New Generation of Marketers: How Will We Adapt?

I  believe that growing trends, developments and technologies in and around the digital space will directly influence the way in which the industry markets sports in the very near future. By the time I get deeply ingrained into the sports marketing industry, most of my predecessors will have already figured out how to repackage campaigns so that they appeal to the new broadcast landscape; turning away from traditional media and leaning on new media platforms. 

With new technologies come new ideas and new ways to communicate with the public, we as sports marketers will have already gotten used to this concept and adaptation and will be of no concern, in my opinion. I myself grew up in the social media and digital platform boom (so to speak). I think that my generation has a fully developed understanding on how to effectively communicate to our peers using these types of outlets. Digital, mobile and social media platforms will be astoundingly critical (and they are so today as well). 

Marketing is all about being unique, the challenges I see myself facing are how to be continually creative and innovative enough to standout when everyone else is “playing” in the same space. I think that my biggest challenge will be the emerging sports markets in growing countries like India and China. With these countries growing so rapidly new global marketing opportunities and sponsorship's for international events are sure to follow. I will already be equipped with the right tools and platforms to engage these new markets, the problem will lie in my ability to successfully read and correctly respond to international market signals. Just because a marketing campaign works in the United States via digital platforms, doesn't mean I can take that same campaign and launch it overseas. Everyone engages differently online and it will be important for us to understand the impact of technologies in the future and how it will affect different societies. 

Another thing that concerns me is in 2011, 42,500 hours of live sporting events were broadcast, which is over 4 ½ years’ worth of programming. My generation is going to have to learn how to deal with more unique content and less control when creating marketing campaigns. I also believe that my generation will have to learn how to deal with the effects that social media has on society. With social media delivering new content to us literally every second or when we demand it, our future audiences’ attention span will significantly decrease leaving us with the task of grabbing the audience’s attention in the correct way, on a particular platform in a very specific short window of opportunity, which could prove to be difficult. I also believe that we will have to come up with marketing campaigns that will develop a deeper connection with the fans. Fans have the ability to familiarize themselves with super stars, movie icons and famous athletes though social media and because of that fans will continue to expect a deeper connection with everything else revolving around sports. Deeper connections lead to loyalty to a brand, and our marketing efforts will have to offer the highest level of engagement next to being at the stadium. 

Photo Found Here: http://www.rvue.com/blog/203/Reaching-The-Connected-Consumer