Greg Crawford On Sports Biz, Edition 2

Thanks for the all the great feedback from my first sports business column last Sunday. I am kind of shocked by the large number of readers the column of July 22nd achieved, so thank you and hoping this will continue to get bigger and better every Sunday from now on out. Here we go for this week and please as always let me know what you think.

Proctor and Gamble---As we see more and more advertising each and everyday when it comes to sports, occasionally we are going to see someone hit a home run with their ad campaign. Proctor and Gamble has done just that with their "Thank You Moms Campaign" they are tying into their Olympic sponsorship.

The program is geared towards highlighting the contributions of moms around the world and it is working. Proctor and Gamble also stepped up and gave all 800 moms of U.S. Olympians and Paralympians, a $1,000 stipend to help offset their costs of traveling to London to see their sons and daughters.

Proctor and Gamble has 22 brands, their annual sales worldwide exceed 1 billion dollars. As to being an Olympic sponsor, they have signed on through 2020, which means they will be sponsoring three summer games and two winter games. It is estimated that an Olympic sponsors pays 25 million per four year period to the International Olympic Committee, for the use of the Olympic logo on all products. Because of the outside the box thinking here of Proctor and Gamble, it would certainly appear they will come out a big winner and congrats to them, for creating a sponsorship storyline that is working and is unique.

Penn State---The horrific crimes at Penn State, will no doubt hurt the school for years image wise, but the financial impact is going to sting as well. Not only the 60 million fine levied by the NCAA, but also the fact for the next four years, the Big Ten has announced that the share of the league's bowl money that would have normally gone to Penn State, will instead be donated to charity. It is estimated that amount of money will be close to 13 million. Penn State closed out the last fiscal year with a surplus of 31 million in their athletic budget, so they can afford a little bit of a hit financially. Of course, money means nothing in the overall picture here. I might also add, once again the NCAA missed the mark here, there are so many innocent people that are going to feel the effects of this, who had nothing to do with the crimes and will suffer greatly because of other people's actions. Go after the criminals, always, which did not seem to be on the minds of the NCAA when they handed down their penalties.

Parking Meters---The city of San Francisco, who over the years has often been late to the party when making decisions, once again has lived up to its reputation. It seems they are just now figuring out how successful the San Francisco Giants are, both on the field and from a business standpoint. Starting soon, the city will be putting in new parking meters around AT&T ballpark, which will be in operation seven days a week and you will have to plug the meter until 10:00 pm. It is estimated to use these meters it will cost a person $7.00 per hour. And to think, the city just now figured out this cash cow?

Erin Andrews---Perhaps I will get my man card taken away for this one, but is Erin Andrews really worth the estimated 5 million dollars per year that Fox will be paying her, as she left ESPN to join Fox this past June. I know, I know, it is all about eye candy in some cases, but quite frankly, Erin Andrews is not that good, she often struggles with her reports and she has a horrible voice. Of course, there are lots of people in this country who are horribly overpaid and she joins the list.

TNT---With the NBA schedule just announced, it is interesting to note who will be making the most appearances on the network this coming season. Appearing 10 times will be the Heat, Knicks and Thunder. The Lakers and Clippers get nine appearances and the Mavericks and Celts eight. Overall TNT will televise 52 regular season games. Of course many of the choices were simple, but the Knicks 10 times? I don't care if it is the largest city, just does not make sense to put that pathetic team on 10 times. Then again, who can argue with the success of TNT when it comes to televising the NBA. For the last four years, their ratings for NBA games have been up each year dramatically and last year was their most productive year ever, as per ratings and viewership.

Pac-12 Network---The Pac-12 got off to slow start, when it came to putting their new TV network together, but you have to give them big plaudits for the people they hired as play by play announcers for football.  Three veteran people in the broadcast booth, who are extremely talented, Kevin Calabro, Dave Fleming and Ted Robinson. Of course one person missing is the great Barry Tompkins, how you can leave him out is beyond me, he is the voice of the Pac-12/Pac-10/Pac-8. Also, I would have hoped the Pac-12  would have at least approached Keith Jackson about doing a game or two. How great would that have been.

It is also nice to see that Brooke Olzendam will be doing sideline reporting for the Pac-12 network. Brooke  left Comcast SportsNet before I arrived on the scene, but I thought she was so talented and of course, the pain she went through recently, having her husband die in a hotel workout room after the couple was only married for 10 days, has to be something no one should ever have to go through. So congrats Brooke.

Jon Spoelstra----I get asked all the time by young people and now with this horrific economy, all ages, "how can I get in the sports business". And of course, I give them one stock answer,  go out and buy every book that Jon Spoeslstra has ever written. His latest, "Marketing Outrageously, Redux", has been a huge hit, going into its third year since first being published. Not only for sports people, anyone who wants to improve their life, should read Jon's books, they will improve your life both professionally and personally and the proof is in the pudding, so many I have said this too, have comeback and thanked me for the great recommendation.

