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E.
Sport Marketing
© 2001
The resource Running Sport is published by the
Hillary Commission for Sport, Fitness and Leisure
PO Box 2251, Wellington, New Zealand
Phone (64-4) 472 8058 Fax (64-4) 471 0813
info@hillarysport.org.nz
This resource is one of a series produced by the Hillary Commission for
Sport, Fitness and Leisure. Topics in the series include:
B. Strategic Planning
C. Policy Development
D. Financial Management
E. Sport Marketing
F. Public Relations
I. Strategic Leadership
The series targets board members and executive officers of national and
regional sports organisations. The topics were developed following a
needs analysis of the Commission’s client organisations.
Acknowledgements
Terry Kilmister
Richard Rudman
Glenda Hughes
Leslie Brown
Strategic Planning
Contents page
Introduction 5
1. What Is Marketing? 6
— Marketing Orientation 6
— Activity – Where is your sport’s market orientation? 7
2. Marketing Mix – 5 Marketing Ps 8
How The 5 Ps Are Related 8
— Product 9
— Price 10
4
— Promotion 11
— Place 12
— Public Relations 12
2. Model For Developing A
Market Strategy 13
Analyse the Market 14
Step One. Study the environment and your position in it. 14
Identify and describe the stakeholder. 15
Analyse your current Marketing Mix 16
Step Two. Segment the Market 18
Databases 19
Step Three. Analysing the Competition 21
Sample Action Plan – Analyse the Market
Use this as a guide for your own action plan. 23
3. Prepare a Marketing Strategy 24
Step Four. Put together a plan. 24
Step Five. Monitor and Evaluate 26
4. Sponsorship 27
Sponsorship Proposal 28
Looking after Sponsors 29
5. Technology – Using The Internet 30
Sport and the Internet 31
Building and Retaining Traffic 31
Summary 33
Introduction
Sport is changing rapidly as it competes for the consumer
entertainment dollar and leisure choices become more varied and
complex.
5
Marketing sport is different from marketing regular products and
services, but some modern marketing techniques can be used in sport.
Marketing should provide value for both parties and is most likely to
succeed when seen as a means of communication.
Marketing Orientation
6
Successful marketing programmes are market driven. In other words,
you must find out what your stakeholders want from their sport and
respond to those needs.
the time and commitment it takes to find out what consumers and
members want.
the result sometimes clashes with what you think they should want.
If your sport is not market driven, it will take time to change. You will
need to involve, encourage and advocate the consideration of the
stakeholder. Being market driven is an ongoing process - not just a one-
off activity.
Activity – Where is your sport in terms of market orientation?
Think about your organisation and rate it in terms of how market
driven it is. Use the following scale:
0% 100%
No consideration to the All decisions and actions
market in any decisions are market-driven
7
Now give reasons for your rating. Include descriptions of market-driven action:
2. Marketing Mix – 5 Marketing Ps
The marketing mix combines the five elements of marketing – known as
the 5 Ps:
Product
Price
Promotion
Public relations
Place (distribution).
8
How The 5 Ps Are Related
Elements of the marketing mix operate as related elements.
Example of a control plan: A large sport has strict requirements for how
and where sponsor logos are worn on player uniforms.
Product
The product is the game or event itself – the sport. Sport has tangible
and intangible elements, which is what makes it a unique product to
market. The tangible elements include such things as the type of sport it
is, who plays – the participants, the make up of the team/s and the type
of competition. The intangible, and therefore subjective, are the
impressions, experiences and interpretations from participants and non-
participants.
The intangible elements that affect sport ensure that the contest is
9
different every time. These, in turn, impact on the excitement and
satisfaction experienced by fans (and participants).
Product Extensions
For supporters, sport also involves the venue, facilities, entertainment,
atmosphere, comfort and so on. These are known as product extensions.
Players will also consider other factors such as the type of competition,
physical considerations, other participants and social reasons. Other
participants, such as coaches and officials, will consider factors such as
type of competition, training available, support offered and social reasons.
The total package is a key to success and all factors should be considered
when planning.
Like any business, sport has production costs – what it takes to put
the sport package together. Consider all of these factors when
10 determining a pricing formula or pricing policy.
Market research has found that price does not generally have a
major influence on the decision of the passionate consumer to attend
a fixture. But pricing must be in line with the pricing of other
similar events.
sponsorship 11
direct marketing
special deals
pre-match entertainment
media
corporate boxes
game programmes
meet-the-players days
exhibition games
old-timer days
autographed photos
competitions
coaching clinics.
Your sport’s ‘place’ concerns the facility (location, layout, access, and
amenities), rather than the physical channels of marketing (wholesales
and retailers) which is primarily the sport spectator marketing area.
Public Relations
Public relations help determine the position of your sport: it is a long-
12
term means of building the desired image for your sport or organisation.
Public relations play a crucial role in the way your sport is received by
consumers.
Building good relationships with the media are vital in public relations.
Step Two
Segment the market. Be aware of each of the different groups with which
you will be interacting.
Step Three
Analyse the competition. What are others doing, what are your advantages
and disadvantages?
Analyse organisations you have an affinity with and consider joint strategies.
Step Five
Monitor and evaluate.
Analyse the Market
Success will come from wide consultation, and from meeting the needs
of your stakeholders:
4. What are the gaps in stakeholder information that you think need to
be filled?
Product
What is your core business?
Price
16
What is the cost of your sport, including membership?
