Sports Marketing focuses on the application of marketing principles to the promotion of sports events and teams, or the promotion of products and services through sports – sometimes known as “marketing through sports.” In general, Sports Marketing follows the traditional marketing mix of the four P’s – Product, Price, Promotion, and Place – although some sports marketers add an additional four P’s: Planning, Packaging, Positioning, and Perception. Together, these elements are known as the “Sports Marketing Mix.”
It’s a popular career path not just because there are plentiful opportunities, but because being a sports marketer is fresh, creative and cutting edge. Sports marketers are always on the front of the creative wave, and for many, that is a thrill ride worth pursuing.
Marketing through sports, in particular, has gained prominence since the 1980s. In this segment of marketing, companies promote products and services by sponsoring teams and athletes, airing television or radio ads during sports events, or purchasing advertisement at sports venues.
The majority of responses honed in on these four skills that are essential for getting hired in sports marketing.
Task Management
As a sports marketer, you will always be juggling multiple on-going tasks, which means the organization becomes a lynchpin to success. You’ll need to be able to balance your tasks, prioritize your to-do list and remain high-level and out of the weeds when applicable.
Sports marketing jobs require strong task management because you’ll be responsible for a wide range of duties:
Advertising
Printing
Promotional Items
Digital/Social Media
Community Events
Writing
Think Big Picture
Stay focused on the big goal – for example, if you’re working for a team it really boils down to selling tickets and sponsorships (there are other people in charge of the winning). Every decision you make should be bounced off the mission question, “does this choice help our organization sell more (or whatever we sell)?”
If you can bring various ideas to the table, in various channels (social, email, radio, direct etc) that show creativity while also staying in line with company goals, you’ll stand out in a sea of pun-tastic applicants, more impressed with their own wit that improving the business.
Have a Plan/Vision
Being able to develop a well thought out, a clearly-defined marketing plan is a skill that not many are able to execute. A well-developed plan is a living blueprint, a design for execution that can unify a team towards a common outcome, or better yet, multiple teams.
Not only is it important to be able to put plans together, you also need to communicate both the plan and the reasoning behind it clearly to your bosses… because they aren’t just going to hand over a marketing budget and a blank checkbook.
Writing Skills
“Writing is important for anyone in the workforce,” says Texas Stars Director of Marketing Lauren Hindman. “In sports marketing jobs specifically, I use my writing skills for everything from social media posts, e-newsletters and website stories to flyers and brochures. I also can serve as an extra set of editing eyes for our public relations department.”
I can’t stress this enough, the ability to write and articulate thoughts succinctly is the crux of sports marketing jobs. Without writing skills you aren’t a marketer or a communicator, you are just a talker and talkers work on used car lots, not professional sports organizations.
