Some good news about sponsorships in 2022
Good morning. Sponsorship deals are about balance.
This week I was having a conversation with Dane, our Director of Athlete Partnerships. We were discussing a few recent sponsorship deals and what made them great. It was clear that each athlete sponsorship had the best balance of storytelling, sponsor buy-in and social presence.
This rings true now more than ever. The current sponsorship market is ripe with opportunity. With the addition of NIL athletes, the supply of potential deal makers is at an all time high. This has both athletes and sponsors feeling more anxiety than normal. Our Q1 results showed us that athletes with the right brand assets in place are standing out far more in this growing market.
The best sponsorships we are seeing balance 3 elements:
The athlete has a great story. The story is what captures a sponsors imagination.
Sponsor buy-in. There is genuine interest from the sponsor in the athlete's story. When the sponsor looks at an athlete's brand, they see their own brand reflecting back at them.
Social presence. The athlete has an active social game. Follower count is rarely a deciding factor in a deal. But they must be active regularly.
There are a lot of deals out there still to be made. Take the time to go after deals with the best balance for you.
- Cejih
OTHER BIG NEWS THIS WEEK:
Patrick Callan has officially launched his website and line of merch.
The United States Bicycling Hall of Fame (USBHOF) caught up with Mandy Marquardt in a Tireside Chat.
CG Sports Publishing is getting its own newsletter! Click here if you want to receive publishing specific updates each quarter.
P.S. Nervous about missing upcoming news from CG Sports? Follow us on Instagram (@cgsportsco), Facebook (CG Sports Management), and, of course, our weekly newsletter.
Several CG Sports athletes splashed into action at the San Antonio edition of the TYR Pro Swim Series.
Natalie Hinds: 50 free (5th), 100 free (3rd), and 100 fly (6th).
Beata Nelson: 200 free (8th), 100 back (7th), 100 fly (5th), and 200 IM (7th).
Paige Madden: 50 free (11th), 100 free (6th), 200 free (2nd).
Olivia Carter: 200 fly (6th) and 200 back (10th)
Coleman Stewart: 100 back (2nd) and 100 fly (3rd)
Click here to view full results from the meet.
Natalie Hinds is one of the many features in the April 2022 issue of Swimming World Magazine.
The feature includes a detailed look at all that Hinds has accomplished throughout her storied career, including her introduction and passion for weaving.
Dagmara Wozniak has been serving as an assistant coach to the Harvard fencing team throughout the 2021-22 school year. Recently, Harvard took home two individual golds and an overall second place finish at the NCAA Championships.
Decision Making 101
What popped into your head when you read "decision making 101?" Maybe you're hesitant to make a decision and hoping this will help your internal debate come to a close.
Ask yourself these questions:
Are you choosing short-term comfort over long-term success? Are you too comfy?
What is your gut telling you? Literally, what is your gut reaction?
Will there really ever be the right time? There may be a better time, when you priorities are more lax, and mental, physical or emotional availability is there - but if not, what are you waiting for?
Have you shared your dreams and goals with anyone? Help yourself by building a community that will hold you accountable, check in with you, and encourage commitment to your goals and desires.
The decision does not need to come easily, but by getting outside of your comfort zone and doing the things you know you want to do, you may find yourself learning more and doing better than you imagined.
Leveraging Video to Your Advantage
Today we are going to dive into the power of video and why you should use it to tell your story. Let's get into it.
Control your narrative. A good example can be found here with our hype video about client, Maddy Banic. This allows us to focus the conversation on Maddy's story, brand values and personality. Video allows you to play to your strengths and have greater control of your narrative.
Capture your audience's imagination. The more video an athlete can make available to your audience, the more ways a sponsor can get creative on how to work with them.
Show your value through short video clips. These clips can live forever and add to the athlete's platform of being able to add value to a sponsor. It makes the athlete multi-dimensional, shows their personality, speaking skills and how they engage with an audience.
Have you met Holly Neumann, Director of Publishing at CG Sports?
Get to know her in our latest blog post!
Sports Business Radio
Hosted by Brian Berger, Sports Business Radio (SBR) is an award-winning podcast that focuses on issues and people directly impacting the world of sports business. Notable guests include, but are not limited to:Janet Evans,Steve Phelps,Scott Reames, andMaria Sharapova. SBR is celebrating their 18th anniversary and are currently looking back on notable episodes.
Catch up with all of Sports Business Radio's episodes here.
A collection of the CG Sports Teams’ favorite random news of the week.
NFL: Colin Kaepernick, former NFL Quarterback, has been named an honorary captain for Michigan's annual Maize and Blue spring game.
MLB: On April 15th, all teams will don jerseys with the #42 in Dodger blue in honor of Jackie Robinson.
NHL: Three finalists have been announced for the 2022 Willie O'Ree Community Hero Award. Public voting is now open.
Men's NCAA: The Kansas Jayhawks have claimed the Men's NCAA National Championship title in what is becoming known as "The Great Kansas Comeback."
Women's NCAA: The South Carolina Gamecocks won the Women's NCAA National Championship title, claiming the program's second title.
Champion's Mojo: For Masters Athletes
There are a LOT of podcasts available to listen to these days, so in between new episodes, we wanted to help you choose your next listen. (You didn’t ask for our advice, but we wanted to offer it anyway.) How do you stay strong in the face of adversity - and how do you do it with tenacity and grace? US swimmer Madisyn Cox joins the podcast to talk about overcoming a major career setback to continue to do the sport she loves -- swimming. Cox discusses how time management and tapping into her life’s support system has aided her success so far.
Catch up on EVERY episode at ChampionsMojo.com.
