10 Things Newbies Need to Know About the Sports CRM World

10 Things Newbies Need to Know About the Sports CRM World
by Chris Zeppenfeld – June 2014

I get this call/voicemail at least once a week from other sports teams…it goes something like this:

[dropshadowbox align=”center” effect=”lifted-both” width=”350px” height=”” background_color=”#ffffff” border_width=”1″ border_color=”#dddddd” ]“Hey Zep! We’re looking for someone to manage our new CRM program. Do you know anyone who would be good for this CRM opening for my team?”[/dropshadowbox]

I’ve had this conversation hundreds of times, so I thought it would help to summarize those talks in one spot:

1.  The job market for CRM is growing rapidly.     If you’re an aspiring CRM wanna-be for a team, that’s terrific news.

    • Over ¾ of the NBA teams have CRM currently in place.
    • By the end of the 2014 calendar year, I expect 90% of the teams in the league will have implemented a CRM system.
    • Almost all of these teams have at least one person dedicated to CRM but many of them have hired or are looking for a coordinator underneath them.
    • Over half of the teams in the 4 major sports have CRM right now. I wouldn’t be surprised if every team in the “Big 4” has a CRM within the next 2-3 years.  It’s a matter of when, not if at this point.

2. CRM Departments are starting to become their own recognized departments.    Over the last 2 years, we’ve seen teams start to branch CRM/Analytics/Business Intelligence into their own departments separate from Ticket Sales, Sponsorship, or Marketing. What do these departments look like?

    • Many  have a Director (3+ years of experience with a team) overseeing the department,
    • One or two analytics personnel (3-5 years of experience), and
    • One or two CRM Coordinators (entry-level).

If you’re coming out of college in the next 12 months, the entry-level CRM Coordinator job is starting to become a regular posting on the job boards (check TeamWork Online regularly!).

3. There’s not a large pool of experienced “Sports CRM” people.    The job is relatively new to sports in general.   When I started with Charlotte in 2009, I was one of the first 10 people to be fully dedicated to CRM in all of sports. That means in sports most have only been in CRM roles for 1-2 years.   Therefore, hires often come from outside the sports industry.

4. Teams want to get smarter on how they make business decisions.  [dropshadowbox align=”right” effect=”lifted-both” width=”250px” height=”” background_color=”#ffffff” border_width=”1″ border_color=”#dddddd” ]brett kahnkeCRM has become a terrific gateway into sports analytics. It is the core function of most business analytics departments. And because its greatest strength is its ability to consolidate information, it naturally becomes the gateway to learning related business skills, such as database management & integration, business intelligence software, email marketing, consumer profiling and customer segmentation. ~Brett Kahnke, VP of Analytics & Technology @MNTimberwolves [/dropshadowbox]As recent as 5-6 years ago, sports teams were light years behind regular business when it came to database and analytics tactics.   The teams’ thirst for getting smarter has evolved quite rapidly in the last few seasons.    The amount of new technologies has increased tenfold.   I dedicate at least one day a week to researching new technologies, programs, or improvements I can make to my CRM just to keep up with everyone else!

5. Most teams with CRM have (by now) integrated all revenue generating departments into their CRM.    Three years ago, most teams with CRM only had one department at most in their CRM (usually Ticket Sales or Sponsorship).   At the recent NBA Analytics Summit, a quick show of hands revealed that most teams have Ticket Sales, Email Marketing, and Sponsorship corralled in the CRM world.   Being in charge of the program that controls the world of the three biggest sources of revenue makes the CRM people more valuable to the organization….and further exposes the CRM personnel to a wider range of areas of the team’s business.

6If a team is hiring for their #1 CRM position (head of department), they will look for experience.    Usually a team just getting CRM will also look to hire their very first person in CRM around the same time or after implementation has finished. Personally, I think this is backwards…you should hire the CRM expert first, then go buy the CRM, but I digress.

What kind of experience is needed? This person must have a solid foundation of the technical aspects of a CRM database. They should:

    • be comfortable moving large data table sets, customizing forms, entities, fields, etc.,
    • have experience creating user interfaces, and (most importantly)
    • have experience training people on software.

I can’t stress enough the need for CRM Directors to be skilled “teachers” as user adoption is the #1 reason CRM implementations fail. It won’t be the technology that causes it to fail.  I’d put more emphasis on the candidate who has experience teaching people how to use a software and working with high-level management on analytical reports than the world’s most knowledgeable CRM person.

