Feb

10

Interview with John Fuller of Full Athlete Marketing

Filed Under Community Relations, Event, Interviews, Sports PR | Leave a Comment

Back in mid-January, I had the pleasure to volunteer at the Grand Kids Foundation Celebrity Shoot-out. Grand Kids Foundation is the foundation of Detroit Tigers outfielder Curtis Granderson and was created in an effort to enforce educational initiatives to youth and to help bring the sport of baseball back to the nation’s inner cities. The Celebrity Shoot-out event featured some fantastic athletes and entertainers as they competed in a charity basketball game to raise money for Granderson’s foundation. While assisting John Fuller during the event, I got to observe him in action as he did everything from helping the media to dealing with the participants to putting up signs for the event sponsors. He agreed to answer five questions about what he does for this blog so here it goes:

1) You founded Full Athlete Marketing in 2005. What made you want to start F.A.M. and how did your prior work experiences help prepare you to do so?

I’ve always had a passion for sports, but in a different way. I played football and wrestled growing up, but coming through high school I had a dream of being a sports broadcaster. My career evolved from a journalist at InterMatWrestle.com to a Media Relations and Public Relations Coordinator under the U.S. Olympic Committee. It was in working with amateur athletes that don’t always receive the recognition they deserve, at least year-round, that my passion for publicizing their stories grew.

Following the 2004 Olympic Games, I began to look into different directions my career would follow, and professional sports was the next progression. I was not always sure if I wanted to work with a team or with individual athletes. I began working with a few NFL players here and there on different initiatives, including Terrell Owens and Cato June. The natural step for me was to branch off on my own, so in late 2005, I did just that.

2) F.A.M. works to create a strategic integrated PR and marketing plan to generate strong publicity for its clients. Positive publicity can obviously lead to endorsement deals and help in contract negotiations. What types of activities have proven to be an effective way of boosting an athlete’s brand and image?

I think the key in boosting an athlete’s brand and image is to not only ensure positive publicity, but to also not force positive publicity. The American public as a whole doesn’t always respond to the “good guy” stories, especially when it is covering the same person. If you overexpose it, then some people feel it comes off as fake. I require every client of mine to be involved with their community in some way. Some have been more involved than others, but it is important for them to know that helping their community is a responsibility as a professional athlete, whether they want it or not.

Obviously outside of community work, exposure then has to come based on that individual athlete’s potential. When I first met Curtis Granderson, I felt as though he would be a great broadcaster. Unfortunately, the Tigers did not make the playoffs in 2007, so that was an avenue I explored with Curtis.

Some clients I’ve had in the past were not great public speakers. That is not a knock on them. They were never taught the rights and wrongs of that profession. But it doesn’t mean they can’t still speak to business leaders, schools at all levels, etc… You just have to cater it to their style to make everyone feel more comfortable.

It is important to remember also that each athlete is different. Cookie cutter PR plans don’t exist in my world. I want to meet that client, meet their family, know the things that make that person tick. Some athletes prefer a bad-boy image and some prefer the All-American image. People in general have different tastes in all realms of life. You must find the right avenue for that individual athlete to maximize their brand and exposure opportunities.

3) Obviously not every athlete should run their own charitable foundation. What makes athlete foundations like Curtis Granderson’s so effective both within the community and as a brand builder for Granderson?

It is effective because it has never been used as a brand builder for Curtis. Many athletes start their own foundations, but not all of them have a passion for running it. I think sports fans and businesses in general can sense when the athlete’s heart isn’t behind the foundation.

Right now, there also seem to be trends in professional sports about foundations. The vast majority of them seem to center around diseases of some kind. Don’t get me wrong, these are great causes. For example, Olympic figure skater Kimmie Meissner has an amazing charity called the Cool Kids Campaign (www.coolkidscampaign.org) that assists patients in children’s oncology units. But I do think that with so many out there, the public has trouble figuring out which one is right for them to work with and where they can trust that their money will be best utilized.

