2. 2
Executive Summary
Purpose The purpose of this research project was to increase brand awareness for the Denver
Outlaws through community development. The goal was to understand what community
development meant to the Outlaws organization and determine strategies that could be
implemented to enhance the organization’s presence within the Denver community.
Methods Primary research was conducted by first administering an intercept survey at the
Boomtown Lacrosse Event in Boulder followed by an intercept survey of the local community in
downtown Denver. Our research team also attended two Outlaws games for observational
research of the atmosphere. Finally, we interviewed Kara Hammer, community relations and
ticketing coordinator for the Colorado Springs Sky Sox, about the success of their mascot Sox.
Results In conducting primary research, we found significant opportunity relating to the
Outlaw’s use of social media, the utilization of their mascot, and sponsorship activation. Each of
these opportunities requires minimal capital investment and provides exponential returns.
Enhancing these aspects of the Outlaws organization would increase brand awareness within the
community, thus creating additional game attendees and future fans.
Recommendations
Lawless Race/Relay – The Lawless Race/Relay will be a family friendly, multi-tiered race
allowing for individual and team competition. The race will draw consumers to the Outlaws
organization and create an association between the organization and entertainment. The
Headstrong Foundation was determined to be a valuable partner for this event because of their
unique ties to the lacrosse community and expansive reach within the general population.
‘Coontail Chili Cook-off – The ‘Coontail cook-off is a pre-season chili cooking competition
aimed at getting the community amped for the upcoming season. This event would draw upon
the far-reaching food and beer loving communities of Denver and would create the opportunity
for people that have never had a connection to lacrosse to interact with the Outlaws’ brand.
Outlaws101 – Our team found significant opportunity in rebranding the Legends Sports Mall as
a public tailgate to draw in consumers who attend games for entertainment beyond the
competition. Currently, this area is used for three by three lacrosse competitions and was
observed to be unapproachable by most other tailgaters. The new Outlaws101 area would be an
inviting area where people can learn about and interact with the Outlaws organization.
Each of these strategies would be bolstered by the Outlaws’ improved online presence and
increased usage of their mascot, Stix. Research showed that effectively using social media
capabilities has a drastic impact on fan followership, which creates a constant connection
between the fans and organizations. A mascot’s presence on social media furthers this effect by
creating a persona that is easily interacted with. Together, the Outlaws’ social media accounts
and Stix can play a big part in the continued success of the organization.
3. 3
Table of Contents
Introduction 4
Purpose Statement 7
ResearchQuestions 7
Literature Review 8
Overview 23
Best Practices 25
Overview 42
Methods 45
Results 50
Successful Mascot Program Research 50
Boomtown Lacrosse Tournament Survey 50
Denver General Population Survey 52
Discussion 58
Recommendations 63
Lawless Race/Relay 63
‘Coontail Chili Cook-off 66
Outlaws101 67
Overview 69
Conclusion 72
References 76
Appendix A 81
Appendix B 86
4. 4
Introduction
Today, one might look at the timeless photo of Nelson Mandela presenting the Rugby
World Cup trophy to Francois Pienaar and believe it just to be another sporting moment from
history. However, that celebration was far more momentous than any other like it. With the
country's first black president wearing the green Springboks jersey, a historical symbol of
tyranny and racial repression to the black population (Longman, 2013), the transformation from
a divided country into the unified 'rainbow nation' the world came to know and love at the 2010
FIFA World Cup began.
No leader has ever believed in or used the power of sport quite like Nelson Mandela. He
understood that the community sporting events bring together could be used to unify populations
harboring animosity between one another.
"Sport has the power to change the world," Mandela once said. "It has the power
to inspire. It has the power to unite people in a way that little else does. It speaks
to youth in a language they understand. Sport can create hope where once there
was only despair. It is more powerful than government in breaking down racial
barriers” (Longman, 2013, para. 3).
By leveraging the power of sport and its communal effect, Mandela made sport a
confirmation of possibility for a struggling nation.
While South Africa's example is only marginally relatable to the average professional
sport organization, there’s still a lesson in the value of community to be learned. Sporting teams
and leagues need communities to be supportive; here, they find talent to play the game,
consumers to drive their businesses, and ambassadors to draw new participants and fans. Without
5. 5
a healthy community surrounding them, a sport organization will almost certainly fail to build a
strong fan base: enter community development.
In the sporting world, community development is the process by which an organization
draws community members to their business in the hopes of creating supporters. It is a crucial
part of the business because it develops the future of the organization; new fans. Many different
channels can be used in building public relationships such as clinics, charity work, mascot use,
and partnering with local businesses to name a few. Within the sport industry, community
development is particularly effective because it leads to the empowerment of the people it targets
(Barnes, Rodger & Whyte, 1997).
One key aspect of sports that can be used to empower its participants is physical fitness.
With research going further in depth and becoming readily available via social media and smart
phones, physical fitness is becoming one of the most influential trends today (Mercer, n.d.). By
leveraging this trend along with the 'fun' quality, sports organizations can recruit new
participants that are likely to continue participating as a way to stay physically fit. A perfect
example of using this mix is the NFL PLAY60 campaign, which Roger Goodell claims, "is a
significant tool in ensuring children get their necessary, daily physical activity” (NFL Rush, n.d.,
para. 2). PLAY60 is brilliant because it can be marketed as the league contributing to an
important social issue when at its core, the program is activating a love for the sport of football
in these young consumers.
For the Denver Outlaws, building relationships and establishing the team as a part of the
Denver community is key to enhancing brand awareness, attendance, and fan loyalty. Currently,
the Outlaws employ few efforts to reach the community beyond direct marketing and sales
channels. The purpose of this research study is to understand what community development
6. 6
means to the Denver Outlaws and its potential value to the organization. Ultimately, our team
will make recommendations on how to design a community development program aimed at
establishing a strong brand image and increasing brand awareness.
Such a program would be able to promote the Outlaws' outstanding history of success,
strong sense of identity, and in-game experience to draw new spectators to the games on the
weekends. For example, since entering the league in 2006, the Outlaws have never missed the
playoffs. They are the only team who can boast such a feat. The team won the Major League
Lacrosse (MLL) title in 2014 and has broken the MLL attendance record with staggering
numbers. Based on statistics, the Denver Outlaws are superstars. Now it's time to carry that
momentum forward into the community, creating excitement around the team, letting everybody
know how the Outlaws are representing their city.
Our research will begin broadly by examining how sport organizations go about building
a healthy sporting community; essentially, a growing lacrosse community with leaders devoted
to growing the game. This is absolutely necessary to ensure that the organization (and the sport
on a wider scale) continues to thrive. From here, our research team will delve into what the
Denver community specifically values in a sport franchise. By assessing this information with
respect to the findings on community building, our goal is to identify key marketable strengths as
well as weaknesses that can be alleviated. Finally, our team will analyze current trends and best
practices for how to utilize sponsors, creating more of a partnership relationship with a
community outreach focus.
7. 7
Purpose Statement
The purpose of this research project is to understand what community development
means to the Denver Outlaws and its value to the organization. Using our research findings, the
goal is to create a community development program designed to establish a strong brand image
outside of the traditional lacrosse community, ultimately leading to increased fan loyalty and
attendance.
Research Questions
I. How do professional sport organizations grow their sport within the community?
II. What does the Denver community specifically value in sport organizations?
III. How can the Denver Outlaws best utilize their sponsors/partners to increase brand
awareness?
8. 8
Literature Review
Sport Community Building
In order for penetration of a sport within the population to be possible, there must first be
an established, healthy community where the sport exists. Susan Vail discusses what a healthy
sporting community looks like through the lens of her Building Tennis Communities (BTC)
model. Within the BTC model three key components exist: community champions, community
partners, and pathways to the sport (2007). Each of these three were found to be essential to the
development of a successful community.
Community champions can be defined as persons who are devoted to a sport, are well
connected within the community, and have the time, interest, and knowledge of the peoples’
needs in order to build relationships and facilitate growth (Vail, 2007). These operators can be
anyone dwelling within the community, who has an accurate understanding of social needs and
the ability to create connections with other communal leaders. They understand the role tennis
can have in reducing or eliminating problems in the community and they keep track of the extent
it does so (Vail, 2007). Champions are the catalysts that often create pathways and bridge the gap
for partners to become a part of the sport.
Community partners include local businesses (to be discussed later in the paper) as well
as educational institutions, park and recreation districts, media, politicians, and so forth (Vail,
2007). The role of partners is giving the champions access to resources to be used in sustaining
the sporting community. Vail notes in her report that champions who were more engaged,
actively creating partnerships, proved far more successful at sustaining participation rates than
those that did not seek out allies (2007).
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Because sponsors/partners are often created due to the owner’s affinity for a sport (Zinger
& O’Reilly, 2010), a potentially successful champion would be a small business owner who’s
already invested in the sport. In fact, this situation could actually benefit the sporting community
more than a traditional partnership where resources exchanged would be expected to be equal in
value. The champion, having interests in both the sport’s growth and their business, would likely
value the sport’s increased equity.
Pathways into the sport were the “sport technical” part of the BTC model, consisting of
four levels of activity on a continuum: try, learn, play, and compete (Vail, 2007). Pathways are
the most crucial aspect of the model as it draws the participants and supporters that create the
game as a whole. Champion and partner’s roles are to create pathways that activate participants
on all four levels of the continuum. The try level would be activated in a friendly setting where a
coach or player sets up a demonstrative area. To draw new players in, the atmosphere would
need to be inviting, allowing free participation. The learn level would be activated by having a
series of lessons in an event where participants work with different instructors to gain
understanding of different facets of the game from each. The try and learn levels are where
consumers decide whether or not they enjoy the sport and want to continue to play or compete
(Vail, 2007). Thus, consumers operating within these lower levels of the activity continuum are
who should be targeted when trying to grow a sport’s participation numbers. They also represent
the highest potential economic value to organizations seeking consumer activation.
