Fan Loyalty & Engagement

Today everyone has some type of rewards or loyalty program. Whether it’s a retail store or a sports an entertainment business, companies want to reward loyal fans and customers. Just think about it, every time you step up to the cashier or check out counter to pay for something, the first thing they ask you is do you have a rewards card. If you don’t have it with you they’ll ask for your phone number or email to access your information. These reward and loyalty programs reward fans and customers with special rewards, discounts and other opportunities they otherwise wouldn’t have access to if they weren’t enrolled in these programs.

Fan loyalty and engagement is important to sports organizations because they are an incentive for fans to continue to support their favorite teams and buy merchandise and for doing this they are rewarded with something special. Revenue generation is affected because fans attend events. Purchasing tickets and buying merchandise generates revenue.

More and more sports organizations are coming up with loyalty and rewards programs for their fans. NASCAR, one of the leading sports organizations in the world has a rewards program called RacePoints. Fans enrolled in the program have the ability to earn points when they purchase qualifying products and services. Points are tracked and redeemed online for NASCAR apparel, merchandise, collectables and NASCAR experiences. The UFC (Ultimate Fighting Championship) just launched a new rewards program called UFC Rewards. UFC says it is a way of thanking the best fans in the world. As a UFC Rewards member you can earn limited edition collectables and exclusive experiences. Reward members earn points by buying pay-per-view events, subscribing to UFC Fight Pass, reading UFC Rewards Emails, attending live UFC events, and connecting with the UFC through social media. The Buffalo Sabres have taken their new fan loyalty program mobile with an application that can be downloaded for free through the Apple App Store or the Google Play Store. Sabres fans earn points by scanning codes on tickets, merchandise and concessions. Fans from the UFC, NASCAR and the Buffalo Sabres are responding well to these programs. Enrollment numbers are steadily increasing.  

How can a sports organization engage fans before, during and post game that can increase fan attendance? First, they must engage all fans, not just the season ticket holders. Second, they must offer fans a community. This would allow fans to get to know each other. Third, engage fans during the off-season. Just because the season ends, fan loyalty doesn’t.

To steal or not to steal, that is the question?

You can’t watch the news, go on the Internet or view any type of social media today without seeing some college or professional athlete in some kind of trouble. When does it stop? I wonder if these athletes are seeing the same thing I’m seeing. You would think they would use better judgment when they constantly see other athletes getting in trouble. Whether you’re a college or professional athlete, poor judgment can cost you money, sometimes millions of dollars.

 Lets look at the latest example of poor judgment by a professional athlete. After rushing for 52 yards, included a big 38-yard run and a key tackle on a kickoff that help the Dallas Cowboys to a 30-23 win over the Super Bowl champion Seattle Seahawks, running back Joseph Randle is arrested the following day for shoplifting. He was released on bond after being charged with a Class B misdemeanor theft of $50 to $500 in Frisco Texas. Randle is accused of stealing a pack of Polo underwear and a bottle of Gucci Guilty Black cologne; the two items came to a total value of $123.50. What’s so odd about the situation is that Randle had just purchased an item at the cologne counter.

Now let’s look at how not only is this situation embarrassing, but ridiculous and stupid. Joseph Randle was a fifth round draft pick in 2013 and has a base salary this year of $495,000 which breaks down to $29,500 per game. This leads me to my next question. Why in the hell is he stealing underwear and cologne? It’s not that he can’t afford the items. So what is it? Do you think he did it just to see if he could get away with it? Is Joseph Randle just a common thief? Athletes continue to put themselves in bad situations that are clearly avoidable. Professional teams do character and background checks and some psychological testing, but I think more may be needed. What do you think?  Deeper mental and psychological testing may be needed before professional teams invest some much time and money in these players. As of today the NFL has not disciplined Joseph Randle in any way, but the Dallas Cowboys fined him $29,500, which is equal to one game check. I know the teams and the leagues are tired of being embarrassed. Please feel free to comment.

