2013 – Page 4 – BaylorS3E

S3 Leadership Spotlight: Dave Nottoli @GM

kirk_wakefield 2013, Digital Strategy, Integrity, Lead, Relate, S3 Spotlight July 1, 2013November 2, 2018activation, Cadillac, digital marketing, GM, leadership, Manchester United, ManU, sponsorships 0 Comment

by Blake Cargill – July 2013

Dave Notolli, Regional Sales and Marketing Manager at General Motors, has worked for GM for over 30 years. A graduate of Purdue University, Notolli has enjoyed the automotive business from the moment he became a part of it. The automotive business has a unique, challenging aspect to it because of the competition and fast paced environment.

Managing the Escalade brand

Pinned as the first brand manager of GM, Notolli was given the difficult task of promoting the Escalade in the early 1990’s. This proved to be a challenging time for Notolli as he learned different roles and responsibilities.

The goal was to establish Escalade as its own brand. In order to do this, Nottoli said, “I had to try to change the mentality of the company and think of each car line as an individual brand.” Notolli was extremely successful, and the Escalade remains as a leader in the premium SUV category today.

Sponsorships fuel global expansion

Internationally, GM signed a record deal (Reuters estimates the seven-year deal at between $60-70 million a year) as title sponsor of Manchester United. Chevrolet is looking to make a huge push internationally, as its jersey sponsorship with ManU begins in 2014.

Chevrolet is the fastest growing brand in the world right now. Nottoli stated, “It is very important to be a global brand and get global recognition given where markets are growing.”

Regarded as one of the most popular and recognizable soccer teams in the world, Manchester United reaches over 650 million fans worldwide. This new sponsorship is an excellent gateway into growth and sustainability worldwide.

Digital marketing

What marketing methods seem to be working best now for GM? Notolli pointed towards two fundamental changes related to digital marketing:

Product: Equipping cars with technology and digital components to reach a younger crowd.
Promotion: GM’s most successful dealerships effectively use digital marketing and promotions and individual GM brands activate through sports & entertainment sponsorships integrated with social media (see Cadillac inset).

Leadership qualities

Notolli believes team goals always take priority over individual goals. This philosophy contributes to the development of teamwork and collaboration within the GM organization. However, Nottoli believes first and foremost, “We must show integrity in everything we do, being honest and open.”

Nottoli is known for his consistent ethical and moral values as a leader. Ken Mussmann, Chevrolet Field Manager adds, “There are three things about Dave that come to mind when I think about his leadership: First, he is trustworthy. Second, he has an intimate knowledge of the business. And, third, he really cares about the people that work for and with him.”

Stephen Flynn, Chevrolet Marketing Manager believes, “Dave’s work ethic and decision making are always based on his moral compass. Do the right thing, be honest with others, and act with total integrity.”

Differentiating GM from its many competitors is not an easy task. Nottoli regards having great products, customer service, and marketing as the three contributors to making GM stand out among the crowd. Nottoli believes in his product. He put it best when he said, “What’s good for GM is good for America.”

Where is the next tech battlefield? Predicting the future of sponsors on the field

kirk_wakefield 2013, Digital Strategy, Relate, Sell, Social Media, Sponsorships July 1, 2013November 2, 2018Google Glass, IFAB, Microsoft, NFL, prognostication, sponsorship strategy, Surface, trends 0 Comment

by Eric Fernandez – July 2013

Microsoft Surface on the sidelines

In May, the NFL announced a ground breaking partnership with Microsoft that would bring interactive features to fans watching at home through the X-box One console (in-game Skyping, split screen to view game feeds with stats and fantasy updates, etc) and provide a significant tech upgrade to the field of play.

Until now, with the exception of headset communication, all technology had to be turned off 90 min before game time. Coaches used Polaroid images, static play sheets and wipe boards as in-game teaching aids. With the Microsoft agreement, the Surface tablet will make its way to sidelines allowing coaches a new, dynamic medium to provide players feedback and coaching in real-time. Additionally, referees will use the Surface tablet to monitor replays from the sideline.

Sponsors getting on the field

From a branding standpoint, the NFL field-of-play is arguably the most premium available real estate – a three hour engagement opportunity with no brand clutter. Branding opportunities have been limited to three categories:

player uniforms and coaches apparel (Nike),
isotonic drinks (Gatorade) and
coaches headsets, which until last season was owned by Motorola, but is currently available, and noteworthy that is was not part of either the Microsoft agreement or recent Verizon NFL extension.