Without champions, partners, and pathways to the sport, a community can still form
around a sport, but only through a club-based delivery system (Vail, 2007). This system is used
almost exclusively by larger sports as seen in football and basketball, where the club itself has so
much to offer that they can afford for their focus on the local community to come next to last. No
10. 10
matter how it is created, without a community, consumers are unlikely to be drawn to any level
of activity within the sport, let alone making it a regular part of their lives. However, with the
right leaders and a little effort, a healthy atmosphere can be created around the game. This
atmosphere is crucial in enhancing a sport’s penetration in the market because it is the entity with
which consumers will first create a psychological connection.
Social Media as a Pathway
In recent years a new, powerful pathway has formed that is changing the communicative
landscape for all businesses alike; social media. With widespread adoption of the Internet and
smartphone capabilities, social media has changed business’ old form of ‘mass communication’
into ‘mass conversation’ (Vann, 2014). Mass conversation allows consumers direct contact with
the business and vice versa. It is a more personal communication channel than newspaper and
magazine articles ever were, especially because businesses can tailor their message to each target
market.
The rise of social media has enabled a cheap avenue for teams to reach their passionate
fans, creating tangible goods out of the highly perishable nature of sport (Vann, 2014), while also
reaching out to non-fans and on-the-fence consumers. This simultaneous reach between various
levels of interested parties is due to the branding effect of social media. As an organization
builds its social media profiles, the experiences they create and share introduce a brand image
into the mind of every consumer that sees it (Watkins, 2014a). For example, if the Outlaws
posted pictures of fans that won an on-field experience and memorabilia, dedicated fans that saw
the post would likely be activated to participate more often in promotions put on by the
organization. At the same time, each consumer that happened to see the fans pictured (i.e. friends
and family members) would have the Outlaws inserted into their mental landscape as a fun,
11. 11
inviting experience (Watkins, 2014a). With the reach social media provides and technology
continuing to progress, creating a presence on the Internet and offering easily accessible
pathways will only become more important to sporting organizations. If an organization doesn’t
use social media to their fullest potential, they’re only missing out on opportunities because most
social media utilities offered are free of charge.
Brand Community Building
Within the sport-wide community, each professional organization is tasked with building
their own personal brand communities. Brand community is the term associated with a
specialized, non-geographically bound community, based on a structured set of social
relationships among admirers of a brand (Grant, Heere, & Dickson, 2011). Brand community is
immensely important as it allows a sporting organization to better relate and communicate with
its consumers.
One way to understand how brand community is built is by looking at the Social Identity-
Brand Equity (SIBE) model. The SIBE model is unique because it proposes that social
identification leads to an increase in consumer-based brand equity. Essentially, the more
consumers that identify with a specific brand, the more likely it will be that each has a positive
perception of the business. While this model is generally used in business management, Brandi
Watkins takes the model and applies it to the business of sports (Watkins, 2014b).
The SIBE model breaks down social identity into four market characteristics that can be
leveraged by organizations to enhance brand equity. The four characteristics are group
experiences, venue, team history, and traditions and rituals. After the study was complete,
Watkins found that group experience has a very strong impact on brand equity while a team’s
history had a very insignificant correlation (2014). She refers to sports as “inherently social
12. 12
events, which provide an experience characterized by an enhanced in-group perception and
natural bias against the out-group,” (Watkins, 2014b, pg. 472). By leveraging the social aspect,
even losing teams were able to increase brand equity on the whole. Venue was found to have an
impact on brand equity as well, largely affecting the fan experience at the game. Rituals and
traditions were also found to have an impact on brand equity, but not as strong as the experience
or venue.
Understanding the SIBE model and what role each characteristic plays within your
organization is critical to effective community development. As we’ve seen, community
development has the potential to take a sporting team (and its brand) to the next level by
increasing fan devotion and awareness within the community. Underwood, Bond, and Baer
(2001) applied this mechanism to the sport industry discussing each of the four strategies and
their importance in building social identity among their fans:
(1) Group experiences - Group experiences are important to brand community as they
galvanize the many people within the community. For example, at a basketball game
when the home team makes the buzzer-beating, game winning shot it isn’t uncommon to
see total strangers grabbing, hugging, and high-fiving each other in celebration. “The first
marker is the consciousness of kind, in which the individuals acknowledge the concept of
‘‘we’’ (Grant, et al, 2011, p. 37).” This is closely related to the concept of Basking In
Reflected Glory, or BIRGing, and Cutting Off Reflected Failure, or CORFing. Basically,
BIRGing and CORFing are strategically done in the consumer’s mind in order to
associate one’s self with success (Spinda, 2011). This acceptance of ‘‘we’’ is
accompanied by a strong sense of ‘‘they’’, which is used to refer to either non-members,
or to members of an opposite brand (Grant, et al, 2011, p. 37-8). The first marker strategy
13. 13
is used to differentiate the loyal community that supports a team from the people who
don’t, which develops a tight-knit fan community. The authors agree that consumer
bonding, interactions, and affiliations are just as intense as the players creating the
experience (2011).
(2) Rituals/traditions - The third brand marketing strategy highlights the effectiveness of
using a community or teams’ rituals in enhancing brand awareness (Underwood, Bond, &
Baer, 2001). An example of the power of this strategy (or lack thereof) follows: a sports
team moves to a new location but it refuses to take on the community’s rich traditions in
the sport. Inevitably, the organization fails to draw enough support from the community
and is forced to relocate. If the team had used the existing equities to their advantage
instead of fighting them, they would have been able to maintain a strong brand identity
within the community and build a strong franchise there. The power of rituals are
exemplified in Dickson’s quote, “Rituals offer a sports team the chance to develop its
brand, enhance the ambience of the game and help promote the game as an event (As
cited in Grant, et al, 2011, p. 38).”
(3) History of the Organization - Preliminary research done by O’Reilly and Nadeau (2006)
suggests that history and heritage of a team positively correlates to increased revenues for
that team. For example, University of Alabama football constantly refers to their
whopping 15 national championship titles to attract people and media. Also, Alabama is
one of very few teams to win back-to-back championships and this history creates a
substantial amount of attention. The Crimson Tide won the national championship in
2011 and 2012. During the 2012 season, the Crimson Tide football program brought in
14. 14
nearly $125 million in total revenues, topping the SEC and coming in fourth highest of all
programs in the nation that year (Low, 2013).
(4) Physical facility - The fourth brand marketing strategy is the strategic use of facilities’
capabilities. The facilities are the tangible, non-perishing aspect of a sport organization’s
brand (Underwood, et al, 2001). If a facility is unkempt, not maintained to a high
standard, or staffed poorly, the creation of a poor brand image is likely to be created in
the consumers’ minds upon attending the facility. On the other hand, when an
organization has a remarkable facility it creates a fun atmosphere with a positive group
experience that leads to an enhanced brand community, creation of brand ambassadors,
and increased likelihood of repeat customers.
Each of these four strategies should be implemented differently based upon the
organizational dynamic within the community. Their use will directly affect how consumers
identify with the sport product, which will effect if and how they decide to involve themselves
within the team and sport communities.
Consumer Involvement Drivers
Getting an organization into the consumers’ minds within the target market is crucial to
driving involvement. To understand how best to interact with consumers, an organization must
first understand that they are the “supreme authority” of leagues and teams (Taylor, 1992, p.118).
The relationship strength wholly depends on the consumer’s perception of the brands, which is
formed by interactions and involvement with them (Kunkel, Hill & Funk, 2013). A strong
relationship exists between highly involved, loyal consumers and the organization. These fans
are more likely to watch the sport brand live and/or via media (Armstrong, 2002a). They are
already involved, thus needing no action to begin activation. On the other hand, fans of the
15. 15
sport/team that could potentially become highly loyal should be targeted for activation, as their
increased fandom will increase revenues on multiple platforms. This group specifically has a
need for higher involvement that isn’t being met. In previous literature, this need for increased
involvement has been generally explained as a psychological connection between an individual
and an object (Kunkel, et al, 2013; Celsi & Olson, 1988; Zaichkowsky, 1985).
The Psychological Continuum Model (PCM) provides a theoretical framework that
explains four different levels of involvement with a sport brand (Funk & James, 2001). The PCM
suggests that individual and sociological processes influence the connection to a brand.
Awareness, Attraction, Attachment, and Allegiance are the four classifications of involvement
with a sport brand within the PCM model. These levels are based upon the attitude portrayed
towards the sport brand. Different levels can even be shown simultaneously in reference to
multiple sport brands (Kunkel, et al, 2013). For example, differing levels of involvement and
loyalty can be shown by the same person at one level for the league and another level for a
certain team or player. This is where Funk and Pritchard (2010) distinguished the difference
between brand and product importance, the product being the sport and the brand being a fan’s
favorite sport or player.
