Sports Marketing: A Special Case of Marketing?

Chapter 1

Theory & Application

General theories of marketing should ultimately possess superior predictive & explanatory powers of how marketing works. Does the application of sports marketing principles better explain and predict optimal buyer/seller relationships & exchanges better than traditional goods/services marketing?
In other words, if everyone marketed like sports marketers, would they be more successful?

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How is sports marketing different from traditional goods/services marketing?

By understanding the differences we can understand the effectiveness of sports marketing principles.

#1

Fans vs. Customers

Customer: One that buys goods or services. Fan: An ardent devotee; an enthusiast; Fanatic: A person marked or motivated by an extreme, unreasoning enthusiasm, as for a cause

What are some things you have seen fans do at a game that customers at a grocery store never do for a favorite cereal or toothpaste?
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#1

Fans vs. Customers

If a customer is a loyal Folgers coffee customer, we can predict that s/he will likely continue to buy Folgers coffee at the grocery store. A loyal Folgers customer may, however, switch to similar coffee (Maxwell House) or buy Folgers at another store if appropriately discounted. You wont see many Folgers customers wearing shirts with its brand name emblazoned across the chest. Nor are you aware of many people, who of their own free will, frequently visit www.folgers.com. If so, they must be the same people who are visiting www.tide.com, www.zest.com, and www.crest.com. Why? Because most people dont identify themselves by what detergent or toothpaste they use.
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#1

Fans vs. Customers

Fans: Identify with and follow the behavior of the team and individual players on that team, on and off the field (via www.espn.com, team websites, newspapers, television, radio, wireless emails, etc.). Purchase licensed merchandise (jerseys, automobile paraphernalia, caps, mugs, etc.) promoting the team. Donate or pay extra for permanent seat-licenses (PSLs) in order to buy season tickets. Travel to see games of that team outside of his local market. Support tax-based initiatives to pay for a new arena or stadium for the team. Are a supporter of the conference or league in which the team plays. Devote significant social time attending, watching and discussing the team with others devoted to the same or other teams.
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#1

Why? Consumer Surplus.

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How much would you pay to go to the Super Bowl? Why?

#2

Identification vs. Loyalty

Loyalty is the repeat purchasing of a good or service by a consumer. A loyal customer is sensitive to differences in brands and prefers a brand or set of brands over others (see Odin, Odin and Valette-Florence 2001). Identification is when an individual reacts to events that occur to the team or player as if the events happened to him or her (Kagan 1958).

How did you feel when your team won or lost in the play-offs recently? What exactly did you do when your favorite player succeeded or failed? Why did you do that?
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#2

#2

Loyalty vs. Identification

Transaction

Social exchange
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Who Pays? Advertising & Promotion Costs

The manufacturer and/or retailer of goods and services pay for the development and placement of brand advertising and promotions. In contrast, sports teams and individuals (e.g., players and drivers) receive indirect and direct financial support to advertise and promote themselves. Fans indirectly promote the team by buying and wearing or displaying licensed team merchandise. Sponsors directly promote the team and pay for advertising and media to do so.
For instance, ATT pays the Dallas Stars at least $100,000 to host the team website (www.attwireless.dallasstars.com). Radio and TV broadcasts of events are brought to you by the sponsors.

#3

Can you think of any other goods or services that come closesuch that customers promote the organization the way sports fans do? Is anyone else marketing as effectively as sports teams often do? What brands are people willing to pay extra for just so people can see the logo?
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Who Pays? Advertising & Promotion Costs

Much of the actual product, particularly in terms of revenue, is in the broadcast of the games or event. The fact that sports are broadcast, in and of itself, differentiates sports from other goods and services. Typical goods and services find it difficult to entertain using its product as the star of a broadcastalthough Team Sports Marketing some try.

#3

Ab-dolly Infomercial

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Who Pays? Media Costs

#3

Goods and services marketers typically pay for media to broadcast or print advertising and promotional information. The media pays sports teams for the right to broadcast or print team and event information. For example, ABC/ESPN & Time-Warner are paying $4.48 billion for NASCAR (8 years). Relatedly, the distribution for sports is increasingly electronic and not limited to static locations.