Tech brands are finding the field-of-play, in particular the NFL gridiron, as the battleground for building their business and brands with consumers. Consider some recent examples and what might happen in the future:

1) Now: US Women’s tennis player Bethanie Mattek-Sands using Google Glass as a training aid for her Wimbledon preparation. As a player, it providers her coach a first-person viewpoint of how she’s reacting. As the video lead-in shows, in addition to providing her training benefits, it provides a unique and intriguing camera angle for TV viewers (which is not available…yet). Or just check out Victor Oladipo at the NBA draft. The Future: Imagine NFL referees wearing Google Glass or better yet, quarterback’s helmets equipped with Google Glass to provide a unique TV camera angle.

2) Now: I.F.A.B., soccer’s preeminent lawmaking body, announced in 2012 that chip technology would be implanted in balls to identify when they’ve crossed the goal line. Using Hawk-Eye and GoalRef technology, the English Premier League has tested the technology to aid referees. The Future: The NFL should not be too far behind since one of the most controversial, and time consuming, officiating decisions is goal line touchdowns.

3) Now: Technologists are developing brain sensing pads that can be placed in NFL headgear to measure hit impact for concussions. The Future: Still in the early phases, given the NFL’s focus on game safety, I’d anticipate this rolling out by 2014.

Given the scale and deep engagement of the NFL, I’d anticipate more tech companies looking to use the NFL as a platform to build their business. If they can integrate their technology to improve the game and the fan experience, it can serve as a relevant content platform that would be better than any form of paid advertising.

How to build trust in relationship selling

kirk_wakefield 2013, Integrity, Lead, Sales Management, Sell, Tickets July 1, 2013November 2, 2018behavior, business performance, Covey, premium sales, retention, sales performance, Trust, upscale, VIP 0 Comment

by Dan Rockwell – July 2013

All successful relationships require trust

Good salespeople build relationships because organizational success depends on it. If trust is something “they” do, you are the problem.

Research shows three important consequences related to trust and performance.

Overall business performance for organizations is higher when salespeople trust their managers.¹
Individual sales performance is better among salespeople who engender high trust.²
Employee retention is higher in organizations with high manager-employee trust because the quality of life in the workplace is better.³

How do sales managers and salespeople build strong, resilient relationships?

You learn to behave

Stephen M.R. Covey, says, “Relationship trust is all about behavior … consistent behavior.” (From: “The Speed of Trust.” Today, seven years after publishing, it’s still #2 in Business-Life, Ethics, on Amazon.)

Covey explains 13 behaviors common to high-trust individuals:

Talk straight. Let people know where you stand. Use simple language.
Demonstrate respect. Genuinely care and show it.
Create transparency. Tell the truth in a way that can be verified. Err on the side of disclosure.
Right Wrongs. Apologize quickly. Make restitution where possible.
Show loyalty. Give credit freely. Speak about people as if they were present.
Deliver results. Don’t overpromise and underdeliver. Don’t make excuses.
Get better. Thank feedback and act on it.
Confront reality. Take issues head on, even the “undiscussibles.”
Clarify expectations. Disclose, reveal, discuss, validate, renegotiate if needed, don’t violate, expectations.
Practice accountability. Take responsibility for results. Be clear on how you’ll communicate.
Listen first. Don’t assume you know what matters most to others.
Keep commitments. Make commitments carefully. Don’t break confidences.
Extend trust. Extend trust abundantly to those who have earned it. Extend trust conditionally to those who are earning it.

Do you want to move up?

Axel Köster, General Manager for the Manhattan Group, recruits executives and managers for premium properties such as the Peninsula, Regent, Hilton and others around the world.

“No matter what the industry,” Axel shares “at the top level of any successful organization you must have someone you can truly trust. If you want to move up in your organization, the most important thing you can do is build a reputation for trustworthiness.”

The bottom line is success in relationships and relationship selling depends on your trustworthiness. And so does the trajectory of your career.

Getting started

How do we improve trust? By being intentional about it. Make a copy of Covey’s 13 behaviors. Put it in front of you at work. Find a peer who wants to do the same thing. Keep each other accountable. Practice being happy.

