TV revenues.
Wednesday, February 26, 2014
"MLB Opening Series In 2014 Will Be Major Boon For Australia"
"Notre Dame, Under Armour Ink Unprecedented $90M Deal"
From Athletic Business
Analysis by Sylvia Lee in SRM 435 (section 2)
Recently, Notre Dame and Under Armour signed the most lucrative apparel and shoe deal in college athletics history. The agreement is over a 10-year period worth about $90 million in cash and merchandise. Currently, Notre Dame has a deal with Adidas, which will be ending in June.
In addition to the $90 million deal, the agreement will also allow Notre Dame to take some of the cash in company stock, potentially making the payoff even greater. Because of this, “shares of Under Armour were up more than 3 percent on the day and 80 percent over the last year.”
Notre Dame fans are worried that Under Armour will change the traditional uniforms, but Kevin Plank (CEO of Under Armour) ensured the fans that they will not make any major tweaks. The deal also does not allow Under Armour to get any signage in the stadium. Since 1930, Notre Dame’s stadium has been free of all advertisements and does not have a video replay board, and they will continue on with this tradition.
From a sport-marketing standpoint, I believe this is a huge opportunity for Under Armour since they are continuing to compete with other sporting apparel companies such as Nike and Adidas. With every Notre Dame football game being nationally televised, Under Armour will get a great amount of exposure. Because of this new deal, die-hard Notre Dame fans, students and faculty of Notre Dame could possibly also to become loyal to this brand in a sense that it may make them feel a connection with the football players and program. With about a quarter of the United States population being a college football fan, there is no doubt that Under Armour has gained a tremendous amount of publicity after signing this $90 million deal with Notre Dame.
This article is related to this sport marketing and sales course because it is about the benefits a sports team and a company gained by signing a sponsorship deal. Under Armour will get a lot of national television exposure during college football season, and Notre Dame will be getting a total of $90 million in cash and merchandise.
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Analysis by Titus Till in SRM 435 (section 2)
On Tuesday, January 21st, 2014, Under Armour and Notre Dame announced to the world their new deal, which is arguably one of the biggest contracts in college sports history between a University and another big name company such as Nike, Adidas, Reebok or Under Armour. Notre Dame’s previous deal with Adidas was the richest in college sports with the 10-year $82 million contract that will soon expire. Notre Dame’s new contract is now being referred to as one of the most valuable shoe and apparel contracts in the country. This 10-year deal will begin as soon as the contract with Adidas expires in June. The value of the deal was not revealed by Notre Dame or Under Armour, but is estimated to be worth a whopping $90 million over the next ten years according to ESPN reporters. Notre Dame will be joining a plethora of schools across the country who have a school-wide deals with Under Armour including company owner, Kevin Plank’s, alma mater Maryland, Texas Tech, Boston College, Utah, Temple, Northwestern, South Florida and South Carolina. For the fans that may have concerns with having changes made to the historical uniforms that Notre Dame has worn for years, Plank says not to worry. Also, Under Armour will not have any signage within Notre Dame Stadium in order to keep the traditional atmosphere, which excludes any advertisements and even a video replay board within the stadium.
This deal ultimately benefits both Under Armour and Notre Dame from a marketing standpoint because of the huge fan base that both Under Armour and Notre Dame have accumulated over the years. With these two entities joining forces, more awareness of both brands will grow. Not only does this create more buzz around the Notre Dame community but also will generate more cash through Under Armour’s company stock. As of 12:30 p.m. ET on the day that this deal was announced the shares for Under Armour went up more than 3 percent and up more than 80 percent over last year. I believe that this deal will generate more sales from Notre Dame fans wanting to be apart of the new change going forth. As this relates to our class, this is a perfect example of a successful deal for both parties involved. If all deals could sound this good on paper the world would be a better place but unfortunately not every company has a growing name like Under Armour and not every school has a tradition like Notre Dame. Whoever came up with this idea to merge this school and this company was a genius from a marketing standpoint.
Analysis by Sylvia Lee in SRM 435 (section 2)
Recently, Notre Dame and Under Armour signed the most lucrative apparel and shoe deal in college athletics history. The agreement is over a 10-year period worth about $90 million in cash and merchandise. Currently, Notre Dame has a deal with Adidas, which will be ending in June.
In addition to the $90 million deal, the agreement will also allow Notre Dame to take some of the cash in company stock, potentially making the payoff even greater. Because of this, “shares of Under Armour were up more than 3 percent on the day and 80 percent over the last year.”