7. If a team already has a #1 CRM person, the skillset for their #2 and #3 CRM people is more about potential to grow than past CRM experience. The 2nd and 3rd in-command CRM people should be groomed to eventually take over the #1 role within 2-3 years either for the team (when the #1 perhaps moves on) or for another team who is looking for a #1. We’ve hired two coordinators in my time here in Charlotte, and both times, I was much more interested in their potential than their actual database knowledge. And so should you.

8. The entry-level CRM job is like an apprenticeship. I’ve often said that being my CRM Coordinator is like being in an apprenticeship.   I’ll teach them all I can about CRM for 2-3 years; then they should know enough to be as successful as they want to be in this field for their careers.

As a newbie, it’s OK if you don’t know Microsoft CRM or Salesforce very well. My concern is that when I show you how to do (insert task here) in CRM that you can pick it up quickly, learn it, and remember how to do it in the future.   Both of my coordinators have been excellent hires, yet neither one of them had more than a semester or two of database internship experience.

Here’s what I look for in order of importance:

  1. Can you quickly pick up what I teach you?
  2. Do you have the maturity to eventually run a department in a few years?
  3. Are you an extremely organized person?  Are you nearly obsessive with having things in a neat, organized fashion?
  4. Are you self-motivated? Do you want to be in front of a computer for up to 12 hours a day?  Do you see CRM as a career?
  5. Do you have at least some basic idea of how databases work? Have you worked with contacts, opportunities, accounts, etc.?  If not, have you ever done any kind of importing leads into a database?

9. Not everyone has to do ticket sales to get into sports; there’s a spot for the analytical yet creative type out there. Ask yourself these questions:

  • Do I consider myself to be a creative person?
  • Am I a person who tends to make data driven analytical decisions in my life choices?
  • Am I the type of person to get annoyed when some messes up my alphabetized DVD collection?

If you answered yes to all three of these questions, the ticket-sales-make-100-calls-a-day path is probably not for you. A lot of college students choose the ticket sales path simply because it’s the most prevalent way to “get your foot in the door.” Just because it’s the most common way, doesn’t mean it’s the best fit for you. Creative, outside the box, analytical personalities typically do not make great sales reps. They do, however, make great CRM Coordinators.

10. There are plenty of Sport Management majors, but not a lot of people who “majored” in running CRM. There’s a ton of sport management programs around the country, but an overwhelming majority of these focus on marketing and selling. They churn lots of good candidates for future marketing and ticket sales positions for sports teams.  These candidates have experience being in a CRM environment (namely making calls within the CRM), but that’s honestly not all that helpful. While I’d still value personal traits over experience, I admit one reason why I value candidates from Baylor University is I know these students have direct experience assigning leads to reps through CRM, making customizations in the CRM, and analyzing data. So, if you’re still undecided, check out the S3 program here. Or, start getting CRM experience at your university or the university’s contacts.

Creating the right culture for your sales team

by Jake Reynolds – July 2013

Creating the Right Culture

What is culture?

We hear the word thrown around in the sales industry about as often as actual sales are being made.

monumental swagGallup defines culture as “the attitudes that employees have about the environment in which they work.” Every organization defines and creates culture in different and unique ways, but most agree the key to a successful sales culture is engaging your employees and creating an environment that promotes and allows them to have success.

At Monumental Sports, we strive to create a culture within our sales department that displays our commitment to becoming the best at what we do through education, hard work, accountability and having fun! We keep employees engaged through team building events, sales contests, and consistently communicating expectations for success.

Create an identity

An important element of developing a solid culture is creating and communicating an identity as to what your team values and promotes.

At Monumental, we created an identity within our Inside Sales department to accomplish these goals known as the S.W.A.G. program. This program helps identify the culture and core pillars of what our program is built on and promotes: Success, Wisdom, Attitude and Growth. Through recruiting, daily management and tracking progress, we consistently communicate our expectations and use these characteristics to build our foundation. What do these four pillars mean?

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

Brian Norman
Brian Norman

“Strong culture is at the core of every successful sales team. Culture is especially important for entry-level departments that feed the rest of the organization. Employees take pride in the culture and traditions they helped establish, and bring that with them as they move into senior level positions within the company. Strong culture is paramount in building a successful and sustainable sales and service team.” [/dropshadowbox]

Success We will put employees in a position with the tools necessary to be successful. Success is defined differently for everyone – learning, selling, driving revenue, making money, getting promoted – we will work to find what your goals are and provide you with the necessary resources to accomplish your goals and be successful.

Wisdom Learning never stops! We believe in continued education and development for all reps. We want our dedication and commitment to training and year-round development to be unrivaled in sports. Our focus and goal is to give employees the foundation of wisdom and knowledge to grow and build their career on. The focus is on career not a job.