Every organization has the goal to take their consumers on the journey from awareness to
allegiance, how to achieve the goal is the challenge. The psychological engagement of
consumers is based upon their behavioral engagement and attitudinal formation that occurs
throughout their journey of more involvement with the sport object (Funk, 2008). When a
consumer begins in the awareness process they reach a beginner level of engagement with
minimal cognitive effort towards the sport object. In better words, there is a non-emotional
connection between them and the sport object. This is customary for an introduction of a sport
16. 16
object thriving within the industry. Already established preconceptions rather than personal
experiences create the gap between awareness and attraction because in this first stage of the
PCM consumers are exploring the product randomly (Funk & James, 2001).
Awareness processing is based on when and how consumers learn about the sport object,
and these factors are determined by socializing agents through and into sports. “The most
common socializing agents are parents, peer group, coaches, mass media, schools, church,
community-based programs, and cultural beliefs” (Funk, 2008, p.90). When targeting a younger
market, parent’s become predominantly important because of their team identification influence
on their children. As children begin to grow up, their peers begin to be their target socializing
agent’s due to the social pressures to belong in a specified group. To introduce the product
through curriculum and programs the focus will then be on the environment, such as sport clubs,
schools, and universities. The four key marketing actions to take when in the awareness stage is
to strategically use the marketing mix, select key target markets, study and evaluate market, and
select information systems (Funk, 2008, p.97). Within these actions, the goal should be to “entice
the individual to enter the PCM elevator by acknowledging that a sport object exists and
increasing the level of awareness and incrementally building momentum en route to the
attraction stage” (Funk, 2008, p.97-98).
Of course, everyone differs in their connection with a sport object, so Quick (2002)
categorized five different types of sport spectator segments. The first category is the Aficionado,
who is loyal to the game rather than any specific team. These spectators value knowledge of the
game and its traditions. The second segment is the theatregoers, who enjoy spectating sport for
the excitement, the ‘unknown’ factor, and the beauty of such skilled talent. Establishing a fan
base that seeks entertainment, enjoyment, and close contests while satisfying their needs can turn
17. 17
the theatregoers into passionate partisans, the third spectator segment. These people are the true
fans of their team, identifying strongly with the successes and failures. Consistently drawing
theatregoers through the gates by highlighting the entertainment aspect is the first step in
transforming them into passionate partisans (Quick, 2002). The final spectator segment is the
champ followers who are commonly referred to as ‘bandwagoners’ by other spectators. These
fans exhibit loyalty related to a team or individuals success. They relate to the brilliance and
purity of dominance within competition and don’t always remain true to any specific entity.
Aficionados and theatregoers would likely fall into the attraction classification of the
PCM model because they are pulled to the game for entertainment but don’t identify strongly
enough with any organization to be considered within the allegiance classification. However,
aficionados could be considered in allegiance to the sporting league, making marketing to them
on the sport-wide level effective. Passionate partisans certainly fall under the allegiance
classification and marketing to this group would likely not increase their involvement much.
With that said, these individuals are likely good targets to work on selling season tickets,
specialized merchandise, and upgrades. Finally, champ followers would fall somewhere in
between attraction and allegiance. It could be said that they exhibit allegiance to success,
creating marketing channels. They could perhaps be drawn to attend games by marketing
superstars, consistent success, and titles won by the team, such as the Outlaws’ 2014 MLL
Championship.
Another way to break down the participants within an organization’s community is to
study external groups and their connections to the organization. Group identity theory suggests
that fans of a sports team don’t just see themselves as the consumer of a product, but as members
of the organization (Heere & James, 2007). This explains why fans react so strongly to changes
18. 18
in the organizational atmosphere, the arrival/departure of major talent, and any positive/negative
publicity directed at the team. In order for the organization to best reach their external groups,
they must first identify each one, its values, and its clout.
An external group is a social network within the overarching brand community.
Geographic location, ethnicity, gender/sexuality, and social class groups as well as individual
business partners are examples of ways to break down the brand community into recognizable
external groups. Within these groups, individual members connect with each other based on
particular needs. Each individual has many different group identities and is able to participate in
numerous external groups simultaneously. According to Tajfel, the collective identities of the
communities they participate within make up each person’s self-concept (Heere & James, 2007).
Thus, to activate the members of an organization’s external group, the team identity must match
the values of that group.
Creating a strong team identity is the key in reaching out to external groups. A team
identity is based on an individual’s sense of belonging to a group of team supporters or on a
perceived psychological connection with a sports team (Funk & James, 2001). Thus, an
organization should aim to offer a culture that the surrounding communities will be attracted
toward. Other aspects of social life influence membership and have emotional value that instructs
how individuals understand team identity. For example, “the industrial reputations of cities such
as Pittsburg, Pennsylvania and Green Bay, Wisconsin are reflected in the names selected for the
football teams in each of the communities: Steelers and Packers (Heere & James, 2007, p. 320).”
When a team is perceived to successfully represent one or more external group identities, team
identity will be strengthened and team loyalty will be benefitted when these groups associate
with the brand (Heere & James, 2007). More importantly, these connections provide the sport
19. 19
organization with a fan base that is far less likely to decide to abandon them after a few losses or
the departure of their star player.
Each individual’s motivations for consumption depend on the level within the PCM they
operate, their spectator classification, and the external groups they associated with. Trail and
James (2002) studied past models, studying their successes and failures at gauging consumer
motives, and developed the Motivation Scale for Sport Consumption (MSSC) model. The MSSC
takes into account short and long-term demand needs. The scale measures correlations between
nine factors affecting consumption behaviors and three metrics determining fandom. The nine
factors include acquisition of knowledge, aesthetics, physical skill, social interaction,
achievement, drama, escape, family, and physical attraction in order of how often each correlated
with the three metrics; whether or not they were a fan of the team, the number of games they
attended, and their identification with the team (Trail & James, 2002). The MSSC model can be
used to understand psychological motivations of individuals, which will provide insight into the
best ways to activate them on each of the models previously addressed.
Mascots Effect on the PCM
Because mascots are easily recognizable, they are an effective tool in increasing
awareness of a sport. By participating in programs that benefit the local communities and
creating entertainment for the fans, their efforts build affinity for the team brand and the sport as
a whole. This increased psychological connection moves consumers through the PCM and is the
most valuable aspect of the use of mascots. Mascots also bolster the authenticity of a brand,
which is a crucial ingredient in the long-term success of any brand (Ries & Ries, 2002).
In March 1974, The San Diego Chicken made its grand hatching in the Padres Stadium
where he became known as the first professional sports mascot. The Sporting News even named
20. 20
him as one of The Top 100 Most Powerful People in Sports of the 20th Century. The San Diego
Chicken isn’t the only mascot who develops brand awareness through being the face of their
franchise, Billy the Marlin of the Florida Marlins and Sox the Fox of the Colorado Springs Sky
Sox have made big impacts on their surrounding communities.
Before the 1998 season, the Florida Marlin’s found most of their players traded and a
roster filled with rookies leaving Billy to be the most well-known member of the franchise.
“A mascot's duties are all about public relations, from building team spirit to establishing
community goodwill and brand recognition,” (Svoboda, 1998, p. 4), the community relations and
ticketing coordinator for the Colorado Springs Sky Sox, agrees. Hammer believes that Sox the
Fox is truly the face of Sky Sox and their elite player in implementing community development
programs and expanding brand awareness.
Teams all over the world are finally realizing the major marketing benefits of having a
well-used team mascot. What better way is there to establish an identity within the community
while avoiding the major expenses of sending professional athletes out for appearances than
through mascot use? From keeping the fans engaged throughout the game to merchandising and
public relations opportunities, the appeal of a mascot is more than simply amusing children of
fans who want to remain focused on the game. Mascots have now become a part of many sport
teams’ brands are the entertainment aspect of the sport spectacle as a whole. Glenn Street,
president of Calgary-based Street Characters says “Among their uses, mascots increase the value
of sponsor packages by including appearances of the character, selling additional sponsorships,
selling game event promotions and creating merchandise to sell in the team's retail stores”
(Lazarus, 2001, p. 10). Pete McAskile, CEO and creative director of the Toronto-
21. 21
based sports marketing company Second Dimension believes a good mascot brings fans together
by adding the entertainment value to the game experience (Lazarus, 2001).
Beyond the in-game entertainment, mascots being active throughout the year in the local
community are an effective way to maintain fan engagement and increase brand awareness (Ries
& Ries, 2002). Even during the offseason mascots can be utilized to remind fans of the
experience the organization is selling. In doing so, the well-used mascot ensures consumers
won’t begin going backwards on the PCM, weakening their psychological connection to the
team.
Active Sponsorship and Increasing Brand Awareness
There are two main ways that measure the extent of brand awareness; the first is the
measure of top-of-mind awareness and the second is brand recall (Fransen, Muntinga, &
Rompey, 2013). Top-of-mind awareness is associated with a brand or specific product that enters
a customers' mind first when thinking of its respective industry. For example, if a researcher asks
for a study participant to list the first three soft drinks that come to his/her mind and they answer,
“Coca-Cola,” then Coke is the top-of-mind brand for that category to that individual.
A case study led by Marieke, the head of communication research at the University of
Amsterdam, exemplifies how interactive sponsors increase top-of-mind awareness and brand
recall in the consumer pool (Fransen et al, 2013). In her research, she wanted to understand if
interactive sponsors at a marathon would be recalled more easily than passive sponsors at the
marathon. There were two groups of participants that were chosen at random; 43 at the first
event and 46 in the second. Sponsors were at both marathon events.
