"How To Take It Up A Notch"

I read an article about the revolution of sponsorships. It talked about the 30^th annual IEG Sponsorship Conference and how it’s been an industry leader in the world of sponsorship. They pretty much provide insight and guidance to companies and brands that want to seek partnership throughout the sports, arts, entertainment and causes industry for a mutual benefit. The conference is one big “think tank” for innovation to happen in the world of sponsorship. Sponsorship has gone through more transformation over the years than a tactic that companies/organizations used to reach consumers.  State Farm has partnered up with a movie studio called Pixar to become part of a feature film called “Cars”. State Farm is already a leader in their category but partnering up with the right company/brand can possibly take them further than before. I’m pretty sure you’ve seen the State Farm commercial with NBA player, Chris Paul. Well recently State Farm extended their partnership with the NBA to create a successful integrated sponsorship. I think the commercial was the type that no one could forget. I watch sports and I like Chris Paul but I saw the commercial before this blog and I thought it was very creative because Chris plays himself and plays his long lost twin brother. Now for companies or brands to go this route and survive they have to be able to create engaging campaigns. When it comes to brands using sponsorship as their only tool in reaching consumers they must either evolve or become extinct. In this type of industry that is common sense in my opinion. This industry is constantly evolving and it’s the type of situation where you have only a few choices, which are: keep up, get ahead or get left behind. In this industry everyone is trying to stand out and be ahead of the game so your strategy must be that “it” factor.

http://www.forbes.com/sites/jasonbelzer/2013/04/22/the-revolution-of-sport-sponsorship/

This Can't Be.....

MMA reporters from major media outlets were denied access to press credentials for Strikeforce’s major event. Strikeforce was not that long ago purchased by UFC’s parent company called Zuffa. This would be considered out the ordinary because CBS shares ownership with Showtime which televised the event. It is understandable that not everyone who applies for credentials will be accepted. It was weird to not accept reporters who are from CBS Sports and ESPN.

I wouldn’t have denied these two reporters for the simple fact that they were from major media outlets. I don’t see how denying them is helping their company at all. Its really making them look bad because these reporters are known and well respected. When it comes to the future of media coverage I think  Strikeforce should be more professional and be more sensible when it comes to denying access to credentials because it could affect what they do in the future as far as events.All aspects of the industry goes through this type of situation and as I learn and build my education, I want a career where i don't have to go through this.

http://www.sportsbusinessdaily.com/Daily/Issues/2011/04/14/Media/Strikeforce.aspx

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2011/writers/jeff_wagenheim/04/13/credentials/index.html

Maclin May Have To Take A Back Seat

As a die hard Philadelphia Eagles fan I was sadden to hear that one of our star wide receivers, Jeremy Maclin tore his ACL during training camp last Saturday. If you know anything about Maclin he has experienced this injury before during college. It has been mentioned that he may end up missing this year’s season. What does this mean for Maclin and the Eagles? Putting myself into the cleats of the player this is horrible for a number of reasons especially as a star player. I would be concerned about my contract. Even though he could have held out, he wanted to play out his final year. He most likely thought that if they had a better season this year it would increase his value, which isn’t a bad idea at all. Anytime a player gets injured it affects whether they get “guaranteed money” or not. Tearing an ACL is not exactly threatening to a football career in 2013. It really depends on the player, how many times they’ve been injured, their current contract and how long is the down time. Maclin has plenty of support including players on Rival teams such as Robert Griffin III from the Redskins sending his prayers of recovery. As a player you have to try to be as optimistic as possible and that’s not an issue for Maclin. It’s hard to replace Jeremy Maclin with the stats he has but in my opinion he has a chance for the “big money” eventually but not right now. When you really take this injury and put it into perspective its not a major threat to either the Eagles or Maclin. This injury is still fairly new and Coach Chip Kelly does have options( still doesn't equal up to Maclin but he can focus on the tight end). I personally don’t think Maclin will be canceled out. Of course it’s an unfortunate situation but it happens in the NFL and you have to wonder as a fan, player and as part of the Eagles organization how this will affect the season. Right now this is big for the Eagles but all we can do is cross our fingers and hope for the best.

http://espn.go.com/nfl/trainingcamp13/story/_/id/9514036/jeremy-maclin-philadelphia-eagles-suffers-knee-injury

http://www.philly.com/philly/blogs/inq-eagles/Putting-the-Jeremy-Maclin-injury-into-perspective.html

"I Want My Name Back Now !!"

