COURSE INFORMATION

Course Number: MGT 836 Course Title: Sports Marketing Term and Year: Fall 1 2017 Class Meeting Time, Day: Mondays – 1-4pm Course Support: [email protected]

CONTACT INFORMATION

Professor(s) TA(s) Name: Grant Son Name: James Guba Office Location: 5527 E-mail Address: [email protected] E-mail Address: [email protected] Office Hours: Office hours by appointment (via email) on Mondays from 11 AM to 1 PM

COURSE MATERIALS

Textbook(s): No textbook required Readings: See detailed outline in class sessions Software: None

COURSE DESCRIPTION AND OBJECTIVES Course Description: Class will engage in a combination of academic reading, analyzing case studies, preparing the weekly assigned readings and exercises, participating in class discussions, and creating a marketing plan as a final project.

 Marketing topics include: brand marketing, pricing, sales, sponsorship marketing, social media, social strategy, athlete marketing, celebrity endorsements, turnaround marketing, and startup marketing.

 Case studies include: Major League , the NFL, the 2012 London Olympics, Bank of America sponsorship marketing, Nike social media, Under Armour digital moves, Maria Sharapova, LeBron James, NASCAR, and Thuuz Sports.

 Students will engage in class exercises to learn how to position a sport in a time of crises, evaluate sponsorships, determine brand values for athletes, and how to evaluate the use of social media in sports.

Course Objectives: The objective of the course is to develop frameworks and conceptual tools for students to explore the world of sports, understand the business model of sports, analyze problems to develop the optimal marketing strategy for products and services in the sports industry.

Upon completion of this course, students will be able to:

 Understand key marketing concepts and their application in the world of sports  Apply frameworks towards evaluating sports marketing programs  Develop and present a marketing plan for a sports business

COURSE REQUIREMENTS

Weekly Assignments due before each session 50% Class participation 30% Final Presentation: Small group presentation given in the last class 20%

Please see the Yale SOM Grading Policy at http://portal.som.yale.edu/page/grading-policy

DESCRIPTIONS OF ASSIGNMENTS/CLASS PARTICIPATION/FINAL PRESENTATION Case/Class Discussion Assignments as a Small Group:  Students will work in groups of up to four to prepare a brief write-up due before the start of each class covering the case study or class material to be discussed in the next session. Questions may include a quantitative analysis of the problem facing the decision-maker in the case.

 Although the write-ups should be short, come to class prepared to discuss the analyses that you used to answer these questions in detail. While this is a group assignment, each student is responsible, in-class, to be prepared to address these and other questions.

Class Participation:

 Attendance will be taken at each class. Class participation is scored for each student for each class.

Final Presentation:

 Eight-minute presentation (+two minutes Q&A) given in the last class. Group project. Seven to 10 slides.  Sports venture or sports marketing idea – 2 sentence pitch (10 points)  Market: assess market size or opportunity (20 points)  Identify business problem or opportunity (10 points)  Develop market solution (20 points)  Go-to-Market plan (20 points)

Page 2  Overall: originality and viability (20 points)  Team: Introduction with roles & responsibilities. Can be two to four members and will be graded accordingly.

Instructor: Grant Son

Grew a startup venture into a top 10 sports website acquired by ESPN. Professional experience includes serving as CEO of two digital ventures – SchoolSports and Greater Good Ventures – as well as senior marketing roles with Sports Illustrated and the NFL.

 Thirty years of experience, including twenty years in digital media. Board member and advisor to established companies and more than 20 startup ventures including several sports ventures.  Lecturer in the Practice of Management, Yale School of Management, Sports Marketing (spring 2017 and fall 2017).  Adjunct Professor at Columbia Business School, Sports Marketing (spring 2016) and Lecturer at Columbia University, Entrepreneurship (summer 2016, fall 2016, and summer 2017).  MBA in finance from Columbia with honors and BA from the University of Pennsylvania.  Attended every major sporting event, including six Super Bowls, World Cup Soccer, World Series, NBA Finals, Stanley Cup Finals, championship boxing, and two Olympics.

YALE SOM POLICIES

Please see the Yale School of Management Bulletin at http://www.yale.edu/printer/bulletin/htmlfiles/som/rights-and-responsibilities-of-students.html for Rights and Responsibilities of students and for information on requesting a course recording. Laptop/Device Policy Usage not allowed without the express permission of the instructor.