The first group of participants ran the marathon and they were asked afterwards to speak
to the sponsors at the marathon. These sponsors would interact with the marathoners, explaining
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to them their company mission and what their value to consumers was. The sponsors also gave
out free t-shirts and massages to the participants. Group two consisted of 46 participants who
simply had to run the marathon. The same sponsors were at the event when the second group ran,
but they didn’t interact with the runners after the marathon. The runners were welcome to come
up to the sponsor tent and ask questions, but the sponsors did not go out of their way to interact
with them. This second group was the control group because the participants acted freely, unlike
the first round of participants. In doing so, the researchers wanted to test to see if actively
pursuing interaction correlated with an increase in brand awareness afterward.
To test the difference, both groups were asked to submit surveys via email two weeks
after their respective events. The survey contained two sections; the first section was a
questionnaire of demographics to obtain information on the participants and the second section
asked questions that targeted top-of-mind awareness and brand recall. As expected, group one
scored much higher in both top-of-mind awareness and brand recall because of their interaction
with the sponsors.
To examine and measure awareness, the researchers created a logistic regression analysis
where 0 meant brand name and was not mentioned and 1 when brand name was mentioned
(Fransen et al, 2013). After examining the answers for this aspect of the survey, the result was
only 23.9% of the second (little or no interaction) group could name the sponsoring brand where
as 53.3% of the first (marathon followed by active sponsorship interaction) group could name the
sponsoring brand. Thus, the study showed that when sponsors interact with the consumer, they
have an increased chance of the consumer remembering the brand name off the top of their head
as compared to passive sponsors.
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A second logistical regression was used to test both groups for direct brand recall. Once
again, the group that interacted with the sponsors after the run scored much higher on brand
recall than the marathon only group. As the authors state,
“Only 6.5% of the runners in the marathon only condition named the sponsoring
brand as one of the companies that had sponsored the event and 37.2% of the
runners in the experience condition named the sponsoring brand as one of the
companies that had sponsored the event (Fransen et al, 2013, p. 117).”
These findings suggest a significant importance of direct interaction with the consumer.
Such interaction makes the consumer feel as though s/he is more involved; like a valued part of
the organization. An example of active interaction relevant to the Outlaws organization would be
if Illegal Pete’s had a promotional event where Outlaw’s players manned the registers and
service lines. By working together, Illegal Pete’s would draw Outlaw fans on top of their regular
customer base and the Outlaws would increase brand awareness in the community of Illegal
Pete’s customers.
Overview
Overall, our literature review highlighted the importance of operating in a healthy sport
community, a strong, healthy brand identity, and effective, strategic sponsorship activation. The
community drives businesses within the sport, so it is the key to their future success. Vail (2007)
explains that a healthy sport community has community champions and partners creating
pathways to the sport. The combination of these three drive the participation continuum (try,
learn, play, compete), constantly bringing new consumers into the community and advancing
them through the stages of participation. Brand identity and community is what consumers
connect with. Funk’s research highlights the way consumers connect with organizations as well
24. 24
as the importance of this connection to the sports industry. The PCM begins with the awareness
stage, where a consumer learns the name, operations, and values of an organization. Attraction is
the next stage. A consumer bridges the gap between these stages if they form a positive
connection with the organization and appreciate the value it brings. These are the two main target
areas when considering community development. Attachment and allegiance are the final two
stages consisting of organizational followers and devout fans. Finally, research highlighted the
difference between active and passive sponsorship. Fransen and his colleagues found that active
sponsorship, where companies are directly connecting with consumers instead of sitting idly, was
twice as effective at producing top of mind awareness. This is significant to the Outlaws
community development because sponsors will provide resources to put on programs that build
the community. In order to entice these sponsors to participate however, there needs to be a
proven benefit of doing so.
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Best Practices
Sounders FC’s Success Resonates Globally
According to Joshua Mayers, Sounders FC fan support is on par with some of the most
prestigious clubs in Europe. Sounders FC has become a flourishing brand that resonates globally
and serves as a model for franchises in all sports (Mayers, 2010). Seattle saw success by
aligning themselves with partners from the NFL in the Seattle Seahawks organization as well as
the technology juggernaut, Microsoft. Beyond these corporate alliances, the Sounders signed
marque players and also brought in a superstar coach.
While the fans embraced these amenities and additions, they weren’t the driving force
behind the Sounders impressive and immediate success according to some. It all started with the
development of young soccer enthusiasts that were pre-teen and older. On the downside, it isn’t
clear as to what extent this helped the Sounders because as Jeffrey Hayzlett stated in his article,
“Seattle happens to have the highest per capita youth and amateur adult soccer participation rates
in the country” (Hayzlett, n.d.). If we assume for a moment that minimal, measurable success
can be contributed to the youth development program, we need to discern what may have caused
such explosive growth.
As mentioned earlier, the sounders had partnered with the NFL’s Seattle Seahawks; so,
perhaps this could be the source of their astounding success. According to Hayzlett, the
Sounders 65,000 per home game fan base is entirely organic. There is only a 2% crossover rate
between the team’s consumers (Hayzlett, n.d.). That said, the NFL and the Seahawks can’t be
dismissed so easily. What the fan conversion area lacked, the Seahawks made themselves a
useful partner by giving the Sounders staff assistance and training in running a big business like
operation. Hayzlett mentions that by partnering with the NFL, the Sounders leveraged the
26. 26
operational support and marketing appeal of one of the most desirable brands in the world, the
National Football League. With the partnership established, the Sounders brand went from being
viewed as a major league team instead of a minor league team overnight (Hayzlett, n.d.).
As Mayers discusses, the Sounders had original ideas like being able to vote out their
general manager by a fan-based Alliance Council after the 2012 season – an idea championed by
Cary and based on the F.C. Barcelona model. In the article, Cary tells how this is used to keep a
constant dialogue going, even when fans are unhappy (Mayers, 2010). The idea of keeping
dialogue open with the fans in both good and bad times could be instrumental in getting fans to
buy into the franchise more and therefore spread the word in their respective communities.
In fact, what if the bad times aren’t even all that bad? Well according to Hayzlett, at one
time after a loss to the club’s rival on home turf, the executive team was so upset they actually
refunded the money made from the tickets for that match—valued at well over $1 million
dollars. They are emotionally connected to the team, the brand and the community…and the
fans can feel it (Hayzlett, n.d.). What better way to increase fan support and buy-in than having
owners who match the same intensity? This strategy leads to enhanced fans support, which
benefits the club in a great many ways.
Fan support leads to more merchandising sales and for Seattle this has placed them atop
of the MLS and more than twice as high as the second place team for merchandise sales. In the
article by Mayers, he quotes Dr. Bill Sutton of Central Florida’s DeVos Sports Business
Management Program as saying, “They treat themselves like a club and not like a team. A team
is something that you watch. A club is something that you’re a part of – and the crowd feels that
way with the songs and the chants” (Mayers, 2010, para. 25).
27. 27
Seattle hasn’t been afraid to explain how they’ve achieved success, as they have shared
their ideas and operational strategies with on-field rival franchises Portland and Vancouver.
According to Mayers the, MLS operates under a single-entity structure – teams are steered by the
league to control costs, revenues, and roster moves – each team has to thrive for the league to be
successful (Mayers, 2010).
Leveraging Mascots and Social Media
We have seen how mascots have been used to create positive public perception in
difficult times (Caufield, 2012). A problem many of organizations have had to face since social
media began changing the way people received news is that the ‘bad’ trends much more quickly
than the ‘good.’ For instance, the NFL has struggled in recent years with its players and gross
misconduct. The reports of these incidents reach millions of households whereas players who are
creating a difference in their communities might only reach a few thousand. The matter of fact is
that the ‘bad times’ are considered more newsworthy, because sharing them creates a buzz of
excitement and outrage.
In the same way, many utility companies have been forced to defend their reputation in
recent years due to climate change activists increasing public awareness of pollution levels
(Caufield, 2012). They also face the challenge that consumers never think of their companies
when they have utilities running smoothly day after day; instead, they get angry when something
goes wrong. It just takes one malfunction for an entire neighborhood to lose power and suddenly
the company has 300 complaints about them spiraling across the web. These challenges make
creating a positive public perception difficult for utility companies today.
While a mascot doesn’t seem to fit into many non-sport related organizations, one utility
company has figured out a way to utilize a mascot to their brand’s advantage. Johnson City
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Power Board (JCPB) is a grid operator in Johnson City, Tennessee. JCPB created Will Power, a
mascot embodying the everyday blue-collar utilities worker. Will Power is described as a worker
by day, fighting energy inefficiency, and a hero by night, doing whatever it takes to keep the
customers’ lights on (Caufield, 2012). He doesn’t have any superpowers, but that’s why
consumers have responded to him so well. He is simply the guy you think of when you think of a
power company, a lineman working the power lines. In creating Will Power, JCPB created an
approachable perception of the company. No longer was JCPB perceived as a energy
conglomerate that held the power, instead consumers saw Will Power, an average citizen they
could build a relationship with (Caufield, 2012).
To leverage their successful new mascot, JCPB created a communication channel for
people to interact with him using social media. They decided to test if putting Will Power on
their Facebook page would create more followers. The null hypothesis was that Will Power
wouldn’t create any more followers and the alternative hypothesis stated that he would do so. For
eight months, JCPB put Will Power posts on their Facebook page to update and interact with the
online community. The study measured three elements; impressions, engagement, and “talked
about this.” Impressions were measured by the amount of people who viewed the post.
Engagement was measured by click-through rates for each post, or the number of individuals
who opened the file and read it. “Talked about this” was measured by the amount of times
someone liked or shared the post.