NFL Suspensions

As the 2014 NFL season kicks off there is still much talk about the numerous players that will be missing on opening day because of suspensions. These suspensions are divided among the substance abuse policy; PED (Performance Enhancing Drug) policy and the personal conduct policy. There is even an owner suspended for part of the season. NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell was suspended Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay for 6 games and fined him $500,000. During his suspension Irsay cannot attend Colts games, visit the Colts facility or be involved in the day-to-day operations of the team. Roger Goodell has been known for coming down hard on NFL players for various policy violations, so he had to come down hard on Irsay to not show favoritism, even though the owners pay his salary.  

The head of the NFL Players Association, DeMaurice Smith is in discussion with the NFL about revising their policy on performance-enhancing drugs. If a new policy were reached the union would want this years suspensions reversed and retroactive to the new policy. Denver Bronco receiver Wes Welker was suspended under the leagues PED policy, but under a revised policy his offense would fall under the substance abuse policy and he would be in treatment and not suspended. Under the substance abuse policy a player may have multiple offenses before a suspension occurs. Cleveland Brown receiver Josh Gordon who has been suspended for the entire 2014 may also benefit from a policy revision. Gordon was suspended under substance abuse policy for multiple violations; retroactive revisions may allow him to see the playing field in 2014.

In another policy change the NFL wants to be able to punish players for simply getting arrested. This would be a case of guilty until proven innocent. This policy would not allow for the legal process to play out, the punishment would come between the arrest and the final deposition of the case. The NFL Players Association said they would not agree to any policy punishing players for only getting arrested.

What are your views on not only player suspensions but suspensions of coaches and owners? Please comment.

Failure

 J.K. Rowling’s commencement speech at Harvard titled “The Fringe Benefits Failure” on Ted.com brings so many personal things to mind in reference to failure. J.K. Rowling is the well-known British novelist best known as the author of the Harry Potter series. She was very honored to have been chosen to give the commencement speech, but was very nervous. She injected humor at the beginning about losing weight because she was so nervous and offered up some Harry Potter tidbits. This humor is what relaxed her and allowed her to build trust with the audience. At the beginning of her speech she said something that has stayed with me and we all should remember it. She said don’t blame others for your mistakes and failures, not even your parents; you are responsible for your own life. 

J. K. Rowling said that you will have failures in life and that she feared failure, but failure set her free. I relate to her when she talks about the adversity that she overcame. She had to overcome poverty, unemployment, and single motherhood and divorce 7 years after graduating college. Overcoming this failure is what helped her become such a great novelist. She talks about a significant event in her life before she started writing while working for Amnesty International in London. She worked in the research department and would read letters and watch videos of torture victims, rape victims, executions, missing persons all from totalitarian regimes. This experience taught her to value imagination. Valuing imagination allows us to empathize with humans whose experience we have never shared.

J. K. Rowling ends her speech talking about friends. She says friends from college have been her friends after graduation and for life. These friends are the God Parents of her children and she has used their names in her books. The point she is making is that we should value our friends and keep them close.

This speech means a lot to me personally. I have experienced failures in my life, but I have learned from each one of them. My failures have made me stronger. Like J. K. Rowling I feared failure, but no more. We will have failure in life. Don’t be afraid of failing; take each failure as a learning experience and a new start.

PED's: Performance Enhancing Drugs

Performance Enhancing Drugs, also known as PED’s are substances used by athletes to improve their performances are a popular topic in sports theses days. More and more professional sports leagues have need taking this problem more seriously in the last few years. The attention has brought about more and better testing and more fines and suspensions. Unfortunately the problem is not only in professional sports, but also in college, high school and amateur sports as well. Every 4 years numerous athletes are disqualified from competing for their countries in the Olympics because of PED’s.

 The drug Adderall which main use was for kids with ADHD to help them focus is the new drug of use. College students have used it to help them with their studies. The prescription drug that can sharpen focus and hone impulse control has become popular in NFL locker rooms. At least seven of the players suspended for the 2014 season received their suspensions from the use of Adderall. It appears some NFL players are using and abusing the drug.

