Sponsorship Essentials Part 6: Q&A with Sree Varma, Founder & CEO at iSportconnect, the largest global private network of Sports Business Executives

By: Claire Lingley 

In an industry where communication, networking, and knowledge of the latest trends and practices is essential to success, iSportconnect gives its members exactly that. Today, we chat to the man behind it all: Sree Varma, Founder and CEO of the largest global private network of Sports Business Executives.  If there's one man that may have the inside scoop into where this industry is headed, it's him. 

Q.  How did you get into this industry?

A:  I’ve had 19 years of marketing and sales experience ranging from pharmaceutical and retail to the sports industry. My first step into the sports world was when I worked as publisher at Business F1 & SportsPro and as a consultant for Sport + Markt. I launched iSportconnect in 2010 to bring together the movers and shakers in the sports industry. It’s gone from strength to strength and is now the largest global private network of sports business executives. Last year, iSportconnect Capital got off the ground. It’s a new investor network providing investment opportunities for its members within the sport and leisure sector.

Q:  What are your goals for this platform in the coming years?

A:  We’re expanding steadily. I’d like to increase the number of offerings... the portfolio of the iSportconnect ecosystem. At the moment we have an online platform, events and member services. We’re going to launch the 24/7 OTT platform and are looking to introduce more member services. Meeting the needs of the sports business professional is at the heart of our philosophy. Everything we do has that focus to deliver a good service to all of our members. We’ll also try to increase the summits and masterclasses and to expand into new territories where sport is going to play a major role. Also, we’re looking at creating a private members club... a physical venue or meeting place for the sports industry from 2020. There’s plenty in the pipeline, which is very exciting.

“Learn from others and don’t be afraid to change if something doesn’t work out.”

Q:  What do you believe are the three most valuable skills to have in this industry?

A:  Obviously networking, because sport is such a private network. If you’re not a good networker, I don’t think you can go far. Persistence pays off, too. And a thirst to learn from other industries means you can readily adapt and change.

Q:  What is the one piece of advice you’d give to someone looking to enter this business?  

A:  Learn from others and don’t be afraid to change if something doesn’t work out

Q:  You interact regularly with the leading business executives within the sports industry around the globe.  Can you speak towards three attributes that you see most commonly shared by the top executives?

A:  Again, I would emphasize networking purely because I speak to a lot of top guys in the sport industry on a daily basis – and the most successful are those who have good people skills. They have a desire to learn from others and a willingness to share their experiences. Determination and perseverance are also key if you want to go places in the sports world.

Q:  How has technology transformed your ability to connect people? With the advent of social media and the ability to connect seemingly at your fingertips, has that brought any challenges?

A:  It’s definitely helped our business. In fact, it’s been absolutely vital in a number of areas: to increase our membership and to get more members coming to our events as well as to expand and deliver our services for the sports industry. Social media platforms are huge for us as a way of staying connected with the industry leaders who are part of the iSportconnect family.

“It’s imperative for sponsors to better understand who their customers are, what they are doing, and how they are doing it. ”

Q:  What is the greatest piece of advice you have ever received?

A:  Be prepared to listen if you want to get ahead in business

Q:  Can you give us any inside scoops into where you see the sports industry headed, specifically in terms of sponsorship?  What is the next ‘big thing’ that we will start seeing within sports?

A:  Activated sponsorship through digital and fan engagement platforms. I think AI will play a huge role in that. Sponsors can put their logos on cars, football jerseys and in stadiums but then they need improved analysis. It’s imperative for sponsors to better understand who their customers are, what they are doing, how they are doing it, and other aspects of their behaviour. Sports have to deliver that and move towards that kind of sponsorship offering, including AI. It’s already starting but that’s the way forward. For example, localized content in stadiums with the support of different platforms is where all sports entities are heading. Sponsors have to step up and modernize the offering to keep pace with the times.

 

5 Quick Q’s

Morning or night person?

24/7! Probably morning

Last book you read? 

Business Adventures by John Brooks

What’s the one thing you can’t live without? 

My mobile phone for sure

Scroll through Twitter, or browse the newspaper? 

I scan Twitter for the latest breaking news and top sports business headlines

If you could switch lives with a person for one day, who would it be?