Bill Yates, Senior Associate & Partner at the Sports Advisory Group, adds, “Provide solutions to their problems and you’ll be rewarded with trust.”

Continue building trust with colleagues and clients and whether you move up the career ladder or not, at least you’ll be one of the happy ones.

Sources

“Making things happen through challenging goals: Leader proactivity, trust, and business-unit performance,” Crosley, Cooper & Wernsing (2013), Journal of Applied Psychology.
“The interrelationships of empathy, trust, and conflict and their impact on sales performance,” Plank & Reid (2010), Journal of Marketing Management.
“Trust your teammates or bosses? Differential effects of trust on transactive memory, job satisfaction, and performance.” Gockel, Robertson & Brauner (2013), Employee Relations.

Show me the money? The truth behind effective sales commission plans

kirk_wakefield 2013, Integrity, Lead, Sales Management, Sell, Sponsorships, Tickets July 1, 2013November 2, 2018changes, compensation, consistency, equity, George Killebrew, Mavericks, motivation, NBA, planning, sales commissions, strategy 0 Comment

by Jeff Tanner – July 2013

Are salespeople motivated just by the $ sign?

Perhaps the greatest myth in sales is that salespeople are only in it for the money, especially when it comes to sponsorships and premium sales in sports.

Our research regarding salesperson motivation showed money as the primary motivator for no more than 15% of all salespeople. What about the rest?

Since money should follow performance, the majority are motivated more by:

Independence, Challenge, and Genuinely serving customers

So, that’s what motivates salespeople. What’s the number one way de-motivate salespeople?

Let’s talk about the role of incentives and commissions and then we’ll get to how to lose your best salespeople.

The Value of Incentives & Commissions

[dropshadowbox align=”right” effect=”lifted-both” width=”250px” height=”” background_color=”#ffffff” border_width=”1″ border_color=”#dddddd” ]

A commission plan must be consistent year to year and fairly simple to understand. We have made only minor adjustments over the last 12 years.

Salespeople do their best when consistency exists and they aren’t thrown a bunch of curve balls.

Money is not the only motivating factor. In fact I think it isn’t even the most important. The ability to have a sense of autonomy, to feel like you are an important team member, to feel like you work for a company that values you, are all important factors to sales success.

~ George Killebrew, SVP Business Operations, Dallas Mavericks

[/dropshadowbox]What compensation structure works best to direct salespeople’s activity?

Short term sales incentives are effective motivation when sales tasks are (a) repetitive and (b) don’t require a great deal of creativity. The intrinsic nature of the job just isn’t enough; it takes creative incentives, including well-designed contests to focus salespeople on the right activities. Dangle a carrot in front of a ticket rep and get out of the way.

Incentives don’t work as well for sales positions like sponsorships that require a lot of (a) creativity, (b) customer care, and have (c) long-term sales cycles.

How to demotivate your sales force

Commissions are excellent motivation to sell and service key accounts in sponsorships or premium ticket sales. You know you’ve succeeded at demotivating your sales force if any one of them begins saying things like, “They cut my commission!” “They keep changing the plan.” Or the worst one, “They owe me…”

In spite of the motivating power of incentives and commissions, organizations can also find ways to break the trust with their salespeople:

Delaying an announcement of compensation plan details: salespeople don’t know what to sell,
Lowering commission rates in the middle of the selling season in order to boost profits by lowering pay, and
Delay payment while quibbling over minor points in the plan.

Yes, you can just get more salespeople to replace the ones who leave. But when you finally get some good ones back on the team, how many sales were lost?

Solutions

Spend the time to run the compensation plan through tests before launching it. What’s the worst case scenario? The best case?

Think like a rep and figure out what the best sales strategy is to maximize compensation. Can you live with that result?

And plan for a surprise – like adding a bonus mid-selling season. While nothing demotivates like cutting commission after the fact, nothing has more motivating power than a seemingly-random occasional extra reward.

As Greg Grissom, Vice President of Corporate Development at the Houston Texans, concludes, ”The right compensation plan is a key tool in sales leaders tool kit to ensure you clearly communicate where success lies both individually and as a team. By incenting the behaviors and outcomes, salespeople clearly understand where they need to spend their time and effort.”