Jeremy Lin is a well-known basketball player for the New York Knicks. He’s having an issue trademarking his name in China. A company called Wuxi Risheng Sports Utility Co. has already beaten him to the punch by trademarking his Chinese and English name. This company manufactures basketballs, volleyballs and soccer balls. After reading a few articles on the matter Jeremy Lin will end up spending millions just to get the trademark from this company. In China when it comes to trade marking, its first come first serve as opposed to the USA you have show actual use or intention. This can really affect Lin because it can stop him from making money with major companies that want to promote products associate with him as a popular player in the NBA. I think that Jeremy would do what he needs to do in order to help his career. The situation is realistically fair because the company trademarked first but on the other hand it is Lin’s name and he has more of a need to trademark it. This company Wuxi Risheng is willing to sell but they will definitely use it to their advantage. Not only that but Lin is working with Nike and Risheng manufactures some of the same products so this is a very difficult situation. Its like this company is making money off Lin’s name and he can’t do much about it. Jeremy would have to go over and beyond just to gain the trademark. It would be worth it in the end even though it would be a hassle. The question is how bad does he want it? Or is he willing to “take one for the team”?

http://global.christianpost.com/news/jeremy-lin-undergoing-trademark-issues-with-chinese-sports-company-70372/

http://www.chinamedia.com/news/2012/02/28/jeremy-lin-trademark-scooped-up-by-chinese-company-last-august/

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/02/27/jeremy-lin-trademark-scooped-chinese-company_n_1303271.html

NBA Lockout 2011

No sports fan likes it when there’s a lockout. It really affects everyone in one way or the other. The longer the wait on an agreement, the longer there’s no games to play or to watch. In the case of the NBA the disagreement was between the owners and the league in relation to the CBA. While everyone was waiting for an agreement it caused the loss of games which meant loss of money. Some owners were willing to go 50/50 with the league but then you had some that weren’t willing to go below 52 percent. Players wanted to keep a similar system like the old one. They thought that there were too many restrictions in the owner’s proposal. As this lockout is going on, the people that work at these arenas are affected too. Everyday people with normal lives don’t get a paycheck. In my opinion, the fact that the players make the team, I didn’t think there should be a 50/50 split either. After 161 days,  they finally came to an agreement of 49/51.2 split, a flexible salary cap but harsher luxury tax. This lockout had a negative impact on the economy due to the large NBA cities losing revenue that was generated by the games and television networks losing ratings as well as advertisement revenue.

Even though it was eventually settled, I look at this as a factor when working in the sports field.  The NBA has had four lockouts. There’s no telling if another one will occur. It doesn’t really matter what league you decide to get into because they all have went through a lockout before. I understand that agreements need to be made. I just hope that this doesn’t happen once I get in the field but if it does, I got to have a back up plan so I am not majorly affected by it. I love sports and with anything you have to take the good with the bad. It’s all an experience.

 http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/10/28/nba-lockout-2011-games-cancelled_n_1064786.html

http://www.cnbc.com/id/45528171

Keep This In Mind As You Lead And Succeed

I wanted to touch basis on two subjects that has a lot to do with any business you decide start which is leadership and success. I listened to two TED speeches that I thought were interesting and informative. Four-star general, Stanley McChrystal talked about his experience as a leader. Mr. Richard St. John spoke about success.

As a leader you have to build a shared purpose amongst the ones whom you are leading in your company. It can be a situation where you are leading people with different levels of education, skills and are in different age groups. That can be challenging but it’s also a reality. Mr. McChrystal mentioned that during his experience throughout the years he learned how to listen more because there were times when he was leading people over video chat, email, etc. This was new for him….more technology was involved. He was learning and holding his position at the same time. He had to develop new leader techniques as things around him started to change. It’s typically the same when running a business. You may be in charge of someone that has more skills than you. McChrystal said” Your not a good leader because your right, your good because you are willing to learn and trust.” He talks about how being a leader isn’t easy and there’s possibility of failure. When it comes to the people you lead, they will help you up because you have built enough faith in them. As a leader, CEO or whatever the title may be, you have to listen and learn in order to lead.

Mr. St. John talks about success not being a one street. Some people reach success and end up failing. They feel like once they have reached success they don’t need to work at it anymore. Richard shared his experience of reaching success and how he didn’t stay focused on his clients and ended up failing due to distractions and not staying persistent. He ended up starting over but it took him 7 years to do so. If you want to avoid failing after succeeding, you must understand that success is a continuous journey. It involves 8 principles which includes: passion, work, focus, push, ideas, improve, serve and persist. Bottom line is that the same work you put into reaching success is what you need in order to stay there.

Leadership and success is essential to starting a business. In the entertainment business field you have do what you need to do in order to “stay in the game and stand out”.

Stanley McChrystal:" Listen, learn ... then lead"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FmpIMt95ndU

Richard St. John: "Success is a continuous journey"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CgNx9Bgac1I