 

PED use hasn’t been more rampart than in the NFL and Major League Baseball. Every year, the NFL is cracking down on more players using PED’s and any illegal substances, including drugs such as marijuana. This year is no different; so far the league has already suspended some of the biggest names in the game for the 2014 season. Robert Mathis, outside linebacker for the Indianapolis Colts has been suspended 4 games, which will cost him over $705,000 in salary. Arizona defensive end Daryl Washington is suspended for the entire 2014 season and will loose over $3 million in salary. My hometown and favorite team the Miami Dolphins will loose last years first round draft pick, Dion Jordan for 4 games because of a positive test for PED’s. His suspension will cost him $123,000 in salary.

Substance abuse is also a problem with just as many suspensions as PED use. The majority of substance abuse suspensions come from positive marijuana tests and alcohol abuse and arrests. Cleveland Brown wide receiver Josh Gordon is suspended indefinitely for a third violation of the NFL’s substance abuse policy. Gordon led the NFL in receiving with 1,646 yards during the 2013 season after being suspended for two games for a second positive test for marijuana. Josh Gordon has an appeal at the league offices in New York on August 1st. Gordon and his agent Drew Rosenhaus are hoping his suspension gets lowered. As it stands now he will miss the entire 2014 season.

“The Decision Part 2”

It has been 10 days since “The Decision Part 2” has been made and Lebron James is returning home to northeast Ohio. In an essay that was posted on SI.com Lebron addresses the reason why he is returning to the Cleveland Cavaliers. He says the reason for the essay is that he wanted to tell his side of the story uninterrupted. No press conference this time or a show dedicated to the decision broadcasted from the Boys and Girls Club, just an essay. What do you think about LeBron’s decision, what do you think about the way he did it and how long it took him?

 Of course Miami Heat fans are upset, feel used and dumped like an old girlfriend, but don’t forget what he brought to the City of Miami and the Miami Heat Franchise. The numbers don’t lie, 4 straight Eastern Conference Championships, 4 straight NBA Finals appearances and 2 back-to-back NBA Titles. Some think that Lebron would have left even if the Heat had won another title, me personally I don’t think so. You don’t leave where you’re winning championships. If many of us moved away from home to work in another city, would we go back home if we had a chance, especially if it wouldn’t hurt us financially? You should always be able to go back home and we shouldn’t be upset with LeBron James about that. Now what we can be upset about, and I say we because I am a Miami Heat fan, is the length of time he took to make the decision because that prevented Miami Heat President Pat Riley from possibly going after other free agents. As far as the essay is concern, the only problem I had is that he didn’t thank the Miami Heat fans. The South Florida community welcomed and embraced LeBron James and his family and treated them with love and respect. If he truly wrote that essay or if someone else wrote it, not thanking the Heat fans and South Florida is inexcusable.

We all know the saying, where there’s smoke, there’s fire, and we saw plenty of smoke before LeBron made his decision. The first smoke was the rumor that Cleveland Cavalier owner Dan Gilbert’s plane was in south Florida, which we found out, was true. It was later revealed that LeBron James and Dan Gilbert met at the Rusty Pelican on Key Biscayne. There was a whole lot of smoke when there were moving trucks at his house and he had all his cars shipped back to Ohio. I thank him for 4 good years and 2 championships. Miami-Dade County is now Miami-Wade County again!

Is The Heat Back On?

The Heat is back on in Miami after a cool down period from the NBA Finals. The San Antonio Spurs soundly beat the Miami Heat. It’s time to reload. It started last week with the NBA Draft when Pat Riley selected Connecticut guard Shabazz Napier in the first around after trading up two spots to get him. Many say this was LeBron James’ pick because LeBron said Napier was his favorite college player from the NCAA Finals and in the NBA Draft. What do you think?