3 basic questions you should ask premium seat buyers

kirk_wakefield 2013, Lead, Learn, Research, Sales Management, Sales Training, Sell, Tickets July 1, 2013November 2, 2018buying, leasing, NFL, premium sales, preparation, renting, research, selling efficiency, Success, suites, VIP 0 Comment

by Kirk Wakefield – July 2013

Preparation is the key to selling efficiency

Preparation is on anyone’s top 10 list of what makes successful salespeople. Successful preparation is based on asking the customer the right questions.

Knowing the right questions is one thing. But knowing the right answers can lead to more sales and more efficient selling (i.e., close ratios).

A little research

One of our NFL client partners wanted to help their sales staff get a head start in understanding individual suite rental customers in preparation for the upcoming season. In the two weeks after the season ended we collected responses from a sample of 20% of individual decision makers from the previous season’s rental customers. Among other things, we wanted to know the answers to three basic questions and the relationship between these answers and how likely customers would be to buy again and refer others.

Three basic questions

Corporate buyers are likely to be passionate fans, but that’s not the reason they are buying. They are buying because they believe potential clients are passionate league or team fans. So, sure, it helps if they love the team. But in an NFL city, odds are most everyone locally or regionally has at least some affinity for the team. This leads to the first basic question you need answered.

Where does your business come from?

The results show the vast majority use the suite to build relationships with local (71%) and regional (84%) customers. However, those indicating they also have extensive global (37%) and national (68%) markets are significantly more likely to recommend renting suites to others, representing your best promoters and referral sources.

If the premium buyer’s customers are primarily local and regional, promoting the team angle may be useful. But if their customers are more national or global, then we really need to ask what else influences the choice to rent a suite.

What influences which game you’d like to select?

Too many salespeople assume price is the main issue. Don’t start there.

From our sample, almost 1/3 aren’t really concerned about the price. More importantly, concern about the suite rental price had no bearing on whether or not they’d be likely to rent again next season. Statistically speaking, what did?

The most likely return suite rental customers were those who wanted to (1) know who the opposing team was, (2) review the entire schedule when it was released, and/or (3) who were planning a special occasion.

Why are those good answers for you? Because it means they’ve already decided in favor of buying, the question is which game? Greater concern for knowing (a) the kick-off time, (b) day of the game, or (c) the price had no influence one way or the other on likelihood of using a suite the next season.

The upshot is that if you focus efforts on prospects in a true-decision making mode (team, schedule, occasion), your close ratio should be higher.

Compared to other options, how would leasing a suite from us help you win business?

We aren’t the only game in town. Our clients can entertain in other sports & entertainment venues. The heart of this question is what is it about leasing from us that helps meet your objectives?

What we see from our study is it’s not what you think. Most don’t think leasing a suite guarantees closing a business deal.

The big insight is that a suite offers the best chance the invitation will be accepted and won’t fall through. What your clients really want is just to make sure they have a chance to close a deal.

What’s the worst fear when we throw a party? The people we wanted to come don’t show up. It’s been the same since high school; now we’re just playing for different stakes.

A second big insight is predicting who will be our best promoters and source of referrals. The ability to predict a client’s NPS (Net Promoter Score) is highest among those who strongly believe the suite provides the best return on objective (i.e., the chance to sell) and is the best choice for doing so in the market (viz., “differentiator in the customer entertainment universe”).

Conclusion: Act

Premium sales isn’t as simple as asking these three basic questions, but it sure helps. The key is in preparation. Teams like those who commissioned this research know that knowledge is power. Now let’s go get some.

Bill Boyce NBA D-League Executive of the Year

kirk_wakefield 2013, About S3, Integrity, Lead, S3, S3 Spotlight, Work ethic June 13, 2013October 18, 2018awards, Creative sponsorships, D-league, Donnie Nelson, innovation, Legends, NBA, outstanding, Veracruz 0 Comment

Bill Boyce has been a great friend and leader in the Baylor S3 community since the launch of the the Dallas Mavericks D-league team in Frisco. The Baylor S3 program selected Bill as one of our Chevrolet S3 Outstanding Board Members in 2012. We’re excited for him and certainly agree the League made an excellent selection!

Below is the press release from the NBA.