Curtis went with his passion - education. Both of his parents are educators. His sister is a college professor at Jackson State University. Only a handful of MLB players have a college degree. And with him playing in possibly the nation’s hardest-hit state economically, it is a no-brainer for him to try to work with the schools not only in Detroit, but in all of Michigan’s inner cities. Education is something that is often overlooked, especially for elementary and middle school students. Not only is their knowledge shaped at this age, but so are their values. Unfortunately, the need existed for him to start his own foundation so he could ensure that the funds he is bringing in to help these children are going to the right place.

4) I know you have reached out to bloggers covering the Detroit Tigers with an opportunity to interview Granderson for their blogs before a Grand Kids Foundation event. Why do you think it’s important to reach out to bloggers as well as your traditional print and TV media? Do you have any suggestions regarding blogger relations?

Well, regardless of what many print and TV media members think, there are a large number of bloggers with valuable insight and journalistic values. The perception exists among traditional journalists that a blogger isn’t in the locker room as much as they are, so they can not possibly offer any valuable information. I look at bloggers as ombudsmen. They are now in place to keep the traditional journalists honest.

When I wake up in the morning, I check four web pages first - my e-mail, Yahoo!, The Big Lead and Deadspin. I usually have a pretty good idea of what is happening in the world once I do that. The blogger is in a sense the voice of the people. If my job is to grow Curtis’ fan base (which he does a good enough job of doing on his own), then why wouldn’t I bring him closer to the people?

Sports fans over generations have only truly asked for one thing - to be able to relate to the players they root for on some level. If a fan reads in Curtis’ blog, or in one of his blogger interviews, that he loves McDonald’s Dollar Menu, or that he shops at Meijer and Wal-Mart regularly, that makes them feel a lot closer to him as a person. It helps them to realize that even though he makes a lot more money than the rest of us and has a job many of us dream about, he is still just a regular guy with regular responsibilities.

I would advise representatives to proceed with caution, though. Just because someone has a blog doesn’t mean they are a journalist. It’s not a black and white profession. Many exist just to destroy images. I would simply recommend doing your homework before agreeing to work with blogs. There is a network of blogs that I have established great relationships with. Like any other relationship, you must build that sense of trust when working with them. Unlike print or TV journalists, the odds are that you will never meet in person the blogger.

5) What advice would you give to individuals hoping to work in the field of sports public relations?

This is easy - intern, intern, intern! I never was an intern, but I’ve had many work under me. This is experience that is invaluable. Not only do you learn the tricks of the trade, but you also develop key relationships that will guide you throughout your life.

Jan

16

Job Posting: Community Development/Foundation Internship for Frisco RoughRiders

Filed Under Career, Community Relations, Job Openings | Leave a Comment

We have another community relations-related spring internship for you. This one with the Frisco RoughRiders, which is a baseball team located in Frisco, Texas. By interning with a smaller team, you may not get the prestige you would interning for one of the professional teams in the four major leagues. However, it should give you a ton of hands-on experience and probably more responsibility when it comes to community relations and running the team foundation.

For more information and to apply, please visit their website.

Key Tasks and Responsibilities:

  • Represent the club at various civic and community events
  • Monitor team donations and process donation requests.
  • Schedule and conduct ballpark tours
  • Manage Deuce’s Birthday Club, and all associated mailings
  • Assist in creating, developing and implementing Community Development programs
  • Assist in community appearances as the mascot’s escort
  • Manage inventory of promotional and autographed items
  • Department game-day duties, including Silent Auctions and Jersey Auctions
  • Assist with all Foundation events and programs as needed
  • Additional duties as needed

Read more

Jan

14

Job Posting: Oklahoma City Yard Dawgz Director of Media & Community Relations

Filed Under Career, Community Relations, Job Openings | Leave a Comment

This job posting is for the Director of Media and Community Relations for the Oklahoma City Yard Dawgz, an AFL team located in Oklahoma City. For more information or to apply for the position, please visit this website.

