In Monday Night Football action, the Pittsburgh Steelers wiped out the Baltimore Ravens 38-7.
- KC's View:
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In an unrelated and yet relevant story, USA Today this morning reports on a new survey by a sports marketing research firm that says that the Steelers are, in fact, the most powerful local brand in US sports. According to the story, the rankings are based on a survey of sports fans as well as an evaluation of certain specific criteria.
"The Steelers are the model brand for a team," says Len Perna, president/CEO of Turnkey Sports & Entertainment. "Down through their history, ownership, players, coaches, stadium and style match the hard-nosed work ethic of their city." And, Perna says, the team's brand was "clearly defined" and "consistent for decades," while its ownership was widely perceived as genuine.
And, the paper writes, “Behind the Steelers in the top 10 were the NFL's New England Patriots, Indianapolis Colts, New Orleans Saints and Green Bay Packers, NHL teams the Buffalo Sabres and Detroit Red Wings, baseball clubs the Boston Red Sox, the St. Louis Cardinals, and the NBA's San Antonio Spurs.”
The NY Yankees came in at number 29, and the Dallas Cowboys were number 28 – though the rankings suggest that in part is because both teams tend to have broader out-of-town support than most.
I’m not sure I entirely buy the order of things – it is hard to imagine that the Packers are number five, or that the Chicago Cubs don't make the top ten, but that be more my baseball bias and lack of interest in pro basketball and hockey than anything else.
However, I also think that the essentials of strong local leadership – consistency, clear definitions, authenticity – are as critical to retailers as to sports franchises.
By the way, this is what I call synergy. MNB today starts with Michael Sansolo writing about what can be learned from the New England Patriots, and ends with me talking about what can be learned from sports franchises in general.
I love it when it all comes together. And we didn’t even plan it this way.