TEXAS LEGENDS PRESIDENT BILL BOYCE NAMED

2013 NBA DEVELOPMENT LEAGUE TEAM EXECUTIVE OF THE YEAR

NEW YORK, June 12, 2013 – Texas Legends President Bill Boyce was today named the 2013 NBA Development League Team Executive of the Year, it was announced by NBA D-League President Dan Reed. The NBA Development League Team Executive of the Year is determined by peer voting and teams are not allowed to vote for themselves.

“On behalf of the NBA D-League, I’m pleased to honor Bill Boyce with the Team Executive of the Year Award in recognition of the Legends’ impressive season in Frisco,” said Reed. “Bill’s energetic and creative leadership in all areas of the business – ranging from innovative marketing partnerships, outstanding in-game entertainment, and deep community outreach in the Frisco area – has helped shaped the organization into one of the best in the league.”

Under Boyce’s leadership, the Legends entered into an historic marketing partnership with the state of Veracruz, Mexico, that was highlighted by “Veracruz Incomparable” being prominently featured on the front of the Legends jersey. The new multi-year agreement makes the historic state of Veracruz the first non-team city to have its name and slogan prominently featured on the jersey of a professional sports team. As presenting partner of the Legends, the team’s home arena is now called the “Veracruz Court at Dr Pepper Arena” with the Veracruz logo displayed on center court. Additionally, Veracruz receives significant in-arena signage and television exposure throughout the Legends’ market through the team’s family of local television networks.

Boyce also was recognized for the team’s strong community presence, including its extensive local TV rights deals, which ensure that all Legends games are broadcast locally through a state-of-the-art, mobile production trailer. In addition, he also helped create innovative theme jersey nights to benefit local charities and entertaining game presentations, which have set new standards for the NBA D-League.

“It is a great honor to be named NBA Development League Executive of the Year,” said Boyce. “This award doesn’t represent one individual but the entire Legends family, including our players, coaches, business team, and, of course, our dedicated owners – Donnie Nelson, Evan Wyly, Sonny Xiao, and Eduardo Najera.”

Previous winners of the award are David Higdon (Bakersfield, 2012), Bert Garcia (Rio Grande Valley Vipers, 2011) and Jon Jennings (Maine Red Claws, 2010).

NBA Development League

The NBA Development League is the NBA’s official minor league, preparing players, coaches, officials, trainers, and front-office staff for the NBA while acting as the league’s research and development laboratory. Featuring 17 teams with direct affiliations to NBA franchises, the league offers professional basketball at an affordable price in a fun, family-friendly atmosphere. Thirty percent of players in the NBA at the end of the 2012-13 season boasted NBA D-League experience. In fostering the league’s connection to the community, its teams, players and staff promote health and wellness, support local needs and interests, and assist in educational development through NBA D-League Cares programs. Fans can watch all NBA D-League games on nbadleague.com

# # #

How did the S3 Report grow over 400% in 4 months?

kirk_wakefield 2013, Digital Strategy, Lead, Learn, Networking, Relate, S3 Spotlight, Social Media, The S3 Program June 12, 2013November 2, 2018blog, digital leadership, growth, influencers, major leagues, MLS, NBA, NFL, social media 0 Comment

by Kirk Wakefield – June 2013

Thanks to you, the growth in readership and membership at the S3 Report has been exceptional. Let’s start with who we are and then how we’ve grown.

Who are we?

The S3 Report launched in January 2013 with a following of no more than 75 members of our S3 Board and staff who write for us. Within four months, we had 300 registered members (up 400%). Starting from scratch in January (visits = 0), where has your support taken us?

4,506 unique visitors, 7,174 total visits, and 37,625 page views since January 1.
1,792 unique visitors since May 1:
- 67% new visitors
- Over 98% stay on the site for 3 minutes and view over 5 articles each visit.
Now over 400 registered members representing exec’s from:
- Over 60 major league teams
- NFL, NBA, and MLS league offices
- Over 30 NCAA athletic departments
- Over 50 corporations/agencies

How did we get here? You.

First, we started with influencers. Executives from leading teams in every league and among major sports advertisers from the Baylor S3 Advisory Board provided the foundation as our writers.

Second, more influencers like you joined the community via social media. With the help of the first 75 influencers and their followers, traffic was generated primarily through Twitter referrals. Over half of our traffic (51.3%) comes from referrals via social media and other websites, with another 16% from search traffic and 30% direct traffic to the site.

