Sheconomy

Sports marketing has been a huge passion of mine in the last few years and more so now that it’s not my full time job.  I receive a daily email from Activ8Social called Hashtag Sports.  It’s an awesome sports marketing email that collects the most relevant sports stories and feeds them to me along with my morning coffee.  Today I clicked on a story about the female sports fan and, of course, it immediately resonated with me.  Reading through it, it’s amazing to me that so many sports teams can either hit the nail on the head or dismally disgrace themselves.    Here are a couple quick examples of who got it right and who completely missed their opportunity:

HOT

• Washington Capitals: host a female fan club called the Scarlet Caps
• Cincinnati Reds: Lisa Braun heads up content creation and simply listens and responds to fans
• NFL: in 2010, the league introduced a clothing line specifically made for women called “Fit for You,” featuring various choices, from junior sizes to maternity clothing

NOT

• New York Rangers: posted a blog that insulted and misrepresented female hockey fans
• Canadian Broadcasting Company: aired a show that depicted women as being forced to watch sports playoffs
• Sports Illustrated: named female hockey fans as “puck bunnies”

Since women tend to control the cash flow, it would behoove sports marketers to cater to our eyeblack.  Here’s some statistics on female sports fans:

• 47.2 % of major league soccer fans
• 46.5% of MLB fans
• 43.2% of NFL fans
• 40.8% of fans at NHL games
• 37% of NBA fans
• Women purchase 46% of official NFL merchandise
• Women spent 80% of all sport apparel dollars and controlled 60% of all money spent on men’s clothing
• Women comprise about one-third (34%) of the adult audience for ESPN sport event programs

There is a nationwide organization out there called Women In Sports and Events with regional chapters comprised of women seeking to promote, connect, and flourish in their sports professions.  So, we’re not puck bunnies or cleat chasers.  We admire Kim Ng, juggle career and family, and use Pinterest as an ecommerce outlet.

 

(P.S. I looked.  Can’t find an infographic on female sports fans.  Can someone get on this please?)

2012 in Social Media

Everyone’s doing it so I’m adding my contribution to the year in review of social media.  It’s not so much what has been the most effective but the concept of virality still enthralls me so here are my most favorite antics of 2012:

1.  Obama.  I’m not a political activist, nor do I even care what’s going on in the White House, but this image of the POTUS and his wife caught my attention.  I think for someone who is not only required to make some of the hardest decisions in the world, but also has to set an example of a perfect citizen, he sets the standard.

2. Call Me Maybe.  From high school teaching staffs to baseball teams to the US Swimming team, the song took YouTube by storm and the spoofs just keep on coming.  What can you say?  It’s catchy.

3. San Francisco Giants.  High profile twitter accounts have become a PR Manager’s nightmare.  Celebrities and sports figures can say whatever they want.  Even teams like the Kansas City Chiefs and Los Angeles Kings have taken a more liberal stance to their social media campaigns.  But one team that keeps hitting home runs is the Giants, who post awesome pictures like this on a regular basis.

4. NFL’s Play 60. Ok, so I may be a little biased on this choice, but as a mode of encouraging kids to get outside and play for 60 minutes a day, it’s genius.

5. Classy Celebs.  They can easily offend and not be disciplined, but there are moments that stars take the high road.  Here are a few examples that spun off into super stardom:

http://mashable.com/2012/12/18/radio-pulls-kesha-die-young-newtown-shooting-tweet/

I know I missed a ton of good gangnam style stuff, so if you have any additions, feel free to share!

Hurricane Allison

The last month has been a whirlwind of events.  Between school  and a new job starting up, I am almost overwhelmed with everything that has been going on.  A lot has jumped onto my plate but time management and list making has been what’s keeping me sane.  Part of my new job is digital media marketing and part of this semester is international marketing so here are the top 3 lessons I’ve learned in September:

1. Sometimes it is better to ask permission than forgiveness.  In previous positions, I acted first and asked later.  In my current position with national certifications on the line, I need to ask if I can proceed before I can move forward.  I’m such a “get it done” type person that it’s sometimes hard for me to put the brakes on and wait for the stamp of approval.  Still, I’m beyond thrilled and so excited for what the future holds for me here.