Attitude We help guide employees to understand what it takes to be successful by reinforcing the attitude and confidence needed to reach their full potentials. Our goal is to be the best in the business and expect nothing less.

GrowthThe primary goal and motivation of our Inside Sales program is to give employees the opportunity, knowledge and tools needed to grow their careers and grow within Monumental Sports. We promote from within. Our success is defined by how many careers we can start and grow within our company. Over the past two years, we promoted 33 reps internally to senior level positions within Ticket Sales, Group Sales, Guest Services and Sponsorships.

What about you?

Every organization has different philosophies and principles that guide and dictate their culture, but the key is engage and lead your team to help establish what your guiding principles will be. In establishing the culture within our department, I followed the roadmap below to help achieve our identity.

  1. Create an identity
  2. Consistently communicate principles and expectations
  3. Follow through and live your brand

Every successful organization has an effective culture that helps drive big results. What will yours be?

Can social media make or break interview chances?

Can social media make or break interview chances?
by Jeannette Salas – April 2013

Social Media, Networking, Common 1st Year Mistakes, and Tips for Success

Social media shows up in the most unusual places

Employers frequently search candidates on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, Linked In, and blogs to see what they find.  Maybe they find a cute picture of your dog (Griffie, above). Or maybe other things not so cute.

Some employers may say, “What you do outside of the organization is your own business.” But, at the end of the day, employers want great company representation 24/7/365.

The best way to find out what potential employers can see is to Google yourself.  How can you manage your social media and use it to your advantage? Don’t publish anything in social media you wouldn’t want your mother (or next employer) to read or see.

While running a minor league sports team, a few arena employees were tweeting opinions on our low attendance one night. Once received on others’ feeds, tweets can’t be erased. Their comments were out there for the world to see, including their boss (me), our fans and customers and most importantly, any future employers of theirs. These young employees underestimated the power of social media, almost lost their jobs and could have damaged chances for employment elsewhere.

Social media is the new extension of your resume.

In what is an already difficult job market, employers use social media to eliminate candidates, even those with great resumes. As a hiring manager, once I found candidates I wanted to interview, I first looked them up in four places: Google, Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn (images included). If anything at all gave me the sense they were unprofessional or wouldn’t represent our company well, they were eliminated immediately. While it’s cool to post fun pictures from your last vacation with your friends, think about who might see those pictures and how they may be construed.

Managing Social Media

  1. Make sure your profile picture is appropriate.  Microsoft Outlook pulls up your social media profile picture whenever an email is received directly from you.  Not sure a keg stand (or any other “party” picture) would get you in for an interview.    THINK PROFESSIONAL!
  2. Beware of content in personal blogs!  Everyone is subject to their own opinions BUT negative and/or inaccurate content can come back to haunt you. (See cancel culture circa 2021.)
  3. Social media outlets allow you to reach millions of people in seconds.  Use it to your advantage when searching for jobs/internships.  Let friends and family members know you are looking for a position.

Networking

When it comes to sports business careers, networking is king. Like everything else in life, it always comes down to relationships.

  1. Stay in touch. When you make a contact keep in touch. Forward your resume immediately after contact.  Make contact at least every 6 months and after career achievements like graduation, obtaining a certificate [e.g., HR Cert, Sales Cert, etc], or an award.
  2. Join professional organizations and relevant social media networking sites and groups on LinkedIn like the S3 Report,  Ticket Sales & Technology, or Ticket Sales Best Practices.
    • Make sure your LinkedIn profile is complete and professional in appearance.
    • These are great ways to connect with professionals that may be able to help you on your career path and offer insight, as well as search for positions.
    • Some groups and individuals frequently post open positions. Follow them.

Common First Year Mistakes

Mistakes entry-level employees tend to make during the first year of employment:

  1. Lack of communication: Afraid to ask questions or for help; don’t call in when out sick; no notification of being late.
  2. Staying out of spotlight: Make an IMPACT within the organization; get involved in committees, events, etc.; EVERYONE should know who you are or at least heard of you.
  3. Poor networking: Get to know employees in other departments.  This isn’t high school – don’t fall into a clique.  Attend all company events – GREAT networking opportunity!
  4. Not leading:  Don’t be scared to pitch ideas/take lead on projects. You bring a fresh thought process to the table – voice your ideas!  Volunteer to take the lead on a project to develop leadership and project management skills.
  5. Complaining: DO NOT complain. PERIOD!  Complaining is:
    1. unprofessional,
    2. unattractive, and
    3. unpromotable. People will not want to work with you or consider you for other positions within the organization. They will think of positions for you outside the organization.
  6. Inflexibility:  Adapting to change is important. Business can change at the drop of a hat.  Be open to new ways of completing tasks or approaching scenarios.  Flexibility helps you grow with and within an organization and seamlessly transition into another one.