Breaking down the referrals with Google Analytics, we can see how most new visitors get here:

54% Twitter
17% Facebook
16% LinkedIn
4% Team Sports Marketing
4% www.Baylor.edu

Bottom line? Keep on posting! As we all know from our careers in sales and marketing, referrals from friends are the most trusted source of information.

Content is _______

We get tired of hearing it, but the King is not dead. And, no, we don’t mean Elvis.

Excluding articles from the editor, what are our most popular posts so far?

Rank

Article

Author

Organization

Which comes first: Happiness or success?

Shawn Achor

GoodThinkInc

No more cold calls: 3 steps to making informed calls & increasing close rates

Flavil Hampsten

Bobcats

The Sales Commandments According to This Disciple

Carson Heady

T-Mobile

Sales Training: How to Handle Objections

Sean Ream

MLS

How to get promoted in sports sales careers

Rob Zuer

Rockets

How to manage the new generation of sellers

Murray Cohn

NBA

Executing successful sales events: Three teams who are doing it right

Corey Breton

Hawks

So you want a job in pro sports?

Charles Johnson

Sixers

Part 2: Managing the next generation of sellers

Murray Cohn

NBA

Practice? We talkin’ about practice?

Bob Hamer

Suns

S3 Board Member Spotlight: Kelly Cheeseman, AEG Worldwide

Jerry Ruiz

S3 Editorial Staff

Social media in the NFL: Strategy and tools

Nick Schenk

Texans

Here’s a method to turn sponsorship assets into answers

Bill Glenn

The Marketing Arm

How to look good at the interview

Jeannette Salas

Texans

S3 Alumni Spotlight: Taylor Bergstrom, Texas Rangers

Jennifer MacIntyre

S3 Editorial Staff

I’ve got the golden ticket!

Ken Troupe

KT SportsMarketing

Ticketing technology: How can we reduce barriers for renewals?

Chris Faulkner

Broncos

Just trust me

Lolly Daskal

Lead From Within

Are you investing enough time into training? The 3 elements of good programs

Drew Ribarchak

Blue Jackets

Evolution of analytics in sports: What’s next?

Aaron LeValley

LA Kings/AEG

[dropshadowbox align=”center” effect=”lifted-both” width=”400px” height=”” background_color=”#ffffff” border_width=”1″ border_color=”#dddddd” ]If you missed any of these, the good news is our archives are always open. If you haven’t yet joined our community, the best news is it’s free. Just click here![/dropshadowbox]

Under Armour – The Underdog Story of Sports Merchandise

kirk_wakefield 2013, Lead, Learn, Research, Sell June 1, 2013November 2, 2018Adidas, athletics, brand management, branding, equipment, gear, merchandise, Nike, perception, Reebok, Under Armour 0 Comment

by Anne Rivers – June 2013

How to break into a mature market

The giants of athletic gear (Nike, Adidas and Reebok) traditionally dominated the sports merchandising brand space through partnerships with sports franchises and collegiate athletics. In mature, lucrative industries like this, the question for others is always the same: How do you break into a market that already has strong leaders?

In the brandscape of athletic apparel, Under Armour is considered one of the newest contenders. Kevin Plank, a former University of Maryland football player, founded the company in 1996 on the grounds of wanting to create a t-shirt that provided compression and kept perspiration off rather than absorb it. This highly differentiated product helped set Under Armour apart from its competitors, but was unable to break out of its relatively new and niche space in their desired market for several years.

Being Different

In the BAV, UnderAmour, along with 3,500 other brands are surveyed by over 17,000 respondents on 71 metrics including 48 emotional attributes in the U.S. every quarter. Through the data, we spot key trends to help the brand grow into and/or maintain their leadership position.

Energized differentiation (ED) is a key indicator of future brand performance and a driving force for the value of sports brands. In 2007, Under Armour performed well as a differentiated brand with high esteem (E), but lacked in relevance (R) and knowledge (K). Their products set them apart from other sports merchandise giants of the United States, but needed more consumers to relate to and know about the brand and what it stood for.

Grassroots Marketing

How did they start to capitalize on their high differentiation from the other brands? Under Armour desperately needed to increase the relevance and knowledge of their brand among the general population. Grassroots efforts to gradually grow Under Armour through influencers provided the brand with authentic, passionate advocates who generated enthusiasm for the brand.