2. Healthcare and digital media do mix.  The topic of health, as serious as it can be, holds a lot of opportunity for growth in digital media.  That is where I intend to claim my stake.  I want to put this place on the map and forge a frontier in that department.  An example of this is what Warby Parker is doing on Pinterest.

3.  Build basecamp before you branch out.  In starting a new program, it’s important to set down internet real estate, but more importantly, it’s crucial to have the information in order to populate that realty.  In other words, why build houses if there’s no one to live in it?  This is another area where I learned I need to step on the brakes.  I need to make sure I can provide a wealth of information before I move forward.

There will definitely be more lessons to come, but these are just the tip of the iceberg.

Back to the Grind

I know I said I was going to keep on track with blogposts for July and August, but I live in Orange County and it is near impossible to focus on business during the summer time.  So I chose to enjoy the summer sun.  Now that I’m in the final semester of my MBA program at Chapman University, I am more committed than ever to keep my nose down and get to the nitty gritty.

My current thought process is focused on creating and developing my own company.  I feel like I’ve been blessed with a comprehensive education that should be put to use.  I currently have a full time job so until this company really gets off the ground, it’s going to stay on the back burner and slowly become developed versus stopping everything I’m doing and jumping in with both feet.

The biggest issue with my start-up is that I don’t know what to start up.  I have no idea what I want to do that I could find passion in and would love with all of my being.  The entrepreneurs that I talk to and read about absolutely love what they do.  I have always been interested in event planning and I just read about Youngsong Martin in BizBash about her company she created called Wildflower Linens.  She combined her business savvy with her fashion sense and is now a successful event innovator.  I need to find my niche and how I can contribute to the industry.  Thus, Fall 2012 will be dedicated to finding my corner of the world.

TEDxATakeda

x = independently organized TED event

Last Thursday I had the opportunity to attend the TEDxChapmanU event and thoroughly enjoyed every minute of it.  After only hearing briefly about the TED events, I decided to jump on board when our professor gave us the opportunity to attend as part of a class participation exercise.  The theme, “Icons, Geniuses, and Mavericks” was perfect for my first time.  On a much smaller scale from the TED events that take place in major metro areas, TEDxChapmanU boasted an impressive speaker lineup that inspired me to my core.

Here are a few points that I learned/gathered from the talks (in the parentheses is the speaker I pulled the thought from):

• I need to be less selfish and skip one thing and donate that money towards those that really need it. (Shelene Ryan)
• Continue to move forward and think forward. (Lee Clow)
• Students deserved to be heard and they have a beautiful voice. (Erin Gruwell)
• Go where your passion lies.  Take a risk. (Ryan Heuser)
• Even if you fall down and/or make a mistake, recover is possible. (Lee Steinberg)
• Make sure your info cards are in order. (Richard Sudek)
• I say, “No” to steroids. (Dr. Frank Frisch)

Other speakers included: Virtual Boy, Joe Kiani, Shaun MacGillivray, Henrik Fisker

You can find out more about the TEDxChapmanU event at TEDxChapmanU.com or find them on Twitter and Facebook.  It was an awesome event and I look forward to attending more in the future.

MBA vs. NBA

Not sure if this infographic gives me hope or not.

Via HowToMBA and Earn MBA

 

Top Trends in Action Sports

As a part-time job seeker and a full-time sports fan, Malakye.com is a great site to find careers in action sports.  In doing some research about that side of the sports industry, here are my picks for top headlines:

1. 75 Top O.C. Workplaces 2011: Orange County has become a hub for action sports companies to flourish and as a job seeker, it’s important to know what you’re walking into.

2. Summer Jobs+ 2012: With more adults going back to college and more high school students going directly to college, there is more opportunity to find a summer job and this bank will provide a wealth of insight.

3. Mobile Advertising: The Ins and Outs of Striking a Deal: The majority of positions are in sales and learn how to leverage your job to create greater value for your (potential) clients.

Social Media Workshop Recap

I belong to the Los Angeles chapter of an organization called WISE (Women in Sports and Events) and every other month, workshops and events are held to better inform women in the same industry and to allow networking across all occupation levels and positions.  It’s so beneficial for a budding individual such as myself to gain insight from other women who have are/been in the same place as me.

