Essay on Public Relations in Professional Sports

The business of sports is one of the fastest growing industries in the country. All over the world, many people participate as players and spectators in a variety of sporting activities, creating opportunities for the marketing of a company’s goods and services. An important part of the business of sports is sports marketing, which revolves around understanding consumer behavior and motivating target markets to purchase goods and services. Sports marketing at Clemson University has many different aspects ranging from sports and technology and sport law to sponsorship and sports economics.

Social media has made a massive impact on our culture. One of the areas that has not been affected is professional sports. In today’s world, professional sports teams and players from around the world use social media to connect with their global fan bases. Sports teams attempt to build a larger, stronger fan base by engaging fans through social media sites. Additionally, social media sites allow professional athletes to increase their marketability. However, they can also severely damage their career, personal life, and their ‘brand’ if they do not handle their social media interactions with care (Van Schaik). Twitter and Facebook allow teams and

Sports of old were merely competitive activities rooted in heroism and romanticism. Sports activities today, however, have no such innocence or simplicity. Currently in America, the activities that make up our sports culture is not only the competitive events themselves but the processes and issues that underlie and surround them. Entwined in our sports culture is the giant business of mass broadcasting. Indeed, sports and the media go hand in hand like peanut butter and jelly, like Mickey and Minnie, Darth Vader and Luke. They are intertwined and depend on each other to continue to grow. Sports media includes television, radio, magazines, newspapers, books, films, and, now, most importantly, social media devices provided by the

Throughout the sports industry, a wide variety of roles are assigned and expected to be fulfilled by diverse individuals. Among these roles, few are as wide ranging in responsibility as that of a sports information director. A sports information director (SID) is responsible for a wide variety of duties within the sports world, among them are Media relations, publications, writing and distributing press releases, and a multiplicity of other duties.

Branding is about establishing an image of how you would like to be seen and thought of by others. In business, for instance, those people are usually consumers. In other words, companies want clients to think of them in a positive light so they purchase their products.

Marketing plans and strategies are an important part of almost any business today. One of the biggest industries marketing plans have benefited and changed in a number of different ways is the sports industry. The development of the sports marketing industry has led companies to invest millions of dollars to have their product associated with specific teams, players, and sporting events attempting to connect with consumer and create profit for both parties involved. The money involved in sports marketing calls for these sponsorships and endorsement decisions to be made both strategically and confidently. After researching the sports industry from a business perspective the importance of marketing decisions is

Seehusen studied sports management and business at Loras University in Iowa. Originally, Seehusen’s future intentions were not set on public relations. However, in order for him to graduate, he needed an internship. He interned with the Dubuque Fighting Saints, a junior hockey team. The internship provided Seehusen with new experiences and a desire to work in the public relations field. Following this, he interned with the Minnesota

     For my career research paper I have chosen to delve into the world of the sportswriter, and take a closer look at what that occupation may hold for myself. I have chosen to research this form of journalism because I consider myself to be a sports fanatic, and would very much enjoy spending the rest of my working days writing about the conditions in the world of sports. During the last year or so I have taken a period of time everyday to relax and read over sports articles from baseball and football at some of my favorite websites, such as espn.com or nesn.com, or to sit down and watch Sports Center on ESPN. I also seem to have an ability to remember statistics and rosters of players and

The price that we pay is the value that we associate to any product, whether it is a good or service. It is the compensation given to a person or authority to purchase an object or service. The greater the value associated to the product, the greater the price.

Sports’ marketing is becoming more readily known as the vehicle that drives the sports business to success. It is “orientated toward consumers and about thinking, deciding and acting in terms of the final consumer. You have to know who your consumers are, what they want and need and use this effectively as a sports marketer orientating the drive more toward the market, not the product (Sports Marketing: The motor that drives the sports business

Public Relations or (PR) is an important field that businesses and companies use to connect with their consumers. This involves maintain relationships with the public to promote the business as well as communication between the public and business. My interview dealt with the world of exercise fitness. I interviewed Ricky Gross who is a personal fitness trainer. He is the Owner/Operator of RJG Fitness LLC, which is a personal training company out of metropolitan Atlanta Georgia. His company provides personal fitness sessions, one on one, or group sessions in clients’ own personal homes or fitness clubs. I conducted the interview over Skype to get further information on how his company deals with public relations.

"Public relations is the management of communication between an organization and its publics." (Grunig & Hunt's, 1984)

     In the wide world of sports, teams will try and find a way to better market themselves in the nation to make more revenue. There are many ways to market your team but in the newer generation teams have been taking a different approach. Most teams will advertise there big sports star in trying to have people buy there gear, buy tickets, or simply support their team. But the most effective way to market your team is getting to the kids first. In advertising for a younger generation, you will tie the kids in more at an earlier age and hopefully will stay with the team throughout the years.

When analyzing local media and seeing the materials that are provided by public relations are astounding. Public relations is a crucial part of gaining information for news and other media efforts. “Researchers have estimated that 25% to 50% of news content in the United States is influenced by public relations, with some estimates running as high as 80%”. (Burleson, 2012) Organizations participating in public relations are more likely to gain better information because you are going straight to the source. Organizations who do not participate in public relations are more likely to make up stories that are not true

As the name of the discipline implies, public relations is how an organization builds beneficial relationships with its key stakeholders. With effective communication as the practices’ primary tool, modern day organizations have taken advantage of proficient practitioners to boost exposure of their company and its message across to international audiences.