Promotion
For each part of your sport list the ways in which they are currently
promoted to the various stakeholders?
Are there any other organisations that could offer any of your
products or services?
Place
Are there any barriers to access? 17
Internal Systems
Who ensures that the work of your organisation is carried out (think
of all levels)?
Are there any systems in place to allow for the flow of information in
and out of the organisation?
competitive swimmers
children
social clubs
learners.
From this example (that centres on participants) you can see how it is
possible to generate a list of sub-groups/special needs groups/
membership sectors that may exist within your consumer base.
To use this information to develop marketing strategies you will need to
evaluate how your services match your market. eg. If consumers living a
long distance away say they want the facility to be accessible, your
marketing strategy must explore ways of letting people know about
services such as bus routes/times and parking space.
The process must define the market – and the manner in which it is to
be satisfied. A season ticket holder is more valuable than a one-time TV
viewer, and should be considered as such.
Databases
Databases come in all shapes and sizes and are now usually 19
computerised. It does not matter what the database looks like – the key
is what it contains and how you use it.
Ask yourself: Have you got a useful database – or just a very expensive
mailing list? Is your database a marketing tool?
The first step is to define what you want your database to do:
Player retention
Segmentation
Identifying trends
Telemarketing
Internet marketing
Don’t assume that everyone on the database has the same needs,
interests and wants. Look to include segmentation variables in your
database - these will provide a mine of information about people as
individuals or as a collective group (or segment).
The questions you asked from the earlier section regarding stakeholder
information will be relevant when developing an effective database. You
should also ask:
What information do you have on New Zealanders who take part in,
or follow, your sport?
Who has access to this information and what is it being used for?
From this, you can determine what information your database will
contain and how it will be used.
20
New Zealand has 150 registered leisure activities and more than 100
organised sports. All have databases of some kind, which usually feed
through the hierarchy of the sport or activity.
Sporting Databases:
Sports may be best served by a combined database operation, similar to
the SportPort concept that is being investigated by the Hillary
Commission.
Step Three. Analysing the Competition
Sports marketing is as competitive as sport itself. But the sports market
in New Zealand is a small one. Competition may come from other sports
and the many other leisure opportunities on offer. There are benefits to
be gained from analysing the competition and, increasingly, from sports
working together more effectively.
Pricing policies.
23
Step Two: Segment the market
Note actions you can take to further identify and respond to the needs your
organisation’s specific stakeholder groups.
Further are there any co-operative actions you could take with your
competitors to improve your own (and their) sport.
4. Prepare a Marketing Strategy
a. Developing Goals
Responding to market demand with new goals and strategies must fit
into the mission and strategic plan of your organisation. It should also
fit the environment in which your organisation works.
Your marketing goals will show how you intend to stand out. Develop
marketing goals by:
Specific
Measurable
Attainable
Realistic
Time – framed
26
Developing Evaluation Processes
Consider the examples you developed for the action plan. Plan an
evaluation process for these based on the following table:
Evaluation:
What measure?
Who?
When?
How?
Interpretation of results?
4. Sponsorship
Corporate supporters (also known as sponsors) need to be encouraged or
convinced to buy or join up in the same way as other stakeholders.
Asking for sponsorship is not enough; you have to offer something in
return.
The benefits that sponsors are looking for will be different from those
sought by other stakeholders. Members seek immediate service such as
competitions and social activities. Sponsors, however, will want to use
the sport to promote its product to the market the sports organisation
appeals to.
27
name
image
goodwill
personality
symbols/logos
synergy
audiences
a market
heroes.
Consider also the tangible benefits:
[For further detail about your image and media information, see
28 Module F on Public Relations in this series.]
Sponsorship Proposal
Once you have established what you have to offer, you will be able to
identify and target potential sponsors. These guidelines may help:
Define the market - aim to attract sponsors who may have potential
customers among your sporting market.
Use the Yellow Pages and newspapers - see which businesses are
advertising locally and who their competitors are so you will be able
to know the type and range of competitors you may be able to
impress as potential sponsors.
Relationships Between Sports and Sponsors
Connect what you want to achieve with what the sponsor wants to
achieve – are you targeting the same market? Is there a link
between your aims for your sport or event and those of your
sponsor and their products?
Once a sponsor has been secured, you should have a plan to maintain
and develop the relationship and ensure you are delivering on any
promises you have made. Remember that a sponsorship proposal is
considered a legal contract and any failure to keep your end of the
bargain may not be viewed favourably.
Seek their advice – they may have useful contacts and expertise,
which could benefit your organisation.
Make them feel wanted – provide them with tickets and so forth.
Keep them informed of match and event dates and times.
In 1993 the world-wide-web did not exist; in 1998 there were 113 million
users; today the number is estimated to exceed 160 million. In developed
nations 10-15% of adults are a consistent user of the Internet. New
Zealand’s rate is greater than 15%.
More than 30 sports websites have more than one million visitors every
week. The key difference between the online world and other media is
the availability of the Internet – 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days
a year.
32
Summary
Sport, with all its colour, drama and tension, has plenty to offer
consumers in the race for the entertainment and leisure dollar. But it
can’t just sit there. It has to give people a reason to play, get involved as
an official or volunteer, or go along to watch. In other words, sport has to
market itself.
The module has outlined some strategies for effective sports marketing.
We suggest it is used in combination with the Public Relations module,
which includes a detailed section on media management – one of
modern sport’s most useful marketing tools.