No doubt, Steve Jobs. I’m a massive fan. He’s the man of innovation... He creates wants and converts them into needs. 

Sponsorship Essentials: March Madness Edition!

By: Claire Lingley 

It’s March and that means one thing: March Madness baby!  Not only is this an exciting time for the 64 teams vying for their spot as champion, but corporations and companies are also vying for the top spot in sponsorship.  Given that the 2017 NCAA March Madness tournament was the most watched in 24 years, paired with record-setting digital consumption, this competition for sponsorship means more than ever.  It may be only the beginning, but here are our Final Four predictions for the 2018 NCAA’s March Madness Tournament: Sponsorship Edition.

Capital One, AT&T, and Coca-Cola:  As the three top tier corporate sponsors, aptly named the “Champion” sponsors, March Madness viewers will see hundreds upon hundreds of their commercials throughout this tournament (my personal favourite featured here, can't go wrong with Samuel L Jackson crooning on your TV), paired with their name and logo branded throughout week.  From “Capital One’s NCAA March Madness Bracket Challenge”  to Coca Cola’s  “Sip. Scan. Score. Your way to March Madness” it is no question that these corporations will stand at the forefront of March Madness sponsorships. 

Nike:  This year, 44 of the 64 teams will be decked out in head-to-toe Nike branded uniforms. If my calculations are correct, the chances that the actual Final Four and furthermore, the crowning champ themselves, will be showing off that swoosh is looking pretty good!

Google Cloud:  Now known as “The Official Cloud of the NCAA”.  The end of last year saw the formation of an exciting new multi-year partnership between Google Cloud and the NCAA; NCAA’s 80+ years of historical and play-by-play-data, from 90 championships and 24 sports, is now being held and run on the Google Cloud Platform.  This is a big deal for colleges and universities, athletic teams, and fan bases alike, as they now have access to this data in ways unlike ever before. With an estimated 40 million Americans filling out brackets, and probably most* of them doing so using some sort of data and analytics, it is no surprise that this year’s March Madness will serve as the perfect platform to show off this new partnership.

Buick:  As a long time partner of the NCAA for quite some time now, Buick is stepping up its game when it comes to this year’s March Madness tournament. Not only will it offer it’s vehicle owners a free month of its AT&T-provided embedded 4G LTE data, allowing fans to access both the men’s and women’s championship games throughout the tournament, but it is also showcasing a new special NCAA Tournament app where Buick owners can listen to live audio feeds from various games playing throughout the month. 

With sponsorship spending on college athletics excepted to reach a total of $1.24 billion in the 2017-2018 season, a 4.5% increase over 2017, and the overall sports sponsor spend in 2018 expected to rise 4.9% versus last year, the sponsorship industry shows no sign of slowing down.  And while we seem to be seeing the same companies and corporations over and over dominating sponsorships in the big tournaments, just as every one knows in March Madness, you can never rule out the underdogs: case in point, UMBC defeating number one seed Virginia this weekend.

Hope everyone enjoys this year’s March Madness! I’ll be joining what I’m sure are the hundreds of thousands of people who saw their chances of winning their own office’s March Madness Bracket Challenge going down the drain with Virginia’s loss. Here's looking at next year to clench that win! 

Sponsorship Essentials: Featured Deal of the Week

By: Claire Lingley 

             The Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum is no longer! Instead, say hello to the United Airlines Memorial Coliseum, coming in August 2019.  In late January, the University of Southern California announced the exciting and unprecedented deal: United Airlines purchased the Naming Rights to the Coliseum for $69 million over 16 years.

             This deal is important for two reasons.  Firstly, the LA Memorial Coliseum is one of the sports world’s most beloved historic landmarks.  Built in 1921, it was originally commissioned as a memorial to WWI Veterans, and in 1923, the USC Trojans played, and won, their first game against Pomona College. It is an iconoclast structure, and LA embraces it as a part of its history and culture.  When it comes to naming rights, a structure with such history and such rich cultural relevance can be a challenge. Not only does USC have to ensure that this deal is right for their community, but it has the opinion of the entire city of LA, as well as arguably the entire sports world, to contend with. Let’s be honest, some people simply don’t like change, and this is a big one.

