dispatches from the new world of work

Don't Throw A Wild Pitch

Follow-up to our baseball blog the other day ...

A radio interviewer asked me yesterday what I thought major league baseball would do to address its image problem. I told him what I think they would do and what I think they should do.

Baseball has a big marketing/branding problem, and I won't be surprised if they address this marketing problem with traditional marketing solutions, i.e., try to advertise their way out of this mess.

That would be the dumbest thing they should do. According to an article in the Stanford Humanities Review, 1 out of 25 Americans will attend a major league baseball game this year, with many of those people attending multiple games. Many more millions will watch games on TV.

Instead of trying to buy their way out of the problem with ads, MLB should focus on creating the most amazing during—the—game experiences they can for these millions of fans. Think "what would make a 10 year old talk about this game for the rest of his life?" and then do it! Then, ask the same question about 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 70 and 80 year olds—and deliver on those dreams also! Humanize the players—make them accessible, having every one give at least 10 autographs per game. Put magic back into the experience of a live major league baseball game.

Promises can't fix their problems. The best thing to do counterbalance the idea of heroes who cheat is to create WOW! memories through real live, genuine WOW! experiences. Great brands are built with great brand harmony, and baseball should take advantage of the millions of fans who will be spending afternoons and evenings at ballparks this year, creating incredible experiences of brand harmony that create incredible memories—diluting the effects of the steroid crisis. But will they?

Steve Yastrow posted this on 03/25/05.

Comments

Thanks Steve - I agree with your proposal. Interesting to me that baseball is MLB squeaky clean - it is just the trashy USA media that loves trash and scandal stories - that is their brand: trash/scandal/fishwrap.

However, the bloated Canseco-Bonds-SOSA triplets deserve the a life time of high and inside pitches for their part in degrading the national pastime.

Posted by John at March 25, 2005 1:33 PM

I think a problem with major league baseball is they're cutting themselves off at the knees.

They abuse their farm teams to the greater benefit of the MLB team (putting washed up athletes in AAA, while the young exciting talent is in AA / using it for rehab carelessly / not showing a true partnership with the farm teams), they've diluted talent at the college level that makes it less desirable, and they've done nothing to spur high school and little league baseball. Where are the next stars of baseball coming from? The Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, even Japan. There's a bottom-up ripple effect in baseball that has diminished the game, even more than steroids and union strikes.

Also, there is no mythical figure in baseball today. No Babe Ruth, Ted Williams, Mickey Mantle, or Hank Aaron. They no longer seem to be "bigger than life." Why is that? Have we outgrown they mythology? Have the players and the media ruined the grandure?

Posted by Dustin at March 25, 2005 1:46 PM

Steve, I agree with your opinion about creating a WOW experience for the fans. While there are many underlying problems in MLB today, improving their public image/brand should be a top priority.

Personally, I would love to see a much greater focus on women and young African-American fans. For the women (selfishly) so that my wife will be more willing to go to the ballpark or watch a game on TV, and for the young African-American athletes to chose baseball as their sport of choice to pursue as the number of black players in Major League Baseball continues to decline.

Baseball has always been a showcase for diversity in our country from the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League and desegregation years ahead of our school systems to superstar imports from Asia and Latin America.

I believe that MLB should strive to embrace and strengthen its tradition of diversity as a cornerstone of any PR/rebranding effort.

Posted by Roger Cunard at March 25, 2005 2:37 PM

I love sports. I could roll around in sports all day, every day and I love baseball. It's so effortlessly how we can go from the Final Four to Opening Day, so wonderful how our senses can just go from on the basketball court to the diamond. But, when we get caught up in the "how" we get all tangled up. There is no difference, see it is all in the engagement, it is all in the relationship between me and the sport/players/feeling they bring out in me. The "brand" is not the emotional energy meant to maintain the relationship. The brand is not the kinesthethic meant to maintain the "family trust" it is the engagement between me and the sport/players/feelings they bring out in me. When the "company" starts sending out the brand to entertain me [i.e., commercials] when it should be doing it themselves [through the sport/player/feelings they bring out in me] you no longer have engagement, you have pandering. You cannot have a relationship with an inanimate object. Humans are not motivated to move forward, commit to things, they are motivated to commit to a group of people who they can trust, advocates, warriors. The game/life is played between consumers/humans and teams/companies, we are on both sides...They will if we will.

Posted by Wendy at March 25, 2005 2:52 PM

The Red Sox rule - so all is quite right in MLBaseball land to me. The Yankees now have le big unit though - could be trouble.

Posted by John at March 25, 2005 6:21 PM

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Posted by Terry Rock at March 25, 2005 10:13 PM

It also didn't help that packs of baseball cards soared up to $5 a pack in the mid '90s. My brother and I used to memorize team rosters via our baseball card collection. Now kids are more into Pokemon cards than baseball cards.

Strike three?

I was thinking about this. Maybe there is some sort of online equivalent of baseball cards that could be created. The beautiful thing about the cards was it enabled 8 year-olds to become imaginary owners of their own baseball teams, trading and collecting players like a miniature Steinbrenner.

I think this should be more than just bringing people into the ball park. Baseball used to bring itself into our living rooms, our back yards, the sandlots, and into our dreams. That was part of the magic. Now baseball is in the steroid headlines, in congressional hearings, and in deep trouble.

Posted by Dustin at March 28, 2005 12:50 PM