Morning Sports Talk: It’s Business
ESPN’s Mike and Mike in the Morning Show was on today as it is most mornings during my household’s get-up-get-ready-and-go period. I was a bit more attentive today since the talk was college basketball and my alma mater had just won the championship in a squeaker. I was about to tune out as the two Mikes moved on to the story about how the Philadelphia Eagles had traded Donovan McNabb to the Washington Redskins. At some point, the conversation turned to whether Redskins player Jason Campbell should or should not have been told about the trade before the public heard about it and the media questioned him.
This is Business
Mike Greenberg said yes, someone, even if it was an assistant should have talked to Campbell before he was blindsided by the media. Mike Golic responded with a bit of a you-gotta-be-kidding-me-you-wimp face and a comment that let the audience know he thought Greenberg was being way too touchy-feely about the whole thing. 
Golic also postured that the Redskins had publicly stated that the quarterback position was open and that Campbell should not have hurt feelings about being passed over in a trade. Then Golic said, “This is business.”
I’ll save for another post why I think “business” and treating well the people who are part of your organization are not mutually exclusive concepts and focus today on how taking the time to manage your message is absolutely about “business.”
Managing Your Message, Brand and Fan Experience
When Mike Greenberg suggested that Jason Campbell should have been informed about a trade that didn’t involve him personally – he wasn’t being traded and he hadn’t officially had the job that McNabb was being traded to take – Mike Golic reacted to the comment as if it was all about Jason Campbell’s feelings. I’m suggesting that this was one way to react, but certainly not the only reaction if you are thinking about “business.” Instead you could have thought about brand, the marketing message, and the fan experience.
Management guru Peter Drucker is often quoted as having said that there is only one valid purpose of a business and that is to create a customer. He also said that there are only two basic functions of a business: marketing and innovation. It seems to me that the Redskins are taking care of the innovation function by trying out a new mix of players and shaking up their line up (not that I know ANYTHING about professional football). Where I think Golic gets it wrong is on the marketing.
Marketing is about creating a great customer experience that keeps them coming back and buying your product or service. It includes managing your message and maintaining your brand. If for no other reason than “business,” it would have been a good idea to make sure Jason Campbell knew about the trade and that management knew what he would say to the press when asked. If the press thinks that your fans, i.e. the Redskins’ customers, will be interested in what Jason Campbell thinks about the trade, then the leadership of the Redskins should be strategically thinking about that too. Even if you aren’t going to like or can’t control what Jason Campbell says or does next, it is better to know and plan the next piece of your messaging strategy than to leave it as an unknown where you have to react in the moment to whatever is said to the public.
Manage your message, make sure everyone involved in creating the fan experience is on board with your strategy, and leverage your opportunities in front of the press to enhance and extend your fan base. That’s business.
Barbara Demarest (www.barbarademarest.com) received her MBA from the Babcock School of Management at Wake Forest University and her BA from Duke University. After 20 years at the Center for Creative Leadership, Barbara launched a strategy and development consulting practice focusing on people leading change in associations, foundations, universities, nonprofits and knowledge businesses. You can find Barbara’s executive coaching profile on www.thecoachingassociation.com.
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