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Geographic Distribution: Static vs. Mobile

Goods and services are sold in specific geographic outlets. Although retail locations may open or close, customers typically visit or receive service based from specific locations. Sporting events and teams, on the other hand, are basically traveling road shows, moving from location to location, city to city, nationally and globally. The NFL, for example, is broadcast in 205 countries across 24 time zones for upwards of 4500 hours of weekly programming.

#4

Has anyone ever seen a U.S.-based sporting event broadcast in another country? How is the product (i.e., the broadcast) similar or different from what is seen in the U.S.? Has anyone ever bought a Coke or gone to McDonalds in different countries? How is the product and marketing different?
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#5

Truly Global Products

From an international marketing perspective, sports such as soccer, basketball, baseball, tennis, golf and motorsports are global products that need little translation or alteration to be accepted across cultures. Compared to most sports, frequently cited global products such as Coke and McDonalds are not actually standardized global products. Coke alters its packaging, name and syrup content in foreign countries. McDonalds offers beer in German restaurants and cooks its hamburgers rare in France. The content or product of the NFL, Formula1 Racing, Olympics Downhill Racing, or World Cup Soccer remains the same throughout the world. In a sense, given its electronic broadcasts, this distribution channel is standardized around the world. Obviously, the promotion (e.g., language) and pricing (e.g., costs of cable or PPV) aspects of the marketing mix are adjusted to regional markets.

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#6

Two-part pricing
Customers typically pay one price for a given product or service. Professional sports and major college sports fans frequently pay a two-part tariff (or price). Can you think of any goods/services that require an initial payment before you pay a second price for the actual use of the good/service?

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#6

Two-part pricing
Demand is frequently sufficient to require an initial payment (donation to the university, payment for a seat license, membership fees) for the right to pay more money as a means to allocate a limited inventory of preferable seats. Fans who pay the initial fee are then given the opportunity to purchase tickets. Another aspect of two-part pricing in sports is the event itself. Fans pay for a ticket to enter the event (initial payment) and then purchase other products (food, drink, souvenirs) after entering.

Price-setting in most sports settings must consider various forms of price bundling. Season tickets are offered at a bundled price for the entire season and are debundled in the form of smaller ticket packages or individual tickets. Offering tickets with a hot dog and soft drink for a single price is another example of price bundling in that it combines the prices of what would normally be two-part pricing.
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#6

Two-part pricing
Why do you think fans are willing to pay so much money for food & drink at a sporting event? Why dont more people bring coolers (when allowed) or eat before/after the event?
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Tax-Payer Support: Facilities

Although the subject of much public policy debate, sports team owners frequently do not pay for their own stadiums or arenas. A new Nissan automobile plant may be able to acquire favorable tax status and property in Mississippi ($695 million in tax breaks and incentives over 20 years), but will still pay for building their own facilities ($930 million in Canton, MS). In contrast, the majority (18/29) of NBA owners facilities are largely or entirely paid by taxpayers (see http://www.marquette.edu/law/ sports/sfr/nba22.pdf, 2001). In addition, naming rights by sponsors add additional revenue to the team. Even when owners invest private dollars into the facility it is not necessarily because public monies are unavailable, but is often due to revenue control issues that will favor the team owners if they own the facility.
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#7

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Tax-Payer Support: Facilities

Consider Reliant Stadium in Houston, Texas: As first planned, stadium officials had $367 million with which to work - $317 million from bond issues, to be paid off with hotel and rental car tax revenue, and $50 million from the sale of permanent license seats by the Texans. Officials now concede they knew all along that wouldn't cover the costs for the stadium they wanted. They added a parking tax of $1 per vehicle and a ticket tax capped at $2 a ticket. Fans are helping pay off $82 million worth of extras that have increased the cost of the Reliant Stadium complex to $449 million. Among the items added to the original stadium proposal are extra restrooms, larger concession areas, 4,000 more parking spaces and landscaping.

#7

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Why are communities willing to pay whatever it takes to attract pro sports?
From a broader sociological perspective, sports teams provide a city (or state) a social identity that can represent who they are to others. How do people in your city or state represent themselves to others by the success of their sports teams?

