Category Archives: Sports Marketing

Broadcasting, Digital Marketing, Internet, Journalism, Marketing, Podcasting, social media, Sports, Sports Marketing, Storytelling, Wrestling, WWE

Episode #19 & 20 – Jim Ross, WWE Broadcaster – Part 1 & 2

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After a brief hiatus, Media Masters is back, and we returned with a slobberknocker of a podcast, as legendary pro wrestling broadcaster Jim Ross joined the program. “JR”, as fans know him, came on the show to talk about how he got his start calling wrestling matches back in the 70s and 80s, and how he made the leap to the big leagues to join the big leagues in 1993, launching a 20-year career behind the microphone for the WWE.

Ross was incredibly gracious with his time and did over 90 minutes with us, and we broke the conversation up into two parts. It’s a must listen to anyone who wants to get in the broadcasting (or wrestling) industry, chock full of old school anecdotes and plenty of wisdom and life lessons as well.

Enjoy Part 1 of the conversation, and look for Part 2 shortly. In the meantime, if you’re a WWE fan and planning to be in the Bay Area, don’t miss his one man show, “Ringside: An Afternoon with Jim Ross,” which happens on Saturday, March 28 at the Rock Bar Theatre in San Jose, CA. Tickets are just $20.

Part 1:

Part 2:

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Autobiography, Baseball, Basketball, Books, Broadcasting, College Sports, Internet, Interview, Journalism, Sports, Sports Marketing, Storytelling, Twitter

Episode #18 – Bob Ryan, Boston Globe

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Bob Ryan is perhaps the greatest American sportswriter of all-time, with a 44-year career covering some of the greatest moments in Boston sports. In this episode, Ryan discusses his outstanding career, how sports journalism has evolved over his newspaper days, and talks about his new book, “Scribe: My Life in Sports.”

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For a kid who grew up wanting to be the Celtics beat writer for the Boston Globe, Bob Ryan was required reading, especially when I got to college and started journalism school at Boston University. During junior year, when I was asked to write a profile of someone noteworthy, I picked Bob Ryan and called his desk at the Globe. Ryan was very gracious, inviting me to interview him at the Globe offices, and was very generous with his time, talking for well over an hour at the time about his career and how he got started.

Decades later, Ryan’s still just as passionate about sports as he was when he started, and he was equally gracious with his time talking about his career and his new book. For a podcast called Media Masters, Bob Ryan fits the bill perfectly.

Buy Scribe: My Life in Sports on Amazon.com.

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Analytics, Branding, Broadcasting, Content Marketing, Data, Database Marketing, Digital Marketing, Facbeook Advertising, Facebook, Fan Engagement, Hashtags, Hockey, Interview, Journalism, Marketing, Mobile, ROI, Search Engine Marketing, Snapchat, social media, Social Media Analytics, Sports, Sports Marketing, Storytelling, Twitter, Video, YouTube

Episode #17 – Caity Kauffman, Tampa Bay Lightning

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Running social media for a professional sports team is almost a 24-hour job, even in the offseason. Just because your team isn’t playing games doesn’t mean you’re not trying to stay relevant and keep your fans engaged.

To that end, Caity Kauffman is a rising star in the sports social media space. For the last year, she’s been running social media for the Tampa Bay Lightning of the National Hockey League. Caity came on Media Masters to talk about what an offseason editorial calendar looks like in the offseason, and how the team approaches Facebook and Twitter.

Caity also explained how her team uses paid placement on Facebook to reach a greater audience and drive ticket sales for the Lightning. You’re going to see more teams experiment in this space as the Lightning have seen a solid ROI on the money they’ve spent in the space.

Caity’s insights are very sharp and it’s a great interview for anyone who works in sports social media.

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Analytics, Branding, Content Marketing, Data, Database Marketing, Digital Marketing, Fan Engagement, Hashtags, Interview, Marketing, Mobile, ROI, Search Engine Marketing, Snapchat, social media, Social Media Analytics, Sports Marketing, Twitter

Episode #16 – Dan Zarrella, Hubspot’s Social Media Scientist

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Plenty of people talk about “social media engagement” and “engagement” may be the most overused platitude in the world of social media marketing.

Marketers are constantly looking to prove the ROI of social, and if you’re going to start somewhere, you’ve got to start measuring. Dan Zarrella, the Principal Social Media Scientist at Hubspot, is a leader in this space.

Dan digs into the numbers, millions of numbers, to find the answer to questions like, “When’s the best time of day to post to Facebook?” If you follow social media experts on Twitter, you’ve probably seen his work already, because his studies always get attention when he releases a new set of data.

Dan joined us on Media Masters to talk about his work measuring social media, and offered his top tricks and techniques for social media success. And he’s got the data to back up his claims.

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Ballpark, Baseball, Branding, Content Marketing, Database Marketing, Digital Marketing, Fan Engagement, iBeacon, Interview, Marketing, Mobile, Search Engine Marketing, social media, Sports, Sports Marketing, Storytelling, Streaming Media, Twitter

Episode #14 – Wayne Partello, San Diego Padres

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I’ve been to San Diego at least 10 times, but I’d never been to Petco Park to see the Padres play until my last visit. About eight months ago, Wayne Partello took over as the Padres new SVP & CMO. Wayne’s a guy I’ve known from his days in Boston at WEEI/Entercom, and we’ve kept in touch via Twitter since then.