For eight months, the measures of Will Power Facebook interaction were measured in
comparison to eight other social media related categories such as posts about events, sponsorship
details, press releases, etc. Impressions, engagement, and “talked about this” metrics were
measured for these eight categories throughout the study as well. The results were astonishing.
29. 29
After the eight-month period, Will Power had scored the highest in all three metrics against all
eight other categories (Caufield, 2012, pg. 18-19). By creating stronger followership on their
Facebook page, JCPB was able to recognize how beneficial their mascot had become to their
organization.
The lesson to be learned here is that by leveraging an asset such as their mascot,
organizations have the ability to create positive public perception, even in bad times, effectively
enhancing their brand image. When players make mistakes and teams are under scrutiny,
mascots can ease the tension between their organization and the public. They’re even more
effective when highlighting the team’s success and philanthropic activities. The matter of fact is
that social media is the bridge that links consumers and organizations today. Putting their best
face on the web is the strongest chance any organization has of creating a positive brand
community.
Community Development through CSR
Research proves that a fundamental principal of participation in sport is largely connected
to community development. A study done by Vail defines community development as a concept
about “people helping people improve their life conditions by addressing common interests,”
(Vail, 2007). A case study by Heinze, Soderstrom and Zodroik (2014) of the Detroit Lions
focuses on community engagement; specifically, how the Lions have transitioned from a broad,
inefficient corporate social responsibility strategy to an authentic model that uses fewer
resources. This case study emphasizes how professional sports teams can engage more
systematically and genuinely in community development.
It is a social norm that professional sports teams should engage their community, which
is often through philanthropic activities. Unique problems arise when attempting to expand
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community development as an organization that lacks resources and research on the effects.
Instead of spending excess time and resources on large programs, it is valuable to begin focusing
efforts on the local community. Being strategic in community development approaches allow for
a positive impact that gathers full potential. The most effective way to capture the most strategic
approach is through matching internal resources with external community needs.
Heinze, Soderstrom and Zodroik (2014) list internal resources as the valuable and unique
resources specific to a sports organization, such as the product, stadium and players. They list
community external needs such as health, access, and education. They also state that local
corporate responsibility includes offering community programs and supporting local nonprofit
organizations (Heinze, et al, 2014). In order to focus their efforts, the Detroit Lions organization
physically went into the local community to listen and learn from key groups and organizations
involved in city revitalization efforts.
“The Lions’ then identified how their own strengths mapped to a long list of
community needs, and, in turn, narrowed the areas of focus to those topics that
were the best fit between city need and team resources and goals. Thus, the Lions
were deliberate in their selection of focus areas (health and wellness and
community development) for the initiative,” (Heinze, et al, 2014, 678).
The Detroit Lions were chosen for the study due to Detroit’s long history of struggles
economically, making them an extreme case. Not only does the organization respect their
commitment to improve their community, but players also share the same common goal. The
study recognizes the impact that professional athletes have on fans, making it important to have a
uniform concern throughout the organization to help the local community. Star athlete Reggie
Bush exemplifies player awareness for the organizations community goals, “we’re all in this
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together as a city. It’s not just about the football team because we need the fans just as much as
the fans need us” (Heinze, et al, 2014, p. 676). The researchers identified that the Detroit
community was one with significant opportunity for community development and engagement.
Before changing their approach to help their community, they supported a large amount of
causes broadly which led to small scale activities and a lack of valuable partnerships, which
failed to build community engagement.
The successful 2011 season highlighted the impact the team could have on the city of
Detroit, creating motivation for a change in community relations and engagement. In the process
of evolving their approach in community development and CSR, the Lions first decided on their
strategic approach, focusing on high impact areas. They continued formulating their approach by
establishing targeted partnerships with community organizations, and sustaining the partnerships.
After assessing their focus areas and needs, the Lions concentrated their efforts and reached out
to the community partners that aligned with those areas. In this process they cut back the amount
of organizations they supported reducing the total by eighty percent. Now, with a more specific
focus, their partnerships are becoming more authentic and meaningful.
They continued onward developing campaigns and tools to enhance their brand image
through the use of partners. “Living for the City” is a theme that the Lions developed to be
uniform with their marketing sponsorship plans, game day production, and other corporate social
responsibility. “Living for the City” encompassed community health, wellness and development.
This CSR initiative was completely new to the organization and was specific Detroit’s problems.
In their rework, the Lions started completely fresh, assuming they knew nothing of the
community and it’s needs, “the Lions went into the community to listen and learn from others
involved in city revitalization efforts,” (Heinze, et al, 2014, p. 677).
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After assessing the needs of the community that aligned with their areas of focus, the
Lions then reached out to community organizations that aligned with their focus. This was when
they reduced their number of partners by 80%. Although the decision to reduce their partners
was not easy, they improved their impact and relationship with their retained and new sponsors.
They developed joint programs and worked hands on with their partners to deliver. They provide
Ford Field as a resource to help the community and allow partners access. The Lions and their
partners have a mutually beneficial relationship in which they match resources.
The case of the Detroit Lions highlights how sports organizations can create an impact on
the surrounding local community while simultaneously leveraging their own brand image. By
focusing their efforts and resources, sports teams can spend less money while maximizing their
reach in the community just as the Lions did. The case study recommends that CSR practices
should be narrow, deep, and strategic in their focus on select areas. They should build trust
among community groups by allowing them to practice their expertise and give them guidance
when needed. With a more focused approach programs can be authentic, genuine and
sustainable. This allows the programs to emphasize the importance of meaningful partnerships
aligned with community goals. Strategic corporate social responsibility and community
development leads to a competitive advantage and greater relationships with external
stakeholders.
Enhancing Brand Awareness
“Consumers of new sports teams become involved with the new teams mainly because
they had a prior involvement with the league” (Kunkel, et al, 2013, 180). To highlight a co-
dominant aspect of their sport, the Australia’s national A-League, who were owned and operated
by Football Federation Australia, launched a “We Are Football” marketing campaign for it’s
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2011-12 season (Fourfourtwo, 2011). The idea behind the campaign was to show all levels of
football to the country of Australia and their passion for the sport. Kyle Patterson, head of
corporate affairs and communication said,
"The great thing about our campaign is that it doesn't need special effects to get
our message out there. It features real fans and supporters of football, in most
cases cast straight from the football field. It's been great putting them front and
centre and celebrating their connection to Hyundai A-League under We Are
Football (McGee, 2012, para. 5)."
With the goal to become the most recognized and admired sport in Australia, the “We
Are Football” campaign involved every football stakeholder that existed in the country. This
campaign not only reached every football fan throughout the country, which in turn established a
sense of community with their fans, but they also demonstrated a close relationship between
teams and the league. This excellent execution of brand awareness transformed football fans
from aficionado’s to reclusive partisans bringing the promise of higher revenues and new income
sources that will help the leagues and teams fund the future. “This example shows that
connection of leagues and teams can go beyond the structural relationship to include developing
and establishing a relationship between the two brands.” (Kunkel, et al, 2013) When a league
and a team brand co-exist, overlapping within the community they are trying to reach, it results
in a bigger impact than one could reach alone.
Strategic Marketing
As we have learned, partnerships help to increase brand awareness for each company
involved. Actively searching for strategic partnership opportunities with other companies is an
effective way to increase brand awareness. Strategic marketing is imperative to an organization
34. 34
trying to build their brand. The following are case studies where mutually beneficial partnerships
were formed to enhance brand awareness:
Laking Toyota. Founded in 1992, Laking Toyota (LT) is an automobile company that is
located in the City of Greater Sudbury. LT is all about customer service and differentiating
themselves from other companies using stellar performance. Their company slogan is, “We are
dedicated to bringing customers the highest quality of service, delivered with warmth,
friendliness and pride (Zinger & O’Reilly, 2010, p. 293).” LT is a sponsor of the Sudbury Ice
Hockey franchise, the Sudbury Wolves. Since Sudbury is a relatively small market, everyone
there knows of the Wolves. Thus, the partnership between LT and the Wolves was strategically
intelligent for LT because it draws on a strong, well-established community. Every year LT gives
the Sudbury Wolves $10,000. In return, the Wolves plaster Laking Toyota logos and banners all
throughout their stadium to ensure attendees know LT is a premier sponsor of the team. LT also
sponsors two schools located in Sudbury, donating money to them, giving them some season
tickets for the games. By working with a well-known team and helping the local education
system, Laking Toyota has made themselves an established part of the community, enhancing
the chance that consumers pay back that goodwill in patronage.
Goliger’s Travelplus Company. Goliger’s is a travel management agency located in
Waterloo, Ontario, offering “‘one-stop shopping’ to both the commercial and personal traveler,
including hotel reservations, local and long distance travel arrangements, tours, bus passes and
up-to-date travel information (Zinger & O’Reilly, 2010, p. 292).” Starting out as a small
business, the agency found success and wanted to find a way to broaden the reach of their brand
name throughout the country. By partnering with The Scott Tournament of Hearts Ladies
National Curling Championships and acting as an interactive sponsor at the event, Travelplus
35. 35
enhanced their brand image and awareness and ultimately became extremely successful in the
Canadian market.
Hunt Club Motors (HCM). HCM began operation in Ottawa in 1991 and is a licensed
distributor of Volkswagen vehicles with a modest budget. They are also the only Volkswagen
dealership that has won the prestigious Wolfsburg Crest Award three consecutive years in a row
even though they are a small business. When HCM wanted to increase their brand awareness
they decided on partnering with the Ottawa Lynx baseball club. Every year, the Lynx receives a
fully furnished VW Beatle painted to look like a baseball with easily recognizable signatures of
both HCM and the Ottawa Lynx. According to research,
“The sponsor reports that the club has been quite accommodating to its needs,
providing several signage locations within the stadium, scorecard advertising,
tickets, free team merchandise and a dedicated Hunt Club Day which has been an
effective staff incentive (Zinger & O’Reilly, 2010, 294).”