DETAILED OUTLINE OF CLASS SESSIONS

# Date Topic Academic Readings

1 September 1 Sports Leagues: Marketing Strategy & Brand Positioning Please see detailed (Friday) outline below 2 September 11 Sports Leagues, Teams, and Organizations: Sales and Marketing Please see detailed outline below 3 September 18 Sports Marketing and Social Strategy: Nike and Under Armour Please see detailed outline below 4 September 25 Marketing of Elite Sports Athletes, Personal Branding Please see detailed outline below 5 October 2 NASCAR Marketing Transformation and Sports Startup Pivot Please see detailed outline below

Page 3 # Date Topic Academic Readings

6 October 9 Marketing Plan Presentations Please see detailed outline below

Detailed Outline of Class Sessions

Session 1 Friday, September 1 Theme Sports Leagues: Marketing Strategy & Brand Positioning Session will provide overview of the major US sports leagues with a focus on the business model including media rights and overall marketing strategy. Students will learn about the importance of marketing strategy and brand positioning including a sports marketing in an era of competition, globalization, change and crises. Academic Reading Brand Positioning. HBS Core Curriculum: Marketing by Jill Avery and Sunil Gupta, May 1, 2014 and February 20, 2015. Case Study Advanced Media: America's Pastime Goes Digital (HBS) by Anita Elberse, Brett Laffel. February, 28 2011 Case Study The NFL's Digital Media Strategy (HBS) by Anita Elberse, Kelsey Calhoun, Daven Johnson. Revised November 30, 2010. While the data is dated, these two cases provide a relevant framework for evaluating how sports leagues work and how they create value for fans, team owners, players, licensing partners, sponsors, and other constituents. When preparing each case, place particular emphasis on: business model, media rights, media consumption, audience, fan base, and business trends. Assignment One-page assignment due prior to the start of class: 1. [4 points] Based upon the Major League Baseball case, how does Major League Baseball (MLB) generate revenue? 2. [4 points] Based upon the NFL case, how does the NFL generate revenue? 3. [2 points] Compare and contrast the business models for MLB and the NFL. Class Discussion Sports Marketing (NFL) in an era of competition, globalization, change and crises

Case Study for Deflategate and the (HBS) by Marco Iansiti and Christine Discussion Snively, September 21, 2015. Guest Speaker Re-scheduled to Monday, September 11

Session 2 Monday, September 11 Theme Ticket Sales & Sports Sponsorship Marketing

Page 4 After media rights fees, the next largest sources of revenue for the sports industry are ticket sales and sponsorship sales. This session will provide insight into sales and marketing in sports including ticket sales for the Olympic games and sponsorship from the perspective of Bank of America. Academic Reading Segmentation and Targeting, HBS Core Curriculum: Marketing by Sunil Gupta, June 27 and 30, 2014 Academic Reading Pricing Strategy by Robert Dolan and John Gourville, June 30, 2014

Ticket Sales & Pricing Case Study The London 2012 Olympic Games (HBS) by John Gourville and Marco Bertini. February 4, 2011 Multi-faceted impact of pricing decisions, at generating the critical aspects of a strong pricing policy, (e.g. fairness, simplicity, transparency), and at raising pricing from a purely tactical decision to one that is strategically critical. Olympics, London Olympic Organizing Committee, ticket sales, pricing policy Assignment Half-page assignment due prior to the start of class: 1. [2 points] What broad tradeoffs does Williamson face as he thinks about his ticket prices? 2.[3 points] How might his pricing strategies vary by sport? Determine ticket pricing for two popular sports: swimming (tier 1 popularity) and football (tier 2 popularity). Assume that the "big four" and football represent 50% of ticket revenues, determine the average ticket price for the remaining 50% including swimming, football and remaining tickets. 3. [1 point] What would you do if you were Paul Williamson and the LOCOG? Sports Sponsorship Marketing Case Study Bank of America Sports Sponsorship (HBS) by Stephen Greyser and John Teopaco. August 12, 2009. This case exposes students to the use of more traditional sponsorship evaluation criteria such as brand awareness and brand perceptions vis-a-vis a more rigorous and financially-oriented return-on-investment approach. Students should assess the appropriateness and applicability of both approaches as they analyze Bank of America's sports sponsorship opportunities. Assignment Half-page assignment due prior to the start of class: What decisions would you make on each on the four situations – NASCAR, USOC, Dallas Cowboys, and the Colonial – described in the case? Examine each on both Return on Objectives and Return on Investment. 1. [1 point] NASCAR 2. [1 point] USOC 3. [1 point] Dallas Cowboys 4. [1 point] Colonial Golf Guest Speaker Alvaro Saralegui, special consultant to the NFL