It was great to reconnect with Wayne and talk shop about sports marketing, as well as digital and social media while I was in town. I also got a behind the scenes look at the Padres “Social Hour,” their live pregame show that runs on their website, app, radio and local TV. Wayne’s crew does a great job producing the show in-house and they’re finding new ways to reach their fans wherever they are.

Wayne and I reconnected a few weeks later to talk shop on Media Masters and it was a great conversation about all things branding and marketing for a baseball team.

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Broadcasting, Football, Interview, Journalism, NFL, social media, Sports, Sports Marketing, Storytelling, Twitter, WWE

Episode #13 – Lindsay McCormick, NBC Sunday Night Football Social Host

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On a recent trip to Los Angeles, I had a chance to connect with Lindsay McCormick in person and talk shop about her sports media career. I’m something of a networking junkie, and Lindsay and I have been connected via Twitter for several years. Anyway, when it turned out that my hotel was around the corner from her, we made time to get together and talk about our careers in the sports industry.

Halfway through our conversation, we’d covered a lot of ground and touched upon a million topics, and I made Lindsay commit to having the conversation again for the podcast.

Lindsay’s had a lot of different gigs in the sports media realm, and her insight is especially valuable to anyone who’s looking to break into the TV sports business. We had fun recording this episode and it will be interesting to see where Lindsay ends up next, as she’s a multi-talented personality who conveys her enthusiasm as much on air as she does in person.

Summary: Lindsay McCormick talks to Media Masters about her career in sports media, and how she ended up living on a bus during the NFL season working for NBC as the Sunday Night Football Social Host. She also discusses her appearance as a contestant on The Price is Right and working on a movie with Bill Bellamy.

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Ballpark, Baseball, Branding, Fan Engagement, Google Glass, iBeacon, Interview, Journalism, Marketing, Mobile, social media, Sports, Sports Marketing, Storytelling, Twitter

Episode #12 – Bryan Srabian, San Francisco Giants

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Bryan Srabian, Director of Digital Media, joined us for the 12th episode of Media Masters as we resume atfer a brief hiatus. Bryan has established himself not only as a thought leader in Major League Baseball, but throughout sports marketing and social media as well. His reputation is well-earned, as Bryan’s kept the Giants on the cutting edge of digital in a super-competitive market like San Francisco.

Bryan talked to us about what it’s like to run digital at a baseball team, how the Giants integrate social into the ballpark experience, and gives his insights on new technologies like iBeacon and Google Glass.

He also shares his opinion on snarky twitter accounts, and tells us who he thinks is getting social right across the league in MLB.

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Broadcasting, College Sports, Journalism, Sports, Sports Marketing, Twitter, Uncategorized

Episode #10 – Molly McGrath, Fox Sports 1

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For the 10th episode of Media Masters, I talked to Molly McGrath, an NFL sideline reporter, anchor and host at Fox Sports 1 who launched her on-camera career as the website reporter at the Boston Celtics. In under one year, Molly’s become a break out star at the new network, and is now featured on the nightly SportsCenter competitor, “America’s Pregame,” which airs five nights a week on Fox Sports 1.

Molly talked about her work ethic and drive that led to her success, what it was like to help launch the network, and how far her career has gone in such little time. She also offers insights for young reporters hoping to follow a similar career path, and shares some stories from her incredible journey.

Listen:

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Analytics, Branding, Content Marketing, Database Marketing, Digital Marketing, Internet, Interview, Marketing, ROI, Search Engine Marketing, Snapchat, social media, Sports, Sports Marketing, Storytelling, Twitter, Video

Episode #9 – Alex Restrepo – Social Media Manager, New Orleans Saints

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I’ll admit, I wasn’t sold on Snapchat as a marketing channel for sports, or anyone else, for that matter. But after talking to Alex Restrepo, Social Media Manager for the New Orleans Saints, he may have changed my mind.

If nothing else, it’s probably worth giving a try. We had a long conversation about how the Saints use Snapchat to share content with their fans.

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Brain Injuries, College Sports, concussions, CTE, Football, Interview, Sports, Sports Marketing, Wrestling, WWE

Episode #8 – Chris Nowinski, Concussion Expert and Retired WWE Wrestler

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My most recent podcast is easily the most important episode I’ve done. I talked to Chris Nowinski, a Harvard grad who pursued a dream by becoming a WWE wrestler, only to have his career taken from him because of concussion problems.

After retiring, Nowinski went on a crusade to educate athletes about the dangers of concussions, and has worked to change the culture of denial in the NFL, WWE and other sports. Nowinski’s tireless work continues to this day, and he’s making a real impact on the way concussions are both prevented and dealt with in sports.

If you’ve ever played contact sports at any level, give it a listen. And if you have young children playing football, hockey or other contact sports, you MUST listen to this podcast. It literally could save your child’s life.

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