IMC Hawks Blog

Tag: Football

  • Name Changer

    Tailgating, body paint, jerseys, good luck rituals, and an unparalleled fraternity all exist as part of sports fandom. People love their teams – and love anyone else who also loves their team. Such loyalty has become an integrated part of sports culture sociology.

    Social Identity Theory states that by wearing team colors, attending games, knowing the players’ names, positions and stats, a fan begins to feel as if they are an integral part of the team – they connect with the team as if they were playing the game themselves. This connection explains why even poor performing teams have avid supporters. However, it is ultimately marketing that fosters fan identity. After all teams are brands; encompassing colors, logos, and mascots.

    fans, blog 3

    Fan loyalty has elevated sports to become part of our commodity culture; a product to be bought and sold, meaning big bucks for team owners. High-level sport has been transformed into a commercialized, commodified, and massified phenomenon. Therefore, fan identification and brand commitment become two key factors in managing and marketing a team. Building a brand is hard, but building and maintaining a culture of fans is much harder.

    As we transition into fall, we know that means one thing in sports,  football is king. With the NFL season in bloom, one team in particular, the Washington Redskins, are off to a rough start. The return of RG III has been very anti-climactic and on top of the team’s poor performance, a greater worry looms in the background: the franchise is under pressure to change the team name.

    Many believe the team’s name, “redskins”, is derogatory and racist due to its historical connotation and use to alienate and belittle Native Americans. The acclaimed Peter King from sports illustrated has even decided to stop using the name, saying, “I don’t want to add to the offensiveness.” Pressure to change the team’s name has been mounting for years and this past spring 10 congress members sent letters to the team owner and NFL requesting them to change the name. One Native American group, the Oneida Indian Nation, has started to take action and run ads in D.C. about the offensive name in hopes of rallying up support.

    rs logo, blog 3

    Whether you are an avid supporter for the name change, an avid supporter of the Redskins, or just don’t care, you can’t deny that team names mean a lot in the sports industry. Which leads us to the question: does a new name mean a new team? Does the team culture change when a team redesigns?

    These are exactly the questions the NBA juggled this past summer when they chose to revert the Charlotte Bobcats back to their former team name, the Charlotte Hornets. Coming onto the basketball scene in the ’90s, the Charlotte Hornets created a unique culture. With Hugo the Hornet as the mascot and teal uniforms, the Charlotte Hornets were a recognizable brand. So when the NBA decided to change the team name it was a hard transition for many loyal and devoted fans. Unable to identify with the new team and culture the fans gave up support and the fall of the Bobcat brand ensued.

    Reverting back to the original team name rejuvenated Charlotte fans. There was an immediate increase in the amount of ticket sales; quantitative proof that the Hornet name had been sorely missed. By keeping the team name consistent with what the fans wanted, the Charlotte basketball team re-strengthened their brand significantly.

    However, Washington, unlike the Bobcats, doesn’t have a sorely missed brand. In fact, the Redskins name is so beloved the proposition of changing the team’s name is being met with great opposition. Owner Daniel Snyder commented he would never change the name saying, “the Redskins’ fans understand the great tradition and what it’s all about and what it means.” Even NFL Commissioner, Roger Goodell, described the team name as a “unifying force that stands for strength, courage, pride, and respect.”

    Even if Snyder wanted to change the name it would be hard to change the minds of brand followers who have spent years identifying with the team, purchasing the merchandise, rooting for the players, and most importantly making memories. Ditching the derogatory name may ultimately come to a forced decision but the implications involved are massive. It boils down to a relatively simple equation: fan identification and brand commitment work together to produce the main goal in sport commodity, revenue. So the most important factor to ponder: the fans. How is the team going to remarket and rebrand to get fans to commit to a team they may no longer identify with?

    –Savannah Valade, Caroline Robinson, Meghan Carey, Morgan Jones

  • Broderick gets another day off thanks to Honda

    Honda just released an extended Honda CR-V commercial featuring Matthew Broderick on YouTube. The ad makes dozens of references to what could possibly be one of the greatest movies of all time, Ferris Bueller’s Day Off. It doesn’t even matter whether you were around when this movie was released, every generation recognizes and can relate to this legendary movie. The Honda CR-V might not be a Ferrari but you have to grow up at some point, right?

    It starts off with Broderick calling in sick from a L.A. hotel room. The hotel valet brings around his Honda CR-V, calling out “Broderick….Broderick” instead of economic teacher Ben Stein droning “Bueller…..Bueller.” Broderick is also seen in the stands for a horse race instead of a chicago mets game. He visits the Natural History Museum instead of the Chicago Art Museum. He even ends up in another parade only in China town singing a Mandarin tune rather than Twist & Shout or “Danke Schoen” for the German- American Von Steuben Day parade. Throughout the whole clip you will easily be able to pick out the infamous quotes used in the original movie, ending with “Life moves pretty fast, if you don’t stop and look around once and a while, you’d miss it” as the valet drives off in the CR-V.

    Every 80’s movie geek will be able to appreciate the many other movie references they made during this 2 and 1/2 minute long commercial. Honda promises fans there are more than two dozen references to the movie. They are encouraging people to tweet their friends about it and tweet what they have spotted under the hashtag #dayoff. This commercial will run during the Super Bowl for a 60 second slot, which should be costing them around seven million dollars! Thanks to social media outlets like YouTube, we get an extended version to enjoy the throwback even longer. Using a movie as iconic as Ferris Bueller was a smart marketing trick by using something that resonates with millions of viewers and linking it with the new Honda CR-V.

    -Mollie Berthold, Dorothy Conley, Laura Simmons, Christina Stevenson

  • The Race to be First

    Reporting any new information to the public can be risky, especially when it is a headlining topic.  As any social media expert, one should always make sure that the information they are providing the public is 100% accurate.  Any false information can put you and your company’s reputation at risk.

    With overwhelming attention surrounding the football program at Penn State, every tweet, wall post and blog comment brings more and more Internet traffic to the school and community.  In a society that completely thrives and relies on Internet access, acquiring information has never been easier or faster.  Along with the ability to supply millions with information via Twitter, Facebook or other social media sites, comes the responsibility to maintain an ethical mindset when sharing information.

    Joe Paterno, the recently released Penn State head football coach who served for 42 years, passed away at 9:25 am this past Sunday. On Saturday night, several hours before Paterno’s death, Onward State, a student-run news organization, reported through a tweet that the community icon had passed. The Onward State managing editor, Devon Edwards claims the tweet was based on an email hoax and has since resigned.

    It is shocking that a student organization (which presumably is more focused than professional organizations on performing tasks “by the book”) that is tied to an institution which has been so heavily shrouded in controversy recently, would fail to perform such a basic and necessary task as confirming information, especially when dealing with such an emotionally charged topic as the passing of Joe Paterno. Unfortunately, this is just the latest occurrence in what seems to be an ongoing problem with many forms of media.

    Managing Editor of Onward State’s Apology