The free agent period began at 12:01 a.m. this morning, players can begin meeting and talking with teams, but they cannot sign contracts until the 10^th of July. The spotlight is on Miami because LeBron James can single-handedly change the whole landscape of free agency with his decision to stay with the Heat or go elsewhere. The Big 3, James, Wade and Bosh along with Udonis Haslem have all opted out of their contracts giving Miami roughly $55 million in salary cap space. This is very important because after resigning the Big 3, which will happen, the Heat will need the extra money to bring in other big name free agents. Pat Riley is the master at closing deals and is very good at motivating speeches. There is a 95% chance that Riley and Heat owner Mickey Arison close the deal with any free agent they get in front of.

There are a few interesting free agents on the market, Carmelo Anthony, Toronto’s Kyle Lowry, the Washington Wizards’ Marcin Gortat. The question is will Carmelo leave the bright lights and big money in New York for a chance to win a championship? It is more likely we will end up in Dallas or Chicago than Miami. Toronto is going to throw big money at Lowry for him to stay. Gortat is the big man that the Heat could use, but will Washington let their big man go after making the playoffs with their up and coming young team? Let me know what you think.

Sterling No More: Donald Sterling Is Losing His Shine

The future for Donald Sterling isn’t getting any brighter; he is losing his shine in business and health wise. Ever since his racists’ comments were made public, Donald Sterling’s life has been in a downward tailspin with no recovery in sight. First he was banned for life by the NBA and fined a record $2.5 million. In May two physicians determined he was mentally incapacitated. 

 The latest in the Donald Sterling saga has him being accused of threatening doctors and his wife’s lawyers. Shelly Sterling had her attorney file a petition in court quoting the alleged threatening remarks. The petition alleged Donald Sterling called Dr. Meril Platzer a liar, cheat, a fraud and that he would see that she loses her medical license. He also said he would sue her too. The second doctor that examined Sterling, Dr. James Spar allegedly received a threatening voicemail too. In a trial next month it will be determined if Donald Sterling is mentally incapacitated and if he should be removed as the administrator of the family trust which actually owns the Clippers. There is a pending deal on the table between Shelly Sterling and former Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer to sell the team for $2 billion. This deal is awaiting approval by the NBA Board of Governors. The NBA called off a hearing and a vote to oust Donald Sterling when news of the potential deal came to light.

 Clearly Donald Sterling is mentally ill and losing it. He should not be allowed to run the day-to-day operations of any business or sports franchise. The sale of the Clippers would be the best thing for the Sterling family, fans and the NBA. As Donald Sterling’s mental health problems increase we will continue to see negative actions by him and hear negative and ignorant things come out of his mouth. What do you think? Feel free to comment.

How Much Is Enough?

Are sports salaries getting out of control, how much is enough and is the athlete worth it? If you are a starting quarterback in the NFL today you expect to be the highest paid player on your team. If you’ve won a Super Bowl you might expect to be not only the highest paid quarterback, but the highest paid player in the league. San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick signed a record contract extension with the team. It is a six-year $126 million deal, that’s an average of $21 million a year. This makes him not only the highest paid quarterback, but also the highest paid NFL player right now. What’s so unique about this contract is that $61 million of it is guaranteed, that’s an NFL record. No matter what happens this next season or the next six years, Colin Kaepernick has $61 million in the bank.

Kaepernick was a second round pick out of Nevada in the 2011 NFL Draft. He has taken the 49ers to two straight NFC Championship Games, winning one and one Super Bowl appearance. Kaepernick had a decent 2013 season; he threw 21 touchdowns and passed for 3,197 yards and rushed for 524 yards with four touchdowns. This type of contract is going to be the measuring stick for other so called elite quarterbacks that have contracts coming up for renewal, Cam Newton being one of them. Cam Newton hasn’t won or been to a Super Bowl, but he has been to the playoffs and had a record setting rookie year and he was a first round draft pick, the number one pick overall in the same draft as Kaepernick. Is he worth $126 million?

Here are the three questions I have and I’m sure many others will too. Is Colin Kaepernick or any NFL quarterback or player worth $126 million? Can he lead the 49ers to another Super Bowl, and how much money is enough? His coach Jim Harbaugh certainly thinks he is. Jim Harbaugh says his quarterback is ready for a breakout year.