 Tips for Success

  1. Continue learning. Stay abreast with the latest in your field.  Attend training, seminars, conferences, and certificate programs.
  2. Ask for help. Not sure? Ask for clarification and guidance. Then you’ll be able to help others who don’t know.
  3. Ask for feedback. Feedback lets you know how you are doing and where you are lacking.  This is essential for professional growth and development.
  4. Communicate. Make sure lines of communication are always clear and open.
  5. Create Raving Fans. A customer service based fundamental: All co-workers should enjoy working with you because your product is top quality and you are great to work with.  If people like working with you they are more willing to help and listen to you.
  6. Read self-help books. Start with How to Win Friends and Influence Others and Emotional Intelligence.  These are great books to help you continue growing both personally and professionally.
  7. Look to the future. Keep moving forward. Plan your career and move towards your ultimate goal.

Reinforcement from the Houston Astrosastros

I agree with all Jeannette points out. Two related thoughts to share:

Don’t underestimate the importance of a resume-appropriate email address. Stick with the traditional last name, first name (or some version of name). This format is simple and it works. An unprofessional address can mean the difference in a team contacting you regarding a job or passing you over for lack of professionalism.

In the interview, be sure to follow the lead of your interviewer. When you are informed at the beginning of the interview that this is going to be a quick phone screen (e.g., 10 minutes on Handshake), stick within that time frame. Everyone’s time is valuable. Sometimes you only have a short time span to sell yourself…PRACTICE THAT SKILL. It proves you can be clear, succinct and respectful of other people’s time. Consider it to be an extended elevator speech.

PS: That said, you need a 30-second elevator speech and a USP of eight words or less about who you are. Read m0re about branding you in our next article here.

~Jennifer Springs, HR, Houston Astros

 

 

 

 

Part 1: How to interview with the pros

Part 1: How to interview with the pros
by Jeannette Salas – January 2013

Part 1: Getting the first interview

Many candidates applying to job postings don’t realize as soon as they click Send the interviews begin.

The minute the potential employer has your name they begin the interview process.  If your background matches with qualifications, the next step often includes Googling your name and visiting social media websites (LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, etc.) to see what they can find not readily available on the resume.

Employers may reach out to a previous employer, particularly if the candidate has previous experience in the sports industry. Always expect employers to check with your last employer or with faculty at your university if you were in a sports-related program.

This is the first in a series breaking down the interview process – what to/not do during the interview, creating and submitting your resume and cover letter, and dressing for the interview.

We’ll also address social media and networking along with some tips for success along with first year mistakes.

Let’s start with how to get the first interview with the team.

Online Resume Submission

    1. Check for grammatical errors. For many teams one error means disqualification.
    2. Review for consistency in formatting. Do dates line up? Is the size of bullet points the same throughout? Are all titles and company names formatted in the same way? Hint: Use tabs not space bar to align sections.
    3. REMEMBER – you are selling yourself on paper and online first in order to get an interview.

Phone Interviews

Ring-back tones and voicemail: Appropriate vs Inappropriate
    1. Remove and replace ringtone with personal message while job hunting
    2. If you keep ring-back tone make sure song is not vulgar or offensive
    3. Make sure the voicemail message is appropriate for business

YES – “Hi, you’ve reached Sally.  Sorry I missed your call. Please leave a brief message and I will return your call.”

NO – “Do your thang and I’ll hit you back.”

Tone of voice – Sound interested
  1. Engaged – upbeat and happy; give thorough answers. Stand up and smile during the interview. It affects enthusiasm and comes through on the other end.
  2. Not engaged – monotone speaking; one-word/one-line answers
Appropriate Surroundings
  1. Be able to speak without interruptions or distractions (e.g. loud noises, friends aren’t in the background,  co-workers walking by, not while driving, etc.).
  2. Ask to call back if necessary – interviewers will appreciate this if they catch candidates at a bad time.
Replying to Questions
  1. Answer questions thoroughly but only answer the question asked.
  2. DO NOT give one-word/one line replies.
  3. Don’t talk too much–exclude your life story.
  4. Ask Interviewer Questions. Think of 2 or 3 questions to ask because you will be asked if you have any.

If you follow these guidelines you stand a good chance of getting the next interview. Next we’ll offer ways to succeed in the face-to-face interview.