Staying ahead of the game: athletes showing sports marketers the way?

The world of sports, sports media and sports marketing are bigger now than they’ve ever been. The range and reach of digital media, branded play-by-play updates available directly on your cell phone and the recent emergence of Twitter have allowed brands – especially sports entities – and media to connect with consumers through new channels. And as the industry continues to grow (and sponsors continue spending millions in athlete endorsements), companies can utilize new mediums to maximize their marketing investments and further build brand affinity.    

When sports blogs first came onto the scene, the mainstream sports media wasn’t overly excited, to say the least. At the time they might’ve had a valid, albeit slightly slanted, point-of-view that these sites were poorly written and lacked traditional research or expertise – which in many cases is true. However, the media has since realized that the tone and sense of closeness provided by blogs was what consumers wanted. Now, sports blogs are a mainstay, and continue to offer quick, insightful and relaxed viewpoints. Not to mention that nearly every team beat reporter in America now pens (or types, actually) a blog in addition to their daily print coverage. 

A similar trend is emerging with the development of Twitter (side note: my colleague excitingly tells me last week that he’s built his Twitter fan base to an astounding 17 followers; only 1.3 million more and he’ll be challenging Ashton Kutcher for Twitter supremacy).  While we started to see athletes gain a voice with their own blogs, players have really taken to Twitter as a way of connecting with fans and elevating their own image. If we wanted to get a player’s opinion in the past, we’d have to rely on the media to give us an often bias or filtered response. Now, all we have to do is wait for Charlie Villanueva's halftime tweet. 

Now, as athletes (and media) take full advantage of another emerging technology, sports brands and marketers again find themselves looking for ways to tap into the phenomenon to build a connection with their audience. Part of the answer is likely staring them in the face. With so many brands doling out millions for the rights to use high-profile athletes for marketing purposes, and the impact of traditional earned media declining, social media and microblog platforms like Twitter provide an ideal outlet for companies to leverage their athlete partners to drive brand affinity and connect fans with their favorite players.

This weekend the NFL Draft, and all its hoopla, descends on New York. As it unfolds, it will be important for marketers and media to watch the athletes. The second biggest weekend in professional football (sorry Pro Bowl) has been dissected by mainstream media for the last two months, but while reporters scramble to break stories, the fans will be looking directly to the players for insight.  And, as companies solicit a new crop of athletes to help deliver product and brand messages, it may well be the authenticity of the content communicated via a phone screen that will ultimately peak those consumers’ interest.