            Secondly, this is a big deal.  And I mean big as in, largest in college sports history.  At $69 million, this naming rights deal supports the stadium’s $270 million upgrade that is due to happen ahead of the 2028 Summer Olympics, hosted by LA.  That money will go a long way for these renovations, and USC is adamant that the changes will continue to honour the Coliseum’s original architectural integrity, (while also providing the customer with the most elevated experience possible). Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas, a member of the Coliseum Commission, says, "Through this restoration project, USC continues to demonstrate its responsible stewardship of the stadium. With support from United Airlines, USC is ushering in a modern era for this historic landmark and preserving its legacy for generations to come”. 

            This may be the first deal of this magnitude within the collegiate sports world, but it is certainly not the last. Here at BWA we want to know what you think.

·      What’s the best way for United Airlines to activate on this partnership and enhance their customer experience?

·      Do customers just need to learn to accept change, and stop with the complaining?  Or should properties respect the history that comes with them?

·      How can properties and companies, like USC and United Airlines in this case, work together in order to persuade the public that this partnership is beneficial for the students, the alumni, and the community as a whole?

·      Does this affect your opinion of United Airlines and/or USC and the Coliseum?

Comment below, or email us at lingley.claire@bonhamwills.com to get your thoughts published on our website!

Sponsorship Essentials Part 4: Q&A With Donna Wittmann, Leading Technology Executive

By: Claire Lingley

With over 25 years of global experience, Donna Wittmann is one of the leading technology executives within the industry.  In this week’s edition of “Sponsorship Essentials,” she speaks towards how technology is transforming the ways in which the sports industry operates, and the challenges that come with that. We also touch on how she got to where she is today, an accomplishment we could pick up tips from!

Q:  You have had extensive experience throughout the marketing world, working with companies Xerox, Dell, Cisco, Tennis Canada, etc., how did you get into this business?

A:  Truthfully, in a bit of a round-about way.  I spent most of my early career in the technology sector, in sales and marketing roles, and a lot of partnership and alliance roles as well.  When I was at Cisco, I did a sponsorship deal with Tennis Canada and the Rogers Cup to bring technology in to enhance the fan experience within the Rogers Cup.  While making that connection, I heard that they had a Chief Marketing Officer Role available at Tennis Canada. Having been a Division I tennis player and a passionate player and fan my whole life, I rang up the CEO and said, “I think that’s my dream job”.  After a lengthy interview process, I convinced them that my passion for tennis and my skills that I had as a VP of sales and marketing within the technology sector could easily be transferred to sports, and marrying up the two would be a perfect combination.  Luckily, they agreed!

Q:  What tips do you have for someone trying to enter this business, specifically as a woman?

“If you’re passionate about the industry that you’re working in, you’re going to be a lot more effective.”

A:  One of my tips would be that you don’t necessarily have to have gotten into sports right out of school, that skill sets from other industries can be transferrable into sports, so don’t necessarily rule yourself out because you didn’t start in the industry. I’m a big believer that you should follow your passion. So if you’re passionate about the industry that you’re working in, you’re going to be a lot more effective and it’s not going to seem like work to you.  So that’s the ultimate thing you should be striving for in your life.

Q:  What skills do you value most, and have made you the most valuable to a company?

A:  I think that one of the things that has made me the most valuable is that I had the opportunity early on in my career to be in a lot of different functional areas. I had roles in sales, in marketing, in finance, in pricing, in partnerships, in different geographical areas and in different countries, I had roles in the US and Canada, Western Europe. I think that having a broad spectrum of what you have had experienced in your career just lets you look at any situation and be able to have experiences to bring to bear and be able to problem solve more effectively.  In terms of advice, especially early in your career, the more breadth of experience you can get, the more different types of experiences you can get, the better off you will be later on in your career.

Q:  Where do you see technology going, specifically in the marketing world, any inside scoops on the next way you see technology transforming the marketing world?

“ I think every sport venue is asking the question, “How do I increase revenues via sponsorship? How do I enhance the fan experience?” And technology plays a huge role in answering that.”