Please take a look at my other columns and blogs, www.csnnw.com/pages/golf and www.csnnw.com/pages/ncaabasketball and let me know what you think.

emails to crawscorner@gmail.com and twitter @wchoops


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craw's corner: Greg Crawford On Sports Biz, Edition 1

craw's corner: Greg Crawford On Sports Biz, Edition 1: Well, here goes with my first edition of Greg Crawford On Sports Biz. Ever since I was a young person, I have been fascinated with Sports ...

Greg Crawford On Sports Biz, Edition 1

Well, here goes with my first edition of Greg Crawford On Sports Biz.

Ever since I was a young person, I have been fascinated with Sports Business. It now has evolved into my favorite thing in sports, followed closely by basketball and golf. Of course, this does not mean the end of Crawford's Clubhouse and Crawford's Court on CSNNW.com. Greg Crawford On Sports Business  column will come out every Sunday and I hope you enjoy the little tidbits.

A book that I read at least every month, yes over and over and get so much out of, "Marketing Outrageously, Redux" by Jon Spoelstra will also be featured in this column, with excerpts each Sunday. If you love life, love sports, want to become a better person, better business person or just love good reading, you must get Jon's book, it is absolutely marvelous. So here we go and I hope you enjoy, if not, just ignore each time I send this out and I will not be offended in the least. Thank you,

Franchises---Really interesting last week when Forbes magazine came out with their 50 most valuable sports franchises. We sometimes forget that sports is universal, just not contained to the United States, so it is not shocking that the two most valuable sports franchises come from the  world of soccer. 1) Manchester United, worth 2.33 billion and 2) Real Madrid, worth 1.88 billion.

The most important part of the 50 is the fact that all 32 NFL teams were in the top 50. It is totally amazing what the NFL has done with their game and its popularity. And despite the recent huge sale of the LA Dodgers, the Yankees still retain the top spot in baseball when it comes to value.

Not surprising that the there are no MLS or NHL teams in the top 50. Also not surprising is that the highest ranked NBA team is the Lakers, coming in at 35th. Unless your the Sacramento Kings, it pays, despite the economic woes of California to have a professional sports franchise in California. You buy it and it grows, not just a small amount, but huge over time.

North Dakota---Obviously, North Dakota is serious about joining the Big Sky Conference. They have just gone out and signed a deal with Front Row Marketing Services to sell their sports sponsorships. Front Row in one of the best and largest companies in the world when it comes to sports sponsorships.

North Dakota has a nice athletic department and in joining the Big Sky, that is a big boost for them and for the Big Sky. Of course it still seems odd to me that the Big Sky continues with the name Big Sky, it just does not fit the league anymore when you have teams in California, Arizona, Utah, Washington, Oregon and North Dakota. With the recent unveiling of the league's new logo, what a golden opportunity was missed to rebrand the entire league, with a new name. Big Sky should be out and write me with your suggestions, what should be in. Thank you.

Jamie Zaninovich---If Zaninovich leaves as Commissioner of the West Coast Conference to become the new athletic director at Stanford, it will be a big loss for the WCC. Zaninovich has done wonderful job of moving the league forward since taking over in 2009, especially bringing in the new teams, BYU and of course Pacific in 2014. Basketball drives the bus in the WCC and it appears to be thriving, with this coming season, predicted to be one of the most competitive of all time.

Of course, the big blank on the Zaninovich's record if he leaves will be the fact he could not convince enough people to bring Seattle into the WCC. I know a little about sports, mainly cause I am old, but for Seattle U., not to be in the WCC is totally sad. The school's profile fits perfectly with the WCC and why would you ever not want the the 14th largest TV market to be part of your league. I guess Stockton, California was a better choice.

So if Zaninovich does leave, I love to offer free advice. The WCC should go after Torre Chisholm, who has done a wonderful job, which is not an easy job, as the athletic director at Portland State.

Anthony Davis---To no one's surprise the number one draft choice in the 2012 NBA draft, has signed a multi-year deal with Nike. Nike gets almost every top athlete in the world, as we all know. What I did learn this week, was surprising to me, Nike is responsible for sales of 96 percent of the basketball sports shoe market worldwide. No matter how you cut it, that is power and sports business dominance at the highest level.

Marketing Outrageously, Redux---In case you have not read this book by Jon Spoelstra, you must, no matter what your interest in life or your profession. Each Sunday, will give you just a little excerpt, which I really hope causes you to read the book.

If you wish to ramp up revenue, here are some thoughts from Spoelstra on sales, the salesperson and the sales manager all working together for the same results.

"The toughest part of a sales call is not making the sale, but everything leading up to it. Making the appointment, juggling the schedule and preparing the material".

"The sales manager should do all of the following things, for the same reason the company president or marketing director should do them", go on calls with sales people and constant communication.

1. Work with sales people, it reenforces why the sales manager is there, to raise revenues.

2. It tells the sales people how important revenue is to the company.

3. It keep the sales manager in touch with the market.

4. It stimulates the creation of new ideas.

5. It generates sales.

Emails to crawscorner@gmail.com and twitter at wchoops.

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