Page 5 NFL Fan segmentation and the NFL's Hispanic Initiative

Session 3 Monday, September 18 Theme Sports Marketing and Social Strategy: Nike and Under Armour Social strategy versus digital strategy on social platforms and how to identify the conditions under which competitive advantage created by social strategy is sustainable. Reading Social Strategies That Work (HBR) by Mikotaj Jan Piskorski, November 2011. Social strategy framework: three tests of social strategy: (1) social utility test (2) social solution test (3) business value test Case Study Social Strategy at Nike. HBS: Mikotaj Jan Piskorsk and Ryan Johnson, Rev: March 25, 2014. Case traces the history of digital and social strategy efforts at Nike, the world's top manufacturer of athletic footwear and apparel. Students will examine the organizational change and strategic marketing shift that have allowed Nike to develop such an extensive and successful social strategy. Assignment One-page assignment due prior to the start of class: Nike case study: Evaluate Nike’s social strategy using the social strategy framework’s three tests: 1. [3 points] Social utility test: Will the strategy help customers solve a social challenge they can’t easily address on their own? 2. [3 points] Social solution test: Will the strategy leverage the firm’s unique resources and provide a differentiated, hard-to-copy social solution? 3. [4 points] Business value test: Will the social solution directly lead to improved profitability? Reading Under Armour's Founder on Learning to Leverage Celebrity Endorsements by Kevin Plank. Harvard Business Review. May 2012. Case Study Under Armour's Willful Digital Moves (Darden Business Publishing) Meghan Murray, Mina Saghian. May 18, 2016. The "I Will What I Want" global women's marketing campaign was the largest Under Armour had ever run. Founder Keven Plank and his team launched the campaign on a mulitchannel platform, with social media at its core. Under Armour case study: Evaluate Under Armour’s social strategy using the social strategy framework’s three tests: 1. Social utility test: Will the strategy help customers solve a social challenge they can’t easily address on their own? 2. Social solution test: Will the strategy leverage the firm’s unique resources and provide a differentiated, hard-to-copy social solution? 3. Business value test: Will the social solution directly lead to improved profitability? Class Discussion Nike versus Under Armour -- social strategy

Guest Speaker Steven Gilman, Co-Founder of Blockparty, Yale '08 and Columbia Business School '15

Page 6 Blockparty creates immersive experiences inspired by and for the fans who want to make their events truly unforgettable.

Session 4 Monday, September 25 Theme Marketing of Elite Sports Athletes, Personal Branding Explore marketing practices for athlete endorsements, examine how a leading talent agency like IMG works creating value for athletes and sponsors, understand how endorsement deals are commonly structured, investigate the role of an agent in marketing and branding a celebrity, examine how choices regarding endorsement opportunities and compensation structures are evolving, and explore how celebrity endorsers may be able to take control over and capture value from their personal marketing and branding activities. Academic Reading Brands and Brand Equity: HBS Core Curriculum. Rohit Deshpande and Anat Keinan, January 7, 2014 Particular focus on 3.2 Personal Branding Case Study Maria Sharapova: Marketing a Champion (A) and (B) by Anita Elberse and Margarita Golod. March 8, 2010 Maria Sharapova the highest paid female athlete in the world and ahead of the top men's players and a client of IMG, the world's premier sports agency. Case Study LeBron James by Anita Elberse and Jeff McCall. March 9, 2010

After LeBron James' second year in the NBA, the then 20-year old fired his agent and established his own firm to handle all aspects of his business ventures and marketing activities. Assignment One-page assignment due prior to the start of class: 1. [3 points] How can we describe the “brand” Maria Sharapova? 2. [2 points] How would you describe IMG’s approach to selling athlete endorsements? What are its strengths and weaknesses? How easy is it for competitors to replicate IMG’s model? 3. [3 points] How can we describe the "brand" LeBron James? 4. [2 points] Does LRMR revolutionize the world of sports marketing? Compare IMG's model versus LRMR's model Class Discussion Is there a better way to negotiate player endorsement deals? Is there a better model for sports marketing agencies? Guest Speaker Todd McCormack, EVP IMG

Session 5 Monday, October 2

Page 7 Marketing Transformation and Sports Startup: NASCAR and Thuuz Sports Case Study NASCAR: Leading a Marketing Transformation in a Time of Crisis. Kellogg School of Management. Ivey Publishing: Eric T. Anderson and Vasillia Kilbarda, March 26, 2015 Assignment Half-page assignment due prior to the start of class: [5 points] NASCAR CEO, Brian France has four key initiatives: 1. next-generation fans 2. digital and social media 3. driver star power, and 4. event day experience. Briefly describe each. Rank them in order of importance. Which is the highest priority and why? Case Study Thuuz Sports. Stanford Business School Graduate School of Business by George Foster, Davina Drabkin. May 18, 2015 Stanford Engineer (BS and MS) and Stanford Business School grad, Warren Packard created a sports venture, Thuuz Sports with the goal to solve a pain point for sports fans interested in viewing live event programming but is struggling to find a business model.

Assignment Half-page assignment due prior to the start of class: [5 points] How would you rate the originality (scale 1-10) and the viability (scale 1-10) of Thuuz Sports? What are the positive facts that you can point to about the business? Class Discussion Building a marketing plan for Thuuz Sports Guest Speaker Steve Phelps, NASCAR, EVP and Chief Global Sales and Marketing Officer

Session 6 Monday, October 9 Theme Marketing Plan Presentations 10 minutes each 15 groups Final Presentation: Eight-minute presentation (+2 minutes Q&A) given in the last class. Group project. Approximately seven to ten slides: Sports venture or sports marketing idea – 2 sentence pitch (10 points) Market: Assess market size and opportunities (20 points) Identify Business Problem (20 points) Develop Market Solution (20 points) Go-to-Market plan (10 points) Overall: originality and viability (20 points) Team: Introduction with roles & responsibilities. Can be two to four members and will be graded accordingly. Class Exercise Class discussion regarding interest in taking 1, 2 or 3 ventures to take the next level Guest Speaker Opportunity (time permitting)

The instructor reserves the right to modify and/or change the course syllabus as needed during the course.

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