The WISE-LA Social Media workshop on Wednesday, May 23rd was held at the NFL Offices to a packed house.  Melinda Travis (PRO Sports Communications), Amelia Hayden (NFL) and Jane Schonberger (BlogHer/Pretty Tough) conducted an interactive and informative workshop that provided valuable tools to  fully engage in social media and a strategy to create a personal social media plan of action.

Top 10 WISE-LA  Social Media Workshop Strategies:

•  Get on board! Social media allows you to build your personal brand and take advantage of the infinite resources that social media provides.
• You are your OWN brand. Use social media’s resources to create and control your own brand.
• Figure out your social media strategy before diving in. Knowing your strategy will guide your decision making.
• Focus on building a network that makes sense for you.
• YOU can choose your social media network whether it’s Twitter, Facebook, etc.   Each network has unique properties and choosing the one(s) that work best for you is important. It doesn’t matter which one, just make sure you choose something!
• Blogging is simple, but can be very effective.  Just remember, when blogging content is KING.
• Keywords are very important for LinkedIn.  Make sure your description has searchable keywords so your profile appears first!
• Pinterest is a great platform for women and provides a different angle than typical Facebook & Twitter posts.
• Share content that supports your business (or personal) strategy.
• Use relationships established online to create relationships offline.

Building an Athletic Brand

Professional athletes are just like celebrities.  They have fans and followers because people like them and what they do.  They are admired and worshipped (think Derek Jeter) for dozens of reasons.  Sports fans will defend the reputation of an athlete to the death (think Cristiano Ronaldo fans).  For all of those reasons combined, athletes need to make sure their brand exudes who they are and caters to their fans because in an instant, it can all come to an end.

The average NFL career is 3-4 years.  Additionally, the scope of future career endeavours is extremely limited.  Branding is where they need to begin investing in their “bank of goodwill.”  Social media can be an avenue to build a brand that will carry an athlete beyond their sports careers.

A few months ago, I discussed with Jordan Palmer, QB Carson Palmer’s brother, about this topic and he began with mobile phone games to begin building his resume before his NFL career tailed off.  Baseball players, Jimmy Rollins and Evan Longoria, have been progressively aligning themselves with products as a method of marketing.  Torii Hunter, C.J. Wilson, and Albert Pujols are endorsers of many brands that will allow their careers to continue flourish past their playing time, not to mention the fact that I would be willing to bet $100 that Hunter will be in broadcasting upon retirement before you can say, “Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim.”

So how can a typical pro start branding themselves?

Step 1: Get help.  With a thousands of fans, interacting on a daily basis, athletes needs help knowing which fans to respond to.

Step 2: Be open and vulnerable.  Pros are only popular as long as someone is paying attention to them. Whether you are polarizing or middle of the road, if you shrug off your fans, you will not be paid any attention.

Step 3: Be YOU.  If you are a music fan, football fan, loving husband and father, or amateur photographer, your fans will connect with you if you talk about what you enjoy besides your sport.  If you are sarcastic, that’s ok too.  Your fans will enjoy that.

It’s about relationship management and if you connect with your fans, not only will you be more likeable and a fan favorite (think David Eckstein), but you will also be more appealing to consumer brands (think Justin Verlander).

It’s a Small World

With the end of the semester comes research and analysis papers. This post contains two papers from two different classes, yet still focused on social media in business.

This first paper is for a Global Business course and below is the hyperlinked title and abstract.

Cultural Challenges of Social Media Integration in Global Business

This paper will illustrate the in-depth evolution and current situation of social media across various countries and companies around the globe. Furthermore, it will discuss the cultural challenges as well as the strategic opportunities social media provides for international businesses. Every culture responds to social media in a different manner due to their national values and philosophical beliefs. Additionally, various government regulations can be extremely strict on the use of social media but others have no restrictions. However, these prolonged bans or constraints have hindered companies who participate in transactions with companies around the globe. Yet, despite any deterrent of cultural norms or political fences imposed on the evolution of social media within companies, Ford Motor Company and Red Bull have successfully acclimated around the world.

This second paper is for an Internet and Social Media Marketing course. The assignment was to compare two online retailers and their integration of social media in the shopping experience. I compared Nike and Restoration Hardware.

Social Commerce Analysis

Read away. I welcome your feedback!