A:  Digital transformation is happening in every industry, especially from a sports perspective, which is an area I’m passionate about.  You can see it happening particularly in digital signage, you can make instant purchases from your phones, all types of things.  I think every sport venue is asking the question, “How do I increase revenues via sponsorship? How do I enhance the fan experience?” And technology plays a huge role in answering that. Everybody wants to be more engaged from their phones.  While I was at Aussie Open this year, for example, I put up a hashtag one minute with a picture we took of ourselves, and two minutes later it was up on the big board in Rod Laver Arena.  It’s just amazing.  That obviously enhanced our fan experience.  All the people working in sports are trying to leverage technology to make an impact, and technology literally is playing a big role within every business today in terms of companies reinventing themselves to be more competitive, and in figuring out how to reach their customers more intimately.  Ultimately, companies want and need to leverage technology for good within their industry.

Q:  What sort of challenges do you see coming with that now that it’s a part of every single person’s life so much?

A:  Obviously there are privacy concerns and security concerns, and companies are addressing them as they embrace the technology to give their customers a better experience and increase revenue, but those companies don’t necessarily have a choice. It is inevitable.  It’s coming whether we like it or not, but there is so much more positive that can come from technology if we embrace it. I think one of the challenges is that people are intimidated by it.  They think, “I’m not a technology person, so I don’t understand it” and so they shy away from it, versus, just understanding from a real practical and business sense what it can do for them. And that’s why I am in that business.  I want to help people understand what technology is in their own terms for their own industry and what it means for them and what the positive benefits are.  You don’t have to understand how it works to understand what it does.

Q:  What is the accomplishment you are most proud of to date?

A:  Throughout my life, there are three accomplishments that stand out.  First, making the Penn State tennis team as a walk-on, second, becoming the youngest female Vice-President at Xerox, and third, making the leap to work in sports as the Chief Marketing Officer at Tennis Canada.  All three accomplishments reinforced that I could overcome the odds by taking risks and going after something I really wanted.  

Q:  What’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever received?

“It is the people that push beyond one or two “No’s” to get a “Yes” for what they want to do that are the ones that are successful.

”

A:  I think the best piece of advice is to not take no for an answer when you are going for something that you really want. There are always people that are going to tell you no and stand in your way.  It is the people that push beyond one or two "No’s" to get a "Yes" for what they want to do that are the ones that are successful.

If you could have dinner with 1 person, dead or alive, who would it be?

I would have dinner with Oprah Winfrey. I think what she has done throughout her life is just remarkable and exceptional, and she always seems to take an “I can do anything” approach to life.  She has a super positive attitude and has a way of inspiring others to take that same approach.

Sponsorship Essentials Part 3: Q&A w/ Gareth Roberts, Commercial Director at Edgbaston

By: Claire Lingley

This week in “Sponsorship Essentials”, we reach across the pond to learn a little bit more about the ever-changing sponsorship market in the cricket world. Gareth Roberts is the Commercial Director at Warwickshire County Cricket Club (WCCC) and Edgbaston Stadium, and I spoke with him about his experience in the industry, where the challenges lie, and how he plans to adapt to them. All signs point to big things on the horizon for Gareth and the Edgbaston team.

Q:  You’ve been in this industry for quite some time, and as a result, you have an incredibly diverse background.  You worked with Carlsberg UK for 22 years and in various roles in football following that, so what was it that drew you to cricket and Edgbaston? 

A:  As you say I had 22 fantastic years at Carlsberg UK, building my experience and skills in sales, marketing, sponsorship and communications. Over the last 12 years, I was responsible for developing and implementing the sponsorship strategies for the UK business. Mainly revolving around football and rugby (Union and League) during the early stages but adding a large music portfolio and other properties such as Premier League Darts in the last 3-4 years. But having worked for the Brand owner’s, negotiating and securing rights from the ‘rights holder’, my next natural step was to move to a ‘rights owner’ organization.

Edgbaston had just gone through a major £32M stadium re-development which significantly changed the company dynamics. In simple terms, it went from a county cricket club business, to a year round major sport (stadium) and conference and events business overnight. I saw Edgbaston as a perfect opportunity to use my skills gained at Carlsberg to make a major contribution and make a difference in the ‘new company’.