Essential Functions:

  • Communicate with all local media outlets and maintain the team image and visibility within our community.
  • Assist in corporate partnership, season and group ticket sales. Position is eligible for commission on all sales.
  • Assist with the content management of the OKC Yard Dawgz website including pictures, feature articles, game stories, statistics, team store, and polls.
  • Responsible for the writing of the team media guide and weekly press releases.
  • Responsible for the preparation of weekly media conferences.
  • Work to convey accurate and timely information to local media sources.
  • Responsible for the publication of the souvenir home game program.
  • Coordinate appearance schedules for players, coaches, mascots, and dance team.
  • Assist in the marketing and promotions of the OKC Yard Dawgz.
  • Organize and coordinate community relations projects.
  • Filing and organizing newspaper and other publication clippings.
  • Responsible for the editing of all Yard Dawgz publications.
  • Responsible for coordinating and organizing game day stat crew.

Read more

Jan

7

Examining athlete foundations and charities

Filed Under Community Relations | Leave a Comment

The Salt Lake Tribune recently published an article that looked into the tax records of the 89 NBA players who had their own stand alone foundation or player charity. The results weren’t overly promising. The newspaper found that these 89 non-profits raised $31 million between 2005 and 2007, but only $14 million actually reached the intended causes. Where did the rest of the money go? Typically high administrative costs and “independent board oversight.” Basically, errors that come about because the player and/or the organization’s administration didn’t really know what they are doing. They found that many players simply had relatives, friends, or sport associates run their foundation/charity, despite the IRS requirement that a majority of the board members must be nonrelatives.

”We don’t shy from it,” said NBA Senior Vice President Kathy Behrens, adding the league has tried with limited success to maintain a database on player foundations. ”There are horror stories . . . of guys who set them up because their agent said to or they thought it was a good idea and they had good intentions, but not a good plan. That causes trouble.”

One of my professors at the University of Michigan, Kathy Babiak, has focused her research on the issues of sports philanthropy (community relations and athlete foundations/charities) as well as corporate social responsibility. I spent the last semester assisting her with research on this very issue. While I can’t divulge what we found over the last few months, I can talk about results from her previous research that looked at the number of players who had their own private foundations or public charities in the four professional sport leagues.They noted that during the 2005-2006 season, 91 players claimed to have charities, but only 43 had tax records and 41 had data. On average, the players who did start charities were above the league average in age and made more money than the league average.

Their charities held average assets of $495,017, a number skewed by Dikembe Mutombo’s charity ($12.8 million in 2005). The median was $17,625. The same held for the amount spent on program services, with an average of $102,653, but a median of $28,582. The researchers also found that NBA players spent almost as much on average on fundraising and administration ($49,323) as they gave away in grants ($59,628).

They also wanted to see what percent of the teams in each league had their own foundations. They found that the MLB was at 100%, NHL had 93%, NFL was at 84%, and the NBA had 77%.

After reading some research on the topic and based on my own experience, a player really shouldn’t start his/her own foundation until (1) they have established themselves as a player in the league, (2) have spent at least five years in the league, and (3) have the right people running the foundation or charity. If you want to take the time to start your own non-profit, you want to make sure that the money raised is primarily going to your designated cause and not administration salaries and cost of errors.

So how does this relate to sports PR? For many sports teams, community relations or the team’s foundation lie within the public relations department. For other teams, it’s separate but they can be closely linked. An athlete or team foundation, if done properly, can be a great asset for building the athlete or team’s image. Community relations events can range from hospital visits to a Toys for Tots drive to 50/50 raffle, etc. Foundations typically have fundraising events and then take those funds and offer up grants to various organizations to assist them in their endeavors. CR is a great way to use your PR skills and expertise for a greater cause. Not only do you get to work for a sports team, but you get to make a difference in your community whether it’s assisting the local children’s hospital or donating an autographed item to local organization’s fundraising event.

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