Evolving strategy

The brand had to first appeal to smaller segments of the overall desired target audience. For example, Under Armour sponsored a few professional athletes like Ray Lewis, Tom Brady and Miles Austin, as well as college teams from Northwestern, South Florida, Texas Tech, and Boston College. By learning how to appeal to smaller segments of athletes, Under Armour gathered enough momentum to appeal to the mass market.

Understanding brand essence

Under Armour benefited from its dedicated approach to consistent, true-to-self branding efforts, becoming a leadership brand in the midst of a recession and continuing to catch up to the category leader. Today, Under Armour outperforms Nike on these key attributes of their brand essence that drive consumer choice:

unique
simple
innovative
independent

Continuing to exhibit values that resonate with Americans’ emotional needs since the recession help Under Armour maintain its leadership identity today.

Sports franchises

Using the BAV’s assessment of consumers’ perceptions of brands we can predict stock values of publicly traded companies. Using the BAV’s scores of energized differentiation for pro franchises, we can predict Forbes’ annual valuation of franchises. Sports teams, and individual players for that matter, can diagnose what elements of their brands are contributing to success and which hold opportunity for improvement. Just like Under Armour, there’s no quick fix. But, with appropriate diagnostics and strategy, teams can gain ground on the leaders in their markets.

Sales training for CRM: The 3 sales rep types & how to reach them

kirk_wakefield 2013, CRM, Learn, Relate, Sales Training June 1, 2013November 2, 2018acceptance, CRM, effectiveness, fear, how to, progress, sales management, sales reps, training 0 Comment

by Chris Zeppenfeld – June 2013

How can CRM fail?

Numerous studies estimate that somewhere around 50% of all CRM implementations ultimately fail. That’s scary. Why do CRM implementations fail?

User adoption is usually at the top of the list of most of the articles on the subject. The recurring theme is reps and managers need ongoing CRM training to fully benefit from the installation. That brings up questions like:

How often do you train?
How long are the sessions?
What measurables should we use?

But, the most important questions is: HOW am I going to treat each rep in the training session?

Typical sales responses

Tell me if any of these sound familiar among sales reps:

motivated by instant gratification
want things to be fast and quick
paranoid about protecting leads
concerned about how they will be judged by their manager
hates anything that slows them down from selling
dislikes having to put info into CRM for the sake of putting info into CRM
expects something to happen immediately whenever a button is clicked

After training roughly 2,000 people in my career in software, I’ve boiled it down to three types of reps you are likely to encounter in CRM training sessions. The major challenges are 1) getting buy-in and 2) keeping their attention. Achieving these goals requires different approaches with each type of rep.

THE QUESTIONER

Symptoms:

always asks if CRM can do something that you haven’t built yet in CRM,
often the most engaged reps you have,
potential to be managers someday,
most likely to be curious about something in CRM you never trained them on

Diagnosis: Questioners aren’t your typical rep. They want to know WHY something is the way that it is. You may only have one or two of these people on your entire sales staff.

Treatment:

Important to develop good relationship since they can be your best source of ideas for new things in CRM
Focus on how CRM can make them smarter than the average rep
React quickly when they complain since they can “poison” everyone else with their vocal barbs
If you do create a new tool in CRM based off their suggestion, make sure to give them credit so they feel engaged
Spend more time explaining the logic behind the new task and less time having them repeat the task over and over again in the training session

THE SOLDIER

Symptoms:

rarely raises an issue about CRM (but if they do it’s all of them at once)
not curious at all about the other things in CRM outside of their world,
uses CRM as a means to an end rather than a tool to help them improve as a sales rep

Diagnosis: Soldiers are your typical rep: Here’s what the world looks like, put your head down, and sell it!

Treatment:

Focus on showing them that CRM makes them faster and more efficient
Use them as showcase examples to your staff to reward good CRM habits
Engage them and ask for their input when considering adding a new feature to CRM
Tell them to click where and when, and they will do it (as long as it is fast)
Try to get as many repetitions as possible during the training session of the new task you are showing them

THE OLD GUARD

Symptoms:

usually most tenured reps consistently selling at high volume,
stuck in their ways,
struggle to get notes in CRM,
think their way (spreadsheets, note cards, outlook, etc.) is “good enough” to do the job,
often say things like, “I sold XXXX without CRM then, so I don’t need to learn this new CRM thing”

Diagnosis: Old Guards are usually skilled salespeople, but are a mixed bag when it comes to CRM adoption.