#7

The successful state university sports team allows constituents to represent themselves to others as winners. The tough blue-collar character of the Steelers over the years symbolizes who Pittsburgh fans are to the rest of the country. The black uniforms, skull-andcrossbones, and intimidating players for the Oakland Raiders, for better or worse, mostly identify their fans. The Hogs at Redskins games20 Team Sports Marketing representok, we dont know

#8 Competition: Cooperation & Monopoly Power

Branded goods and services have traditionally not cooperated in their marketing efforts.
At the wholesale level and in some highly competitive retail markets, goods and services may engage in co-branding or cooperative strategic alliances. As a rule, however, goods and services marketers do not cooperate in cross-promotions and work in-league with each other on a permanent basis.

Professional sports leagues have unique anti-trust exemption & monopoly powers
limiting production (expansion and contraction of its members) providing revenue sharing (national TV contracts, etc.), and Allowing profit maximization
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Exchange: Economic vs. Social

Customers pay an economic price for the goods or services they purchase while fans make a social investment in the transaction. Customers typically give up monetary value in exchange (what one gives up for what one gets) for the good or service, although time and search effort may also be expended.
In most cases only limited social exchange occurs. Consumers may join together to go out to a restaurant for primarily social reasons. However, the exchange with the restaurant is still premised upon the purchase of the meal. Individual and groups of customers may at the same time purchase a meal in the same venue where social exchange accounts for little or no part of the encounter. This rarely happens in sports settings. Crowds are generally a bad thing, with negative psychological effects.

#9

In sports, attendance is nearly always (98-99% of the time) with at least one other person.
The sports fan pays a price for the right to enjoy an emotional experience with others. The fan goes to the game to be with others to share the experience in this social exchange.

1. What is the difference between a good crowd at the mall and at the game? How does it make people feel? Will they approach or avoid the place? 2. If it is not very crowded at the mall or the game, how will people respond?
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#10

Contractual Power
Goods & Services The size and power of the manufacturer or retailer of goods and services affords the owner contractual leverage over its employees. Salaries, benefits and tenure are largely controlled by the owners. Employees have mobility, but are rarely able to singlehandedly affect the outcome of the firm by making contractual demands. Sports How can star players command such high salaries? Why are teams & sponsors willing to pay? How can they be worth what they earn? 1. Tiger Woods: $81m 2. Michael Schumacher: $80m 3. Peyton Manning: $42m 4. Michael Jordan: $35m 5. Shaquille ONeal: $32m
(2004 Salaries & Earnings, Forbes)

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#10

Contractual Power
Goods & Services The size and power of the manufacturer or retailer of goods and services affords the owner contractual leverage over its employees. Salaries, benefits and tenure are largely controlled by the owners. Employees have mobility, but are rarely able to single-handedly affect the outcome of the firm by making contractual demands. Sports: Employees (viz., players) of sports teams are more likely to possess contractual power over employers. Contract concessions, renegotiations and arbitrations generally favor players. The scarcity of superstar talent has shifted the power to players over owners. Union membership has declined in manufacturing over the past four decades. At the same time, union membership in professional sports leagues have grown relatively strong due to the leverage held by the players. Consequently, work stoppages in major sports leagues have become nearly commonplace in the past decade.
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So, is marketing a special case of sports marketing?

Dimension
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Purchasers Adoption Promotion & Media Distribution Channel Product Pricing Facilities Competition

Goods/Service
Customers Loyalty Owner pays Static; More site-limited Adapted Single price for a given form of product/service Owner buys/builds own facilities Individual branding in competitive markets

Sports
Fans Identification Fans, sponsors, & media pay Mobile; more flexible Global Two-part: Fan pays for right to buy tickets Government (taxpayers) pay for facilities
Cooperative contractual relationshipsMonopoly power & anti-trust exemption

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Exchange
Employees

Principally economic
Team Sports Marketing Contractual power favors owners

Principally social
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Goods/Services that approach the level of effectiveness exemplified in sports marketing: Harley Davidson Polo eBay Borat, Austin Powers Friends

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Definition of Sports Marketing

Sports marketing is building a highly identified fan base such that fans, sponsors, media and government pay to promote and support the organization for the benefits of social exchange and personal, group and community identity within a cooperative competitive environment.
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One of the advantages of being disorderly is that one is constantly making exciting discoveries. ~A.A. Milne