Notre Dame fans are worried that Under Armour will change the traditional uniforms, but Kevin Plank (CEO of Under Armour) ensured the fans that they will not make any major tweaks. The deal also does not allow Under Armour to get any signage in the stadium. Since 1930, Notre Dame’s stadium has been free of all advertisements and does not have a video replay board, and they will continue on with this tradition.
From a sport-marketing standpoint, I believe this is a huge opportunity for Under Armour since they are continuing to compete with other sporting apparel companies such as Nike and Adidas. With every Notre Dame football game being nationally televised, Under Armour will get a great amount of exposure. Because of this new deal, die-hard Notre Dame fans, students and faculty of Notre Dame could possibly also to become loyal to this brand in a sense that it may make them feel a connection with the football players and program. With about a quarter of the United States population being a college football fan, there is no doubt that Under Armour has gained a tremendous amount of publicity after signing this $90 million deal with Notre Dame.
This article is related to this sport marketing and sales course because it is about the benefits a sports team and a company gained by signing a sponsorship deal. Under Armour will get a lot of national television exposure during college football season, and Notre Dame will be getting a total of $90 million in cash and merchandise.
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Analysis by Titus Till in SRM 435 (section 2)
On Tuesday, January 21st, 2014, Under Armour and Notre Dame announced to the world their new deal, which is arguably one of the biggest contracts in college sports history between a University and another big name company such as Nike, Adidas, Reebok or Under Armour. Notre Dame’s previous deal with Adidas was the richest in college sports with the 10-year $82 million contract that will soon expire. Notre Dame’s new contract is now being referred to as one of the most valuable shoe and apparel contracts in the country. This 10-year deal will begin as soon as the contract with Adidas expires in June. The value of the deal was not revealed by Notre Dame or Under Armour, but is estimated to be worth a whopping $90 million over the next ten years according to ESPN reporters. Notre Dame will be joining a plethora of schools across the country who have a school-wide deals with Under Armour including company owner, Kevin Plank’s, alma mater Maryland, Texas Tech, Boston College, Utah, Temple, Northwestern, South Florida and South Carolina. For the fans that may have concerns with having changes made to the historical uniforms that Notre Dame has worn for years, Plank says not to worry. Also, Under Armour will not have any signage within Notre Dame Stadium in order to keep the traditional atmosphere, which excludes any advertisements and even a video replay board within the stadium.
This deal ultimately benefits both Under Armour and Notre Dame from a marketing standpoint because of the huge fan base that both Under Armour and Notre Dame have accumulated over the years. With these two entities joining forces, more awareness of both brands will grow. Not only does this create more buzz around the Notre Dame community but also will generate more cash through Under Armour’s company stock. As of 12:30 p.m. ET on the day that this deal was announced the shares for Under Armour went up more than 3 percent and up more than 80 percent over last year. I believe that this deal will generate more sales from Notre Dame fans wanting to be apart of the new change going forth. As this relates to our class, this is a perfect example of a successful deal for both parties involved. If all deals could sound this good on paper the world would be a better place but unfortunately not every company has a growing name like Under Armour and not every school has a tradition like Notre Dame. Whoever came up with this idea to merge this school and this company was a genius from a marketing standpoint.
"No Backlash for Olympic Sponsors: Chobani Rises Most"
From Advertising Age
Analysis by Jacob Porter in SRM 334 (section 1)
Analysis by Jacob Porter in SRM 334 (section 1)
For our article discussion we decided to use an article that discussed American advertising and marketing during the 2014 Winter Olympic games. This article discussed how certain advertising campaigns boosted recognition of companies in terms of buzz, word of mouth, and purchase consideration. These numbers are based off of a study conducted by YouGov brand index in which they sampled about 4,300 consumers daily to find out how the general population felt about marketing during the Olympics. Through this study it was learned that Chobani differentiated their product very effectively throughout the games. This is in large due to their pro-gay oriented advertisements. Russia has a ban on distributing same-sex propaganda to youth which caused an outrage especially among gay activists here in America. Chobani and other companies like Chevrolet took advantage of this and produced pro-gay advertisements that were very popular especially among the LGBT community. According to the article lesbian and gay purchase consideration for Chevrolet skyrocketed in the past month.