Treatment:

Show them indisputable statistics that using CRM helps their winning percentage
Show them that the time it takes to put in a note in CRM is less than what they are doing now (literally conduct a time trial session – if his method is quicker/better, you have a design issue)
Focus on the bare essentials (put your notes in) of CRM rather than all of the bells and whistles
Lean on managers for enforcement of CRM when you get non-compliance
If you have to resort to threats of taking away sales for lack of CRM notes, make sure that comes from the sales manager not you!
Much better to have 5 CRM training sessions over 5 days that last 10 minutes each vs. 1 training that lasts 60 minutes straight

Be Sure to Drink your Ovaltine (and other sponsorship lessons from A Christmas Story)

kirk_wakefield 2013, Sell, Sponsorships June 1, 2013November 2, 2018activation, commercials, Creative sponsorships, engagement, Fiat 500, InTouch Credit Union, promotion, sponsorships 0 Comment

by Drew Mitchell – June 2013

A crummy commercial?

A Christmas Story is one of my favorite classic holiday movies, an opinion likely shared by many of you given how it seems to run 24/7 on TBS during the Christmas season.

As my family gathers around the Christmas tree each year we laugh at the great story about Ralphie, a young boy growing up in the ’40’s who dreams of owning a Red Rider BB gun. One of my favorite quotes is a very well known part of the movie, when Ralphie learns an important lesson in life. After working hard to break a secret code that turned out to be a promotion for the product Ovaltine, Ralphie learned that many things we want in life aren’t always “free.”

How did Ralphie react when his “prize” for cracking the code is a commercial? In case you don’t know or forgot, here’s what happened.

Ralphie’s response is an important take away. How do fans react to a “Crummy Commercial” during a sporting event or live show? Pretty much the same way.

What do fans expect?

Fans pay top dollar from their discretionary income to enjoy an event live and in-person. They don’t expect commercial interruptions.

Sherry Cassidy, Vice President of Public Relations at InTouch Credit Union, echoes the philosophy of the Legends,

“The goal for our partnership with the Texas Legends is to maximize a fan’s experience at the game by providing additional games and entertainment, contests, & interaction with the players. They make fans a part of the experience, not just a spectator. It’s important that there are a variety of activities going on during the game… such as the High Five Tunnel, and Fan of the Game, the bounce houses, etc. Being a part of this experience, we create a fun-filled safe environment where parents feel comfortable letting children participate in the activities throughout the arena while they enjoy watching the game.”

Drive by passion

We produced a great season long promotion with FIAT to enhance fan experience and connect fans with a sponsor in a very positive way. A lucky fan received a FIAT 500 during the final home game of the season. Fans entered at each home game for the opportunity to be selected as a finalist to win the car. Fans waited in anticipation each game to see if they were selected as a finalist, keeping them engaged with the promotion and the sponsor during the course of the season. With each finalist invited back to the final home game, they lined up and tried their chance at winning the car. With about 4 finalists to go….we had a winner!

See the video of the giveaway and the fan engagement with the promotion:

http://youtu.be/CNOP_37iNMQ

You Make the Call!

The Legends also increased their fan experience on TV broadcasts through a social media platform allowing fans to make a play suggestion to the head coach. The coach then selects a minimum of one play per quarter with recognition to the fan whose who submitted the play.

Director of Broadcasting for the Legends, Kyle Judkins adds, “Fans have the opportunity to interact with our broadcast and have a real impact on the outcome of the game. This is such a powerful way to connect a fan with a sponsor with a positive association with the brand in an elevated experience.”

No Ralphie Moments

When a fan has a positive experience with a team they are likely to return more often. When they have a positive experience with a sponsor, they are more likely to try or adopt that brand.

I’m sure we all have had situations where our fans felt like Ralphie. To avoid those in the future, the steps to build partnerships to mutually benefit the sponsor, team and fan are pretty simple:

Remember activation means action. Try to find ways for fans to take action.
Don’t disappoint fans (and sponsors) by running another “crummy commercial” during games.
Develop a creative marketing program to enhance fan experience and engagement with both sponsor and team.
Don’t shoot your eye out with a Red Rider BB Gun!