As the NFL season kicks off, a true industry legend sets the tone for football coverage. Don Sperling is the Vice President and Executive Producer for the New York Giants. Just about any Giants content that you’ll see this season has been carefully created by Don. But name just about any network, and Don likely oversaw some programming on it. That includes 15 years working as SVP and Executive producer at NBA Entertainment, NBA TV and NBA.com.
In this episode of #Storyteller, Don shares invaluable insights from his extensive experience with branding, development, marketing and programming. But the most incredible stories might just be his time working with Michael Jordan and the 1992 Dream Team. This is a one-of-a story you don’t want to miss.
On team media organizations creating a unique viewing experience:
“You need to have access. And everybody seeks the access. Highlights? Everyone has highlights. Press conference sound bites? Everyone has them. You need to find a unique way to present your brand, your players, your coaches, your organization to your fans, to your season ticket holders, whoever your audience is that will be like, “Wow, I got to stay in my seat.” You gotta hit them within the first minute of that. And that’s really important. They have to say, “Why should I watch?” Because there are so many other things to watch. Give me a reason to watch.”
On controlling the message around your team and building your brand:
“It’s our voice, it’s our message. We make sure our brand is out there in a way it deserves to be. You don’t want your brand dragged through the mud. You don’t want to say, ‘Hey, you produce this TV show,’ and the next thing you know, they’re taking down your organization. Or the video doesn’t look good. Or they get something wrong and — not just your brand — your entire reputation gets a little dragged into the mud because of the voice or the message of another outlet. So we control all of our media. That’s one way to ensure that it’s 1) High quality and 2) that it works for us.”
On using connected screens to increase fan engagement and better their game experience:
“I will give a plug for you guys, because Tagboard is going to help us! Because that really incorporates our fans on our boards. And also, for the fans that aren’t at our games, our digital platforms are going to use Tagboard to get the fans involved with photos and action, and then obviously, the tweets and all the things that social media does to connect the people who can’t make the game, and make them feel at home like they’re part of it. And then if you’re at the stadium, it will energize the fans to get more involved with photos and tweets and things like that, while the game is going on.”
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