Tao of Sports Podcast

Groupmatics is having a definitive affect on group ticket sales for its clients. Groupmatics CEO Matt Mastrangelo presents a compelling argument for why group tickets have changed, especially in the initiation and transaction for the group leader experience, and how his company's platform may present an answer to driving more analytical, prospective data from each group sale. Twitter: @Groupmatics...

The Fresno Grizzlies have established a definitive brand in the Central Valley of California, so much so that the 2014 off-season separation after 17 years with the Major League Affiliate San Francisco Giants won't affect how their fans perceive their product. Grizzlies' Director of Marketing Sam Hansen discusses how the team is transforming with the change-over to the Houston Astros, as well as r...

Sports sponsorship decks and ticket brochures are easily some of the worst materials to deliver to the best clients. They often come in the form of rudimentary PDFs, one-sheet paper proposals or Microsoft Powerpoints that convolute the process rather than help it. Sportsdigita's CEO Angelina Lawton may have discovered the solution to these types of issues with the founding of her company, which ha...

The world of sports analytical study is changing by the amount of data compiled from video. At the forefront of this innovation is Vantage Sports, which is able to log and capture multiple video streams, forensically studying various data points throughout a player's entire season, showcasing new research into each movement. Vantage Sports CEO Brett McDonald discusses how the analytical company is...

  Kristopher Bazen is a sports branding and graphic design specialist with over a dozen years of experience in the professional sports and collegiate athletics marketplace. Bazen discusses his passion for creating great design, as well as ensuring that he captures both trends and imaginations based on inputs from his clients. Bazen discusses his survival from cancer, and what he's learned along th...

The world of sports law is broken apart and put back together again by attorney Bram Maravent, who has worked in both the public eye at CNN Headline News, a legal analyst of sports business, and as an associate of a Miami law firm. Maravent discusses the issues dealing with the O'Bannon lawsuit, understanding the role of the NFLPA in the legal matters of Ray Rice, and the Florida State University...

The El Paso Chihuahuas are one of the 2014 MiLB success stories in terms of revenue generation and attendance. Director of Ticket Sales Nathan Reilly explains how the former Tucson Sidewinders franchise relocated at the beginning of 2014 to El Paso, and had an immediate impact on the community. The Chihuahuas sold out 49 of 68 regular season games, ranking 3rd in the Pacific Coast League in averag...

Fanmaker hasn't reshifted their digital focus in college athletics as much as they have complimented their existing workflow to build an insights component to their client offerings. Fanmaker CEO Jason Cole talks about the humble beginnings of the company, formerly called Row27, that burst onto the scene with some of the best vendor video production and microsites offered to college athletic depar...

While the words "fan engagement" are thrown around quite a bit by other social media companies, Lodestone appears to have a finger on the pulse of what fans want to engage with. Lodestone CEO Mark Drosos chats about the difference between engagement and actually engaging fans, and there is a wide chasm in the two styles. Drosos speaks about some of the issues surrounding social media, as well as t...

Understanding and engaging with corporate partnerships has been an ability of Marco Gentile since he was an intern with the Baltimore Orioles back in the mid-1990s. Rising through the ranks with the Orioles to National Account Sales Manager after 11 years, Gentile left the Orioles for Washington, D.C., to oversee Corporate Sales for the Washington Mystics, Capitols and Wizards. Now back with the O...

Jean Gee represents one of the quintessential women's administrators in college athletics. In her 18 years at the University of Montana, Gee has risen from an assistant athletic director of compliance to a senior woman's administator, as well as serving as interim athletic director. Gee pulls no punches, especially when covering her thoughts on why there aren't as many women serving as athletic di...

Josh Klein has been working in the ticket industry for over 30 years with some of the biggest ticket platform providers in the world. Klein discusses the primary and secondary market, pricing and some of the aspects that people should be focused on most; namely customer service and how to drive more quality interaction between the ticket seller and the customer upon deliverables of the product. Kl...

Dave Brooks has shook up the music industry with his new digital magazine, Amplify, which covers its topics like a newspaper beat. As the former editor of Venues Today, Brooks knows how to develop sources and cover the industry from all angles, something that he believes the music industry isn't necessarily always comfortable with. Brooks talks about several of his key stories that have gone viral...

If there is one challenge that Mark Gazdik faces daily at Wright State, its that marketing to fans is harder because of the crowded sports field within a 100 mile radius. This isn't just a marketing issue either, as it deals with both ticket sales and corporate sponsorships. Gazdik shares his insights on attacking those challenges head-on, as well as increasing revenues at the four athletic depart...

Data collection is an imperfect science, especially when the franchise doesn't know what its actually looking for within the information it collects. Repucom's VP Scott Horowitz discusses some of the issues with data and discovering insights within them, breaking apart those silly industry buzzwords to describe analytics, and instead examining exactly what is important when it comes to revenue gen...

If you want to dissect the role of a social media coordinator in news and sports down to its core, you want to talk to Kathryn Przybyla, who has served in both capacities with stints at CNN, The Buffalo News, the Buffalo Sabres and now the Brooklyn Nets. Przybyla talks about the various ways