SPORTS MARKETING - PRODUCTS AND CUSTOMERS

Abstract

Sports marketing can be defined as an interconnected operation aimed at planning, pricing, product distribution and service, or sports activities that satisfy the needs and wants of the beneficiaries or consumers, current and the potential, in the field of sports. Sports marketing uses sports, in any form, to help sell goods and services. This particular style of marketing is less about using a single strategy and more about using the content of sports to assist marketing efforts. Sports marketing allows corporations to associate their brands and products with the excitement, enjoyment, and admiration that audiences assign to games and athletes. A central point of differentiation between sports marketing and traditional goods/services marketing (hereafter, GSM) is how we view individual purchasers. A successful sports marketing campaign can linger in the minds of consumers for years, while an ineffective one can be a significant waste of money. All marketing efforts must be guided by a comprehensive marketing plan if they hope to succeed. Sports marketers gather to discuss content marketing, networking opportunities, social media strategies, and their collective impact on multicultural sports media. Building the most appropriate social media strategy is challenging, particularly due to the number of available platforms to distribute content. Proving the ROI of social media marketing has long been a difficult, if not impossible, task for many marketers. The peculiarities of sports marketing means that 'almost every element of marketing requires significantly different approaches when the product being marketed is sport.' Indeed, sports marketing differs from other forms of marketing in three main aspects: the sports industry, the sports product and last but definitely not least, the consumer. The sport is quite often described as part of the entertainment industry. People watch sports in order to be entertained. However, sport might be entertainment, but it also differs in some aspects from other entertainment sectors or ordinary businesses. The sport's product is defined as 'a good, a service, or any combination of the two that is designed to provide benefits to a sport spectator, participant, or sponsor.' Sport products as provided by sporting organizations can be divided in the core product and product extensions. The core product is the initial game, the sporting event or competition, whereas the product extensions are all goods or services which relate to the core product such as merchandising, catering, hospitality, or information services. Sports consumers are different in numerous ways from ordinary consumers of ordinary companies.