In partnering with the Lynx baseball team, HCM has successfully spread the word about
its Volkswagen dealership. This example further proves the point that interactive sponsorships
help increase brand awareness within their relative communities.
RGK Wheelchairs. RGK Wheelchairs Inc. is located in Ontario and is a privately owned
company. The main office is located in Ottawa with the actual manufacturing company is located
in Brockville, which is about 70 miles away from Ottawa. The goal of the company is to produce
sport and daily, leisure wheelchairs and introduce them to the North American market. In 2005,
RGK signed a one-year sponsorship with Paralympics Ontario, which is the provincial sports
organization responsible for Paralympic sport in Ontario. This sponsorship agreement consisted
of RGK giving Paralympics Ontario $34,000 for the rights to give out wheelchairs and other
36. 36
equipment to participants of the Paralympics Ontario. This was a smart decision on RGK’s part
as they figured out their target market and are putting themselves within the consumers’ minds.
One thing RGK does at events is let the athletes and spectators try out their high performance
wheel chairs. Wheelie Village was a huge success in 2005 after the Paralympic Championships
where people were able to come down and ride around in the RGK wheel chairs.
Infiniti. Partnering with companies that possess traits your brand wants to be associated
with will move your company image closer to that pursued identity. A great example of a
strategic partnership successfully activating brand image in this way is Infiniti partnering with
Red Bull energy drinks and Sebastian Vettel, one of the premier professional drivers in the
world, to design a vehicle (Zinger & O’Reilly, 2010). Because Infiniti’s brand focus is on
“inspired performance,” their partnership between Red Bull, who provides energy, speed, and
performance, and the three time formula one champion Vettel enhanced their image effectively.
After partnering with these two brands, the next objective was the evaluation process.
The evaluation processes informs the company if their marketing strategy is effective or not. In
evaluating the partnership they looked at the marketing mix (was it balanced?), the promotional
strategies (are they working?), and the initial objectives of the partnership (were they
completed?).
Two methods were used in evaluating the results of the partnership: printed media
coverage – measured in volume of press cuttings – and TV exposure, which was measured on a
race-by-race basis. IFM Sports Marketing Surveys gave a report on the exposure of the brand
throughout each race (Using sponsorship to increase brand awareness: An Infinity case study,
n.d., p. 6). It seems Infiniti’s plan worked as a 27% increase in consumer consideration was
measured, meaning more potential consumers to visit the dealerships in the future. Also, there
37. 37
was a 30% increase in Infiniti vehicle perception after the plan was evaluated (Using sponsorship
to increase brand awareness: An Infinity case study, n.d., p. 6). These facts go on to show how
important strategic marketing is when trying to increase brand awareness.
Brian Dickinson Insurance. Brian Dickinson owns a one-person insurance brokerage
company located in Edmonton, Alberta. He has run this business alone for nearly twenty years
now and is big into sports; primarily football. Since Dickinson has such a love for sports, he has
developed partnerships with different sporting associations where his main goal is to give back to
the community, rather than use them exclusively for business. Since Mr. Dickinson was a coach
at the University of Alberta, he has supported the football program through the purchase of
clothing for the coaches, sponsorship of the alumni golf tournament, and sponsorship of the
university’s Adopt an Athlete program. The business has also donated computers to assist the
athletic department with its operations. Not only does he do all this, but Dickinson Insurance is
also involved with community charity events and hosts golf fundraisers to give back to schools
and other community needs (Zinger & O’Reilly, 2010). Brian Dickinson’s involvement with his
sponsors and the community exemplifies business/sponsor relations where he is a community
champion.
Komputer Korner. Komputer Korner (KK) is a small computer business located in
Ottawa and got started in 1987. By 2003, Komputer Korner has won six consumer choice
awards, a spectacular feat for any small business. The computer business is trying not to only be
a big business, but to be a good corporate citizen as well. Not only does KK support local
charities, it has also joined forces with a wide range of sports organizations, from minor fastball
to the local Ontario Hockey League (Zinger & O’Reilly, 2010). Like a few of the other examples
in the article, KK is dedicated to in-kind services. For example, KK is also paired with the
38. 38
Ottawa Lynx baseball team and KK helps give out complimentary tickets, the distribution of gift
certificates, and preferred location for after game autograph signing. Like Dickinson, KK is a
community champion partner.
The Denver Outlaws already have a group of fantastic sponsors. The relevance of these
best practices is in their outside the box thinking when activating their sponsorships. We have
seen the power of sport in branding companies within the community, even if those companies
are in no way related to the game. By leveraging sponsors in a unique way, all companies
involved in the effort benefit from increased awareness and brand image.
The Value of Community Marker Awareness
In the following study conducted by Dickson, Grant, and Heere (2011), three teams were
researched in order to assess how they leveraged their brand communities and how each could
benefit from change. Questions were posed to figure out whether or not these organizations were
aware of their community markers and the significance they have on the brand. Each of the three
teams studied had suffered to some degree in the past from lacking communities. Each of the
three teams were relatively recently established, had very limited resources, and struggled with
expanding the reach of their organization.
The Diamonds. The New Zealand Diamonds is a female netball team that had the lowest
starting budget of the three teams within this study. Their lack of financial prowess made it
difficult for the Diamonds to increase brand awareness or market to many different segments.
Although the netball team had very little money to start off with, they had the most clearly
defined marketing segment; other netball players. Since netball is a small niche sport, those who
did participate in the sport were part of the strong, tight-knit community of netballers.
39. 39
One strategy the general manager of the Diamonds employed was the creation an after
game facility-station where people could come together to play the game. The idea behind the
station was to lure in consumers that had never played, let them experience it, (hopefully) enjoy
the experience, and to then educate these people through participation in the sport. This would
then conceivably lead to more people recognizing netball as a sport, which would lead to an
increase in brand community for sport as a whole.
Unfortunately, the manager’s plan didn’t work because the only people coming to the
Diamond’s games were netball fanatics. Thus, the after game station was not attracting any new
potential consumers. When the general manager was asked if the Diamonds could utilize their
historical season records, he responded that they could not because of how unsuccessful the team
had been in the past. He went on to say that if the female netball team started winning more
games, then the organization could use their success to attract more viewers.
The next question researchers asked the team manager was if the Diamonds used their
facilities to their advantage to develop their community image effectively. This researcher
explained how a physical facility represents more than just a stadium, but where the community
comes together to cheer for the team they love. The problem with the Diamonds’ facility was
that they had changed their facility three times in their short tenure. By changing venues so often,
the team hadn’t been able to establish a true home game experience or advantage.
As aforementioned, a team’s stadium represents so much more than just a place to play a
game; it is where a team brings their community of supporters together to create a valuable
experience. Because the Diamonds kept changing facilities, they weren’t able to create strong
roots that have been shown to help develop a strong community around organizations. However,
one positive trait the Diamonds have been utilizing that many New Zealanders value are their
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rich traditions, which create an enjoyable group experience. An example of one of their rituals is
playing, “We Will Rock You” at the end of each game, which the entire stadium takes up singing
along with each other. Another tradition this team utilizes is the use of male cheerleaders. The
general manager reported that each game there is a group of men who dress up as cheerleaders
and cheer for the team, getting the crowd involved as well. This tradition makes spectators laugh
and enjoy the experience of the game more, win or lose.
In the report, Dickson, Grant and Heere (2011) suggested that the Diamonds try to sell
the game experience rather than marketing the team for its success in the league. They continued
on, stating that if the Diamonds were able to establish a long-term facility, marketed their
traditions effectively, and built a community that was able to reach consumers who didn’t know
about netball, then their brand community would benefit greatly.
The Breakers. The Breakers are a male basketball team that plays in the Australian
league. Like the Diamonds, the manager of this team’s goal is to sell entertainment, not
necessarily the sports team. The Breakers faced the dual threat of having a new team with a new
manager. Because the team is so new, they don’t have any history to market nor any traditions or
rituals to leverage. Like the Diamonds, the Breakers don’t have a permanent home facility
allowing them to establish their roots and develop their brand community further. The Breakers
make use of two facilities, one in West Auckland and another in North Auckland, playing half of
their season games at each. While having two home turf facilities sounds unique, it limits the
capabilities of establishing a true “home,” a sound starting point for any strong community.
Fortunately, the Breakers didn’t let this stop them. One aspect of the organization that is
marketed effectively is the group experience. During time outs and breaks in the games, the
Breakers’ staff provides free shirts, cheerleaders come onto the floor and dance, and chants are
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routinely started to get the crowd involved. These efforts create an entertaining atmosphere for
the spectators, enticing them to come back again to experience the group experience.
The authors suggested that the Breakers try to establish a home facility to eradicate the
confusion of having dual facilities (2011). Once they have a set location, a stronger team identity
can be created so the fans are able to relate to their team more easily. It was also suggested that
once the team has an established history, to leverage any degree of success that will influence
theatregoers and champ followers to attend. Essentially, the key for the Breakers is to make the
people of Auckland, Australia proud to be represented by their basketball team.