           **At this point, I was going to ask Gareth how his past experience has helped him today, and he took the words right out of my mouth**

With the significant change in the business following the re-development, new teams and new departments were being created. The Commercial Team I took over was just 2 people with one of those being a student. However, I took this as a real opportunity to shape a new team and create a robust and exciting new structure to take on the challenges of the business at that time and for key future projects.

“ The better the experience, the more likely the customer is to be positive about it and return.”

My commercial background enabled me to introduce strong sales strategies that targeted the core revenue streams from the cricket side of the business.  The immediate and most important area to focus on was the creation of a new CRM programme and a database of customer information. To know who your customer is and what they buy is key to any successful ‘customer led’ organization.

In addition I had to tackle the poor commercial partner programme I inherited. A good understanding of what a brand based business needs to achieve its core objectives became invaluable in putting in place a strong commercial partner programme. With very few partners secured, it was important to create a target list, a hierarchy structure and confirm the inventory of rights and properties that would be attractive to any company, in any brand sector. My sales background then made it easier to produce sales pitches that matched our products and brands to commercial organizations and then secure via simple sales strategies. The success is proven as we now hold nearly 40 commercial partners at an annual income of over £1M.  

My media relations role at Carlsberg taught me how to use the media to drive benefits for the brand and on some occasions either promote or protect the image and reputation of the business. Although the landscape of media has changed dramatically with the inclusion and rise of social media and the Internet, the principles and objectives remain the same. We produced a simple strategy with a few focused objectives and a set of agreed upon and relevant ‘key messages’. As we became more fluent and covered more areas of cricket and the business, we then started to develop opportunities via the growing social media channels and produced new up to date website platforms to give our customer easier access to information and content and also an easy option to buy.

We were the first to break out our websites in to 3 bespoke products, to cater for 3 different groups; 1) Edgbaston.com – for those who came to the stadium for international matches and conference events; 2) WarwickshireCCC.com – for our members and those interested in the County Team and the competitions, and finally 3) BirminghamBears.com – a unique and bespoke site for all those interested in the growing format of T20.

Q:  You mentioned social media and also the more traditional media, i.e. newspapers, radio, etc.  How do you balance bringing in new audiences and appealing to new crowds, while also ensuring that the older crowds are still getting the same experience that they’ve known, and that has kept them coming back?

“Sending the right message to the right person at the best time for them to receive and react positively is absolutely key to achieving immediate action from the customer. ”

A:  Cricket has a number of different demographic groups, mainly due to its history and three different formats of the game. The county and test match formats still have a very traditional following so we still use a lot of traditional media in newspapers, radio and TV. However as this generation gets older more social and digital media will start to come through. The more exciting and vibrant formats of the game, commonly referred to as ‘white ball’ cricket, are certainly the future and are vital in attracting new audiences. The new fan is content savvy and content hungry.  If we want to attract them to cricket we need to create impactful, dynamic and visual content. To ensure Edgbaston can deliver, I introduced a Digital Content team 18 months ago to produce relevant designs and videos, etc., that can be used in various communications across the Internet and all social media channels. This vibrant and exciting content has proven to be a huge success in particular across the Birminghambears.com site. With the striking American style logo supported by more fun, informal and relevant content, this site caters for the cricket fan who loves T20, loves the match day experience and thrives for visually simple and fun content

It seems obvious, but in communicating with our various groups, sending the right message to the right person at the best time for them to receive and react positively, is absolutely key to achieving immediate action from that customer. This, combined with a very interesting and relevant piece of content, will deliver results.

Q:  What does the future hold for Edgbaston, and what challenges come along with that?

 A:  We’ve got a lot of exciting plans at Edgbaston over the next 3 years.  Already signed off is the construction of 390 new apartments on the adjacent land to the stadium. As part of this new development, a new plaza will be created that will also include café bars and leisure outlets that will not only service the new residents but will be fantastic draw for match days at the stadium. In summary, we are creating a new centre for Edgbaston and a year round destination.

Another major project up and running is our Connectivity and Digitalization Project, which is designed to transform the stadium inside and out by using LED and digital structures. In the stadium bowl, our aim is to install LED perimeter signage on a permanent basis, plus a huge digital screen that would include the scoreboard, video replay and various other options that would allow customer engagement, i.e. live twitter feeds. This really would significantly increase the customers in bowl experience and entertainment levels. Around the rest of the stadium we are looking to add digital tariff at all bars, more screens that show the match live and additional screens for both customer information and potential partner advertising. The Connectivity part of the project is to ensure the digital properties all ‘talk’ to each other and therefore deliver the best stadium experience possible.   The better the experience the more likely the customer is to be positive about it and return.