From a marketing standpoint companies such as Chobani and Chevrolet did excellent and were very wise with their marketing plan. They saw an opportunity which was the outrage of American citizens over Russia’s anti-gay laws and decided to take advantage of it. I think that this kind of marketing is a risk because there are still a fair amount of people in America that oppose homosexual marriage, but these companies took a risk and it paid off big for them.
This article relates to a lot of things we have discussed in this class. One of the things we have discussed in sales is to “know the market/customer”. Clearly these marketing campaigns were not just thrown together a week before the Olympics, but there was probably extensive market tests and data collection. Companies like Chevy and Chobani found out that there was a big market that would respond positively to a pro-gay advertisement. It definitely payed off as it raised awareness, buzz, and product consideration for both companies.
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Analysis by Shanik Murthy in SRM 333 (section 1)
This article focused on the brands that were associated with the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics and how their popularity was affected due to Russia’s Anti-Gay laws. Some brands were official sponsors of the event while others were not. Chevrolet, even though it wasn’t an official sponsor, saw its brand consumer consideration rise substantially after it’s commercial depicting same-sex marriage was aired. Chobani yogurt had the overall biggest increase in various categories derived from the YouGov Brand Index statistical calculations. The companies that sponsored the events were taking a big risk in regards to its gay and lesbian consumers because of Russia’s Anti-gay laws. By sponsoring the events, gay and lesbian consumers would infer that those companies were supporting Russia in its views on same-sex marriage and Anti-gay laws. However it turned out that the gay and lesbians positive perception of the companies that sponsored the event actually increased overall. Even though these companies were taking a big risk by associating themselves with the Sochi Olympics, I believe it was a smart marketing tactic nonetheless. Due to the overall popularity of the Olympics, companies were able to showcase themselves on a world stage, which is a rare occurrence that only happens every few years. This article has a direct correlation with this course because it showed what marketing principles and tactics big companies used to attract consumers on the world’s biggest stage, even in an adverse environment such as Russia in it’s current state. This article also showcased the consumer behavior towards these brands and how each brand was affected by the consumer’s perception of them. Finally, because the Winter Olympics is a worldwide sporting event, the brands that affiliate themselves with such an event have to display their top marketing skills to relate and portray their brand to all types of consumers on the biggest stage in the world.
From a marketing standpoint companies such as Chobani and Chevrolet did excellent and were very wise with their marketing plan. They saw an opportunity which was the outrage of American citizens over Russia’s anti-gay laws and decided to take advantage of it. I think that this kind of marketing is a risk because there are still a fair amount of people in America that oppose homosexual marriage, but these companies took a risk and it paid off big for them.
This article relates to a lot of things we have discussed in this class. One of the things we have discussed in sales is to “know the market/customer”. Clearly these marketing campaigns were not just thrown together a week before the Olympics, but there was probably extensive market tests and data collection. Companies like Chevy and Chobani found out that there was a big market that would respond positively to a pro-gay advertisement. It definitely payed off as it raised awareness, buzz, and product consideration for both companies.
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Analysis by Shanik Murthy in SRM 333 (section 1)
This article focused on the brands that were associated with the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics and how their popularity was affected due to Russia’s Anti-Gay laws. Some brands were official sponsors of the event while others were not. Chevrolet, even though it wasn’t an official sponsor, saw its brand consumer consideration rise substantially after it’s commercial depicting same-sex marriage was aired. Chobani yogurt had the overall biggest increase in various categories derived from the YouGov Brand Index statistical calculations. The companies that sponsored the events were taking a big risk in regards to its gay and lesbian consumers because of Russia’s Anti-gay laws. By sponsoring the events, gay and lesbian consumers would infer that those companies were supporting Russia in its views on same-sex marriage and Anti-gay laws. However it turned out that the gay and lesbians positive perception of the companies that sponsored the event actually increased overall. Even though these companies were taking a big risk by associating themselves with the Sochi Olympics, I believe it was a smart marketing tactic nonetheless. Due to the overall popularity of the Olympics, companies were able to showcase themselves on a world stage, which is a rare occurrence that only happens every few years. This article has a direct correlation with this course because it showed what marketing principles and tactics big companies used to attract consumers on the world’s biggest stage, even in an adverse environment such as Russia in it’s current state. This article also showcased the consumer behavior towards these brands and how each brand was affected by the consumer’s perception of them. Finally, because the Winter Olympics is a worldwide sporting event, the brands that affiliate themselves with such an event have to display their top marketing skills to relate and portray their brand to all types of consumers on the biggest stage in the world.
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