The Warriors. The Warriors is the male rugby team from New Zealand. Compared to
the other two teams studied, the Warriors have the most public recognition within their
community. This is because the Warriors are the only New Zealand rugby team and they have
branded themselves as New Zealand’s team, even using the national colors for their team’s
apparel. This branding has created the perception in New Zealanders’ minds that the Warriors
represent their entire community, which in turn, increases brand awareness for the organization.
Unfortunately, the Warriors’ are not historically successful seeing as how they usually don’t win
many games. Like the Breaker’s, it is difficult to market an underperforming team.
In the study, the general manager noted that he believes consumer and sponsor interaction
boosts awareness also. This statement is consistent with findings from Zinger & O’Reilly (2010).
The manager also stated that the way they enhance group experience is through consumer
interaction with the organizational sponsors. One way they achieve this interaction is through the
group One Tribe, who attend games and create promotional events for the Warriors fans,
bringing the attendees closer to the team.
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Unlike the previous two teams studied, the Warriors have their own facility where they
play all their home games. However, the manager of the Warriors admitted that their facility
doesn’t express their community motives (Grant, et al, 2011). He explains that this facility is just
a plain stadium, without anything extraordinary to it. He mentions how there aren’t areas before
or after the game where consumers are able purchase and consume alcohol, which represents a
huge potential revenue stream for the organization. This lack of facilities leads to a decreased
group experience because people have no place to socialize while having a drink.
To conclude, the purpose of this research was to discuss how identifying community
markers and building the organization’s brand around them is necessary for the success of the
organization. These three examples highlight that if a team doesn’t utilize their branding
channels, then the team’s community image will be adversely affected. Listening to the
consumers and outside researchers is a key component of remaining aware of critical community
markers affecting the organization’s brand. Keeping those markers in mind and playing to the
organization’s strengths while alleviating as many weaknesses as possible, an organization can
achieve heightened brand awareness and image.
One major asset the Outlaws have is their fantastic facilities, by far the best in Major
League Lacrosse. Unlike the Diamonds, the Outlaws also have a fantastic historical record in the
league, being a contender every year since their inception. Also, their Mascot Stix creates fun,
exciting fan traditions that should be used in engaging the community. Each of these assets will
be addressed in our research team’s research and recommendations.
Overview
Looking at the Seattle Sounders success, we saw that changing how consumers interact
with your organization can have a significant impact on their psychological connection with it.
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The Sounders recognized this and created a fan club that allows members the right to vote on
organizational decisions, making them feel like a part of the club rather than a fan of the team.
This increase in social identification has been shown to lead to increased brand equity in the
SIBE model, enhancing the awareness and attraction opportunities within the community.
The Detroit Lions case study was the perfect example of how big of a difference taking a
well-focused, straightforward approach on community operations. Initially, the Lions were trying
to be everything to everybody in their community, with astronomic costs creating little effect.
After taking a step back to focus their efforts, the Lions opted to partner with their sponsors to
develop their CSR program through preexisting channels. In doing so, the Lions drastically
reduced the cost of their CSR efforts and began recognizing a positive change in the community
and their brand image.
Researching the “We are Football” campaign highlighted how to promote a sport within
different communities. The campaign was effective because it tied the sport to the community
values, creating top of mind awareness for the sport. As Ries and Ries explain, establishing a
unique, strong connection between a word and another entity creates a linear thought pathway to
the word as well as brands associated with it (2002).
In terms of sponsorship activation, Dickson, Grant, and Heere presented numerous
examples of how creating unique activations can benefit both organizations. One example
included Hunt Club Motors, who partnered with the Ottowa Lynx baseball organization and give
away one specially painted car each year. This promotion is effective at getting HCM’s name
into the community and it also increased fan attendance and participation at the game when the
giveaway occurs.
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The Johnson City Power Board case study proved how effective mascots can be on social
media platforms. The most significant idea learned was that mascots represent an easily
approachable face for their respective organizations. This means that they are generally going to
be more effective at creating conversation with consumers to find out what can be improved and
what strengths exist as well. This conversation is even more valuable because social media is a
free utility with low investment requirements.
Finally, we saw the importance in recognizing community markers for an organization.
These markers relate directly to the values discussed in the SIBE model; venue, group
experience, traditions and rituals, and team history. The importance of recognizing
organizational strengths and what the community values is highly important because it teaches
the organization what they can market most effectively to their supporters. For instance, the
Breakers recognized that they didn’t have a set location, which hurt their brand stability, but also
that their in-game experience was a strength that should be marketed to offset the venue issue.
For the Outlaws, having such a fantastic venue is a major community marker, significantly
impacting the group experience at events.
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Methods
Before conducting any primary research, our team looked into existing academic writing
that could enlighten us about how to build a sport community and why it is so important to long-
term participation. In her research, Susan Vail found that a healthy sport community has three
drivers: champions, partners, and pathways into the sport (2007). These drivers work to draw
potential consumers to the sport, effectively placing them within the PCM for the sport. From
here, organizations are tasked with building their own brand communities within the sport-wide
consumer pool.
Within our secondary research we also found that mascots are a vital part of a sport
team’s family and their franchise recognition. To dive deeper into this research we contacted
local sport teams to ask their community relations directors how important their mascots are to
their community development and brand awareness programs. We asked them what qualities
their mascot possessed and how they used it as an asset for the organization.
Through this research we learned that no matter how much effort and planning goes into
the mascot creation, it doesn’t guarantee a unique bond between consumer and brand. The
Colorado Springs Sky Sox, for instance, spent the latter half of the 1990’s creating what they
believe would be the perfect mascot. Socko was created as a silver bat-swinging sock that
appeared as the Sky Sox logo several years. Socko unfortunately came “to a sudden ‘death’—as
team management fondly recalls his vanishing—in 2000. Socko’s demise was a result of his
lacking versatility” (Arlan, 2005, p. 13), which inhibited him from being an interactive, and thus
effective, mascot. In 2005, the Sky Sox introduced their new and improved mascot, Sox the Fox,
who was an instant hit, ready to do acrobatic routines or ride motorcycles throughout the
stadium. To measure just how much of an impact Sox has had on the surrounding community,
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our team talked to Kara Hammer, the community relations and ticketing coordinator for the
Colorado Springs Sky Sox.
We asked questions to help us answer how the Sky Sox established such a well-rounded
and unified community in the Colorado Springs area: a community that has increased their fan
base and brand recognition in recent years. Additionally, we wanted to know the team’s
historical use of their mascot and how it contributed to the formation of their passionate
community. The five questions we focused on while talking with Kara were:
1) What do you believe is your most powerful tool when engaging your brand in the
community?
2) How did the Sky Sox develop Sox the Fox as a mascot?
3) What are the goals for Sox the Fox when making community appearances?
4) How important is your mascot to the Sky Sox brand image?
5) What are some of your most successful community activities that build brand
awareness?
Continuing our data collection on mascots, we contacted Colorado based sport
organizations utilizing the same core questions about their mascots and community relations.
With these interviews our goal was to identify common themes reported by community relations
directors, which will be used to form recommendations for the Outlaw’s pertaining to Stix.
Specifically, we were seeking to learn how the Outlaws can utilize Stix as part of their
community development.
Our first primary research effort targeted the Boomtown lacrosse event in Boulder,
Colorado on June 27th and 28th. We conducted this research by intercepting parents, siblings,
spectators, and players at the event using Qualtrics, a surveying program allowing for advanced
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statistical analysis of responses. Identifying ourselves as student researchers from the University
of Colorado, so as not to introduce any biases toward the Outlaws prior to the survey, our team
spent two days approaching as many potential respondents as possible.
The participant pool consisted of children, playing lacrosse in an under-nine league and
extended all the way up to high school seniors. It is important to note that many had traveled
from all around Colorado, with the majority coming from Denver and its surrounding suburbs.
Also, we noted the Boomtown series inhibits recruiting, meaning the participants drawn to the
event were there for love of the game instead of serious competition that could affect their future
in the sport. Our team felt these qualities were important to the success of our surveying because
they allowed us to cast a wider net on the lacrosse community instead of only targeting serious
lacrosse fans and players.
The survey began by asking what each person most associated Sports Authority Field at
Mile High stadium with. We anticipated that most, if not all participants would list the Denver
Broncos. We were interested in seeing the amount that listed the Outlaws or lacrosse, indicating
that they were aware of the brand and location. To reduce bias, we provided a box for an open
ended answer and placed the question prior to mentioning the Outlaws. The following questions
were related to the history of the Outlaws and the participant’s experience with them. This
section informed our team where each participant was on the PCM in reference to the team
brand. Next, we measured social media awareness and participation. We then identified fan
knowledge of and association with the mascot Stix. Finally, we measured fan’s awareness of
sponsors that partnered with the team. This allowed our team to judge how effective the current
sponsorships are and whether or not to focus on increasing sponsorship efforts. Demographics
48. 48
informed our team where fans were located as well as what kinds of people comprised the
Colorado lacrosse community (see Appendix A for full survey).
After analyzing the results from our first survey, which targeted the active lacrosse
community, our second survey aimed to assess where the Outlaws’ efforts would be best spent in
building their community. Because the first survey gave us an idea as to where the lacrosse
community as a whole was on the PCM, our second survey aimed at further answering our
research questions, ‘What does the Denver community specifically value in sport organizations?’
and ‘How can the Denver Outlaws best utilize their sponsors/partners to increase brand
awareness?’
To answer these questions, our team decided surveying Denver’s general population
would be most valuable. In order to obtain as high a percentage of this demographic as possible,
we chose to survey on a Wednesday afternoon between 3 and 9 p.m. This provided us with a
healthy mix of people getting off work in the early afternoon and those coming into town for
entertainment in the evening.
Each representative of the research team identified themselves as CU Boulder students
surveying to learn about community development and how professional sport organizations
could enhance their reach among the people. This introduction once again reduced biases and
also proved favorable, as many people were more willing to help students out than paid
researchers.
The survey started off asking questions to understand the participant’s motivations to
participate in a sports community. Specifically, we wanted to learn what the most effective
outreach programs might be, which organizational aesthetics participants valued most, and what
sponsorship activations were most successful. From here, the survey asked a few questions about
49. 49
mascots, including what their value to organizations is and what type of mascot the participant
associated with the Denver Outlaws. Then we asked questions to measure which social media
platforms people use to follow their favorite teams on and how much time they spend on each.
Our survey finished with a question asking how many Outlaws games the participant had
attended since the team’s inception in 2006 followed by demographics (see Appendix B for full
survey).
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Results
Successful Mascot Program Research
During our conversation with the Colorado Springs Sky Sox community relations and
ticketing coordinator, Kara Hammer, we learned that Sox the Fox is considered one of their most
valuable tools when considering community development. Kara repeatedly emphasized how
much Sox contributes to their brand image and live experience at the game. “Our baseball season
goes from April to September but Sox is involved in the community all year long, we already
have him booked for events through December of this year,” Kara explained. The organization’s
continuous effort to keep Sox interacting with the community aims to keep their fans engaged
throughout the off-season. From going to hospital visits to participating in various fun-runs and
signing more autographs than any single player, it is clear that Sox the Fox is the most
recognizable face for the Sky Sox organization. From September 2012 to September of 2013,
Sox the Fox made 95 community appearances: not only with the goals to make an impact and
grow the Sky Sox brand, but also to let the public know the Sky Sox organization recognizes the
importance in being a part of the community.
Boomtown Lacrosse Tournament Survey
By conducting research at the Boomtown lacrosse tournament, our team took away
insights about how the Denver Outlaws brand operates in the minds of the lacrosse community.
In total, our team received 60 responses, which was approximately five times as many were
asked to complete the survey. However, our team ran into a few difficulties in encouraging
participation. First, targeting fathers proved challenging because they were there to watch their
children closely. Targeting mothers to take the survey also became an issue because they were
focused on their younger children. The combination of these two groups shying away from our
51. 51
surveys forced our team to shift focus. By targeting fringe participants, defined as people who
were on the edge of the event’s parameters relaxing or playing games, we found more success in
our survey efforts.
While many participants were aware of the Outlaws organization, the attendance of
games was not as high as initially expected. By listening to what participants were saying while
taking the survey we learned that many parents felt too exhausted after spending hours at their
children’s lacrosse events to attend an Outlaws game later that evening. Of the 60 respondents,
66% attended at least 1-2 Outlaws games per season.
We also found that 85% of those who hadn’t attended any games were unaware that the
Outlaws played at Sports Authority Field at Mile High. Once the survey alluded to that fact,
there were numerous participants who appeared more interested. As we found when researching
effective strategies in building brand communities, physical facilities are a powerful tool that can
be leveraged to increase interest in sport brands (Underwood, et al, 2001). With less than 15
percent of participants associating the Outlaws with Sports Authority Field, our team feels there
is opportunity in focusing on the team’s fantastic facilities.
Stix, the team mascot, was another metric we measured in our first survey. By giving
participants the choice between Stix, Pistol Pete, Wooly, Dinger, and JoJo War Drummer as the
official mascot of the Outlaws, we found a lack of a strong branding around the mascot. Only
40% participants understood that Stix was the mascot. Those who had less connection to the
team guessed Pistol Pete because they thought the name fit the team’s brand better. Another
interesting insight was that there were as many participants who had attended games associated
JoJo War Drummer as the mascot as there were who associated Stix. This is likely because JoJo
52. 52
is in the public eye more often, which informs our team that Stix may need to be utilized more
often at the games and in the community to be more closely associated with the Outlaws brand.
When asking participants what kind of mascot they would associate with the Outlaws
brand, it was interesting that the most common answer was a cowboy/cowgirl over a raccoon. It
seemed that unless the participants were more active in the Outlaws community, they had a
tough time associating a raccoon with the brand. There were also quite a few responses that a
tribal war drummer was the type of mascot associated with the brand; once again, telling us that
there is confusion among people that attend the games about the official mascot.
Denver General Population Survey
As anticipated, surveying downtown Denver on a Wednesday afternoon proved difficult.
Many people asked to complete the survey waved off or completely ignored our researchers as
they continued on with their busy days. After approaching upwards of one thousand potential
respondents, our team collected 140 surveys. Of the people surveyed, there was nearly an even
split between male and females. Nearly half of all respondents were between the ages 16 and 25.
About 10% were younger than 16, 20% were between 26 and 35, 10% were between 36 and 45,
and the remainder were older than 46. Nearly 80% were
Caucasian, with 10% being Hispanic and the remainder
associating with other ethnicities. 70% of the respondents
resided within a 15-mile radius of Sports Authority Field at
Mile high, making them prime marketing targets, 80%
lived within a 30-mile radius, and 20% lived outside of a
30-mile radius.
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After finding out there was confusion about who the Outlaws’ mascot was within the
lacrosse community, even amongst fans attending games regularly, our team looked into what
type of mascot the Denver population associated the Outlaws’ brand with most. The results were
intriguing, with 11% of respondents choosing a horse and 12% selecting the correct answer, a
raccoon. Most participants selected a cowboy (34%) or a bandit (42%). Of course, with 80% of
the survey’s participants having never attended an Outlaws game, it wasn’t surprising that
cowboy and bandit would be associated most with the term outlaw. What was surprising was that
only 21% of those who had attended answered correctly. While attendance nearly doubled the
odds of guessing the mascot correctly, the findings suggest the mascot is a major area of
opportunity in increasing the Outlaws’ brand recognition.
In analyzing the data, we found 38% of respondents thought the best way to enhance
consumer interaction with the Outlaws is through partnering with charitable events. This
suggests that the community considers philanthropy heavily in making decisions about what
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organizations to support. When asked what would increase the chances they interacted with the
Outlaws, 28% responded that sponsor giveaway - such as a dealership giving away a car (as seen
in Best Practices) - and promotions - such as reduced ticket prices when purchased with a
sponsor’s good or service. Youth lacrosse clinics and social media contests came in at 20% and
14% respectively when assessing community outreach program interest.
Our survey also found that the fan
community and its traditions and rituals
were the most important organizational
aesthetics when considering sports teams,
receiving 37% and 29% respectively. Team
history and the venue came in third and
fourth with 19% and 15% respectively. The
four available answers were based on Bond
and Baer’s four strategies for building a
55. 55
sport brand’s social identity (2011). The findings were consistent with findings from Grant,
Heere, and Dickson (2011) and Watkins (2014) analysis of the SIBE model with the exception of
finding an unusually low importance placed on the venue. Of course, the low attribution of
importance on the venue could be in part due to the Denver community being accustomed to
fantastic entertainment venues, with views of the Rocky Mountains in many of the local sporting
facilities and concert venues such as Red Rocks Amphitheatre nearby.
When identifying which sponsorship activation strategies the Denver community valued
most highly, our research discovered sponsors giving out free samples and/or coupons at sports
events would draw the most consumers to their businesses afterwards, with 41% of respondents
choosing that option. Coming in a close second, with a 39% selection rate, was sponsored
giveaways and promotions. An example of this would include a sponsored bobble-head
giveaway. Next, 11% of participants chose sponsoring game break activities as the best
activation strategy. An example of this
is a halftime contest where a randomly
chosen participant has the chance to
win cash or prizes. The remaining 9%
of participants largely indicated a mix
of three would be highly effective. A
few respondents indicated special
alcohol/concessions deals would
influence them to patronize sponsoring
companies.
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The final metric our survey aimed at understanding was respondent’s social media usage.
The survey asked what platforms participants followed sports teams with as well as how much
time they spent on each site. We found that Facebook held the highest potential value to sports
organizations seeking to develop their fan communities, with 54% responding that they use it to
follow their favorite teams. Instagram came in second with 33% of users following teams on this
platform. Facebook also received 46% of the total time respondents spent on social media, by far
the largest amount. By listening to peoples’ reasons why, we determined Facebook allows for the
most content to be posted in one place, providing more access for the consumer, making it the
most preferred site to get their team’s information on. Instagram also came in second for overall
usage with 21% of respondents’ time spent on their site. This is likely due to consumers enjoying
occasional pictures of packed stadiums and star players more than Twitter’s frequent, short posts.
Snapchat is an interesting social media platform that is just breaking into the sports segment. It
only had 15% of respondents using it to follow their teams with an average of 14% of total social
media time being spent there. If the current Snapchat trend continues, those statistics are highly
likely to increase in the future. Overall, 16% of those surveyed do not follow any teams on social
media. However, because about 8% or respondents weren’t on any social media sites, only about
10% of all social media users didn’t follow any sport organizations on the sites. These results
indicate the majority of consumers want extra coverage of their favorite teams. Facebook having
the highest usage could be in part due to its longer standing in the market, but is likely influenced
by its advanced capabilities compared to other sites.
In conducting our research, our team’s main takeaway is that the Denver community
hosts a great deal of opportunity for the Outlaws. With 80% of our survey participants never
having attended a game, there are plenty of potential first-time consumers to target. Many of