The day to day business remains imperative and as important as ever. We will still continue to drive ticket sales and strive to achieve capacity crowds on all occasions. As these can be up to 40% of the company revenues, they have to be delivered to create strong foundations on which to build and gain surplus funds that can be re-invested in projects.   Matches, (like the Ashes) are the best to have in the portfolio, as the demand for these are extremely high and you can implement a sales strategy with a pricing structure that truly maximizes the revenue opportunity. T20 Finals Day is a new property that is reaching the same heights as the Ashes and is securing over £1M ticket revenue for one day of cricket. However, this competition may be challenged with the introduction of the new domestic T20 tournament that will begin in 2020. This is based on The Big Bash in Australia which has seen huge success and year on year growth over the last 4 years. This is also a fantastic opportunity! If we are confirmed as a venue to host one of the eight city-based teams, our initial challenge is to once again produce capacity crowds and strong customer experience.  This is is a major opportunity for us as a stadium and a business, as we will be hosting the best players in the world in a new T20 competition exposed all around the globe.

There are some major challenges ahead but get them right and we will be in a very good place!

Q:  What was the one deal you were the most proud of getting across the finish line?

A:  During my 12 years as Director of Sponsorship at Carlsberg, I would have secured well over £25M worth of sponsorship contracts, from football to rugby and darts to music. I enjoyed the internal brand consultation and customer focus groups that led to the Holsten Darts Premier League sponsorship and the securing of the Rugby Football League naming sponsorship (Tetley’s Super League) during my time. But I would probably say that the one I was most proud of was the English Football Association contracts, renegotiated twice over a 5-year period, with a value of around £8M.

As the deal included sponsorship properties from grass roots football all the way to the England Team and also included the new Wembley Stadium, I knew how important this partnership was to the business and the connection with the Carlsberg brand. In simple terms wherever England were playing, each regional team (Carlsberg global) had the opportunity to create related and associated sales and marketing campaigns. Every World Cup and every Euro Championship gave Carlsberg an exclusive period of opportunity to drive sales across both existing and new customers, using the England sponsorship at the centre. It gave access to the players, the (football) venues and to client entertainment that was only available via the Carlsberg relationship. For example, one of my last events and client activity was taking a group of CEO’s to the World Cup in South Africa in 2010. This was for a full week, taking in the England v USA group game but also a full programme of daily ‘entertainment’ – what an amazing trip that was for some of the top Carlsberg customers (and of course for me).

I can confidently say that Carlsberg’s sponsorship of the England FA and Wembley Stadium delivered huge benefits and upsides across all areas of the Carlsberg business.

“Whether I’m speaking to the CEO of a company or I’m speaking to someone at a junior level, it’s all about respect.”

Q:  What’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever received?

A:  Good question.  My father was my role model, always very blunt and very simple, and he always said, “Look, be yourself. Respect everybody from the cleaner all the way to the Chief Exec, they all play a part”.  Whether I’m speaking to the CEO of a company or I’m speaking to someone at a junior level, it’s all about respect. So bringing this to day to day work, business to me is all about building strong and relevant relationships and I believe you still ‘buy off the person’. That’s a philosophy I have used everywhere I have gone and believe it’s been a major contributor to my career success

Q:  If you could have dinner with one person, alive or dead, who would you choose?

A:  This is a very tough question. I have always enjoyed entertainment legends such as (don’t laugh) Sir Bruce Forsyth and Sir Terry Wogan, as they just had this natural ability with people, a warmth an empathy but delivered with a bit cheek and humour. However, I ended up with the legend that is Mohammed Ali. Just an unbelievable talent in his own sport of boxing, and a style and confidence that I don’t believe will ever be matched. He lit up the sport in the ring but also had a huge personality outside, also bringing a lot humour to his ‘brand’ and lifestyle. He was no doubt a huge role model to a huge amount of people but I could imagine also had some very dark and difficult times during his lifetime.