Contents for SMQ Issue 20:2
| Editor’s Note, p. 67 Authors: Nancy Lough |
| Abstract: What a privilege it is to present to you this special issue of Sport Marketing Quarterly (SMQ) created by Dick Irwin and Bill Sutton. As editors on the topic of sales force management in sport, Irwin and Sutton share their expertise as both sport marketing consultants and scholars. The stated purpose of the special issue is to advance the body of knowledge in the area of sales force management as it relates to sport properties including teams, events, agencies and the like. As you will see, the purpose has been achieved and surpassed through the excellent contributions published in this issue. |
| A Note from the SMA President, p. 68 Authors: Eric C. Schwarz |
| Abstract: The Center for Sport Management Research and Education (CSMRE) at Texas A&M University (http://www.csmre.net) has been selected to host the 9th Annual Sport Marketing Association (SMA) Conference. The Sport Management faculty at Texas A&M is looking forward to hosting everyone in Houston. Dr. Gregg Bennett, one of the founders of the Sport Marketing Association, will serve as the Conference Director. This will be the second conference Dr. Bennett has directed, so we are excited about what is in store for us in Houston. The conference will take place October 26-29, 2011. The Inn at the Ballpark (http://www.innattheballpark.com), directly across from Minute Maid Park, will serve as the host hotel. |
| Industry Insider: Sales Panel, p. 69-74 Authors: Jim Kadlecek |
| Abstract: A roundtable discussion with Mike Tomon of Cleveland Cavaliers, Brent Stehlik of the San Diego Padres, Chad Estis of the Dallas Cowboys, and Leigh Castergine of the New York Mets and formerly of the Boston Bruins. |
| Authentic Assessment of Experiential Learning in Sport Sales, p. 75-83 Authors: David Pierce, Jeffrey Petersen, and Bradley Meadows |
| Abstract: This study assessed the effect of an experiential, client-based sport sales course where 44 undergraduate sport management students at a Midwestern university completed a quasi-experimental nonequivalent control group research design. The 24 students in the experimental (enrolled) group completed an experiential, client-based sport sales course selling season tickets for an intercollegiate athletic department, and the control group consisted of 20 students with no sales experience. Three instruments were utilized, including a sport sales perception survey (Pierce & Petersen, 2010), background knowledge probe (Angelo & Cross, 1993), and authentic assessment (Mueller, 2005). The authentic assessment featured sport sales experts rating the students’ sales calls on the basis of seven factors. Two-way repeated measures ANOVA revealed that enrolled students significantly improved their scores on each background knowledge probe and their ability to open the sale and exude enthusiasm during sales calls; however, the students’ perceptions of sport sales did not change. |
| Implementing a Ticket Sales Force in College Athletics: A Decade of Challenges, p. 84-92 Authors: Adrien Bouchet, Khalid Ballouli, and Gregg Bennett |
| Abstract: This research explores the challenges of developing a ticket sales force within a collegiate athletic department by investigating the difficulties one BCS college faced over the course of a decade amidst the implementation and management of a ticket sales force. The athletic department at the University of Miami was the first of its kind to establish a ticket sales force similar to that of professional sports organizations in that it would constitute its own directors and management team within the department. Like many metropolitan universities, the University of Miami athletic department faced challenging marketing conditions. Its locale offered unique marketing and sales opportunities for the athletic department to better leverage the visibility of their athletic programs and increase the overall attendance at university sporting events. Using qualitative collection methods and coding analysis techniques, this research explores the methods used by the University of Miami athletic department to increase ticket sales revenue from the time a ticket sales force was established to the time of its demise. Propositions regarding the successful implementation and management of ticket sales operations within college athletic departments are provided to help guide future research in the area of sport ticket sales and collegiate athletics. Though generalizing how athletic departments function can be difficult, the authors believe the findings of this research provide a useful framework for further research into this line of inquiry. Practical implications as well as avenues for potential research are also forwarded. |
| A Framework for Developing Customer Orientation in Ticket Sales Organizations, p. 93-102 Authors: J. Garry Smith and Donald P. Roy |
| Abstract: Although ticket sales represent the most important source of local revenues for most sport teams, relatively little research has addressed the relationship of selling activities to marketing performance. Drawing on the sport marketing, sales, organizational behavior, and psychology literatures, this research produces an integrative framework that links the organizational and individual influences on the selling activities of sales representative in sport organizations with the value-creating outcomes of higher customer retention that arise from customer loyalty and reduced turnover in the sales force. Four influences determine the extent to which salesperson orientation supports these organizational goals and are cultivated: organizational culture, employee selection, job-related attitudes, and motivation type. Additionally, commitment to team is examined for its potential effects on perceptions of person-organization fit, job-related attitudes, and motivation among the ticket sales force. Propositions are developed based on how a sport organization’s culture influences these processes. |
| Ticket Sales Coaching Innovation: A Few Pages from Paul Brown’s Playbook, p. 103-111 Authors: Richard L. Irwin and William A. Sutton |
| Abstract: Sales coaching has long been considered one of the most important activities influencing sales performance (Corcoran, Peterson, Baitch, & Barrett, 1995). Despite the importance of sales and sales coaching, limited academic or scholarly attention has been directed toward this topic in sport management. While the inclusion of sales-oriented coursework within sport management curricula appears to be on the rise, limited information has been made available on coaching/teaching methods. Similarly, little content has been published on how sport enterprises select, train, and retain sales staff. While the philosophies of coaching legends such as Lombardi, Wooden, and Rockne are frequently recognized for influencing coaching and leadership in and out of sport, this paper examines how the pioneering coaching practices of Paul Brown, often credited with revolutionizing the profession of football coaching, can similarly advance sport franchise ticket sales coaching and performance. |
| The Fourth Circuit’s Application of The Fair Use Doctrine in Bouchat v. Baltimore Ravens, Ltd. P’Ship, p. 112-114 Authors: Thomas A. Baker III and Kevin K. Byon |
| Abstract: According to Fullerton (2010), licensing is a value adding process that provides sport organizations (both licensor and licensee) with significant revenue streams. For instance, the National Football League (NFL) is projected to earn $2.7 billion from the sales of logoed merchandise (Rovell, 2010). In order for sport organizations to maximize benefits as licensors and licensees, it is imperative that they develop and maintain a licensing plan for copyrighted marks and logos. A well-developed licensing plan would guide sport organizations in protecting the brand value of their own works and assist them in avoiding the possible misuse of works that are protected by other organizations or individuals. The Fourth Circuit’s recent decision in Bouchat v. Baltimore Ravens, Ltd. P’Ship (2010) demonstrates the value of copyright protection and the potential pitfalls that await sport organizations and leagues that infringe on copyrighted works. |
| Marketing the ‘Big Game’: Developing a Student Rewards Program in College Basketball, p. 115-121 Authors: Ted Peetz |
| Abstract: Nicholas was finally getting settled at his new job as assistant director of marketing at the University of Nevada Las Vegas (UNLV). He believed his degree and internship experience with his alma mater’s athletic department had prepared him well for his new position. During his interview he discovered that part of his job responsibilities would include working on a task force charged with developing marketing strategies to increase student attendance at the university’s men’s basketball games. The athletic department had recently noticed a pattern occurring with student attendance at home contests. They were having difficulty “selling” the allotment of free student tickets for games against weaker opponents and lesser known non-conference foes, which created a lackluster atmosphere and a decrease in revenue potential. In contrast, ticket allotments against strong conference opponents like Brigham Young University (BYU) and their long-time rival University of Nevada Reno (UNR) were taken quickly, causing many to be turned away because of the influx of student support. The problem facing Nicholas and the marketing department was how to generate an increased level of response for non-marquee games to help improve student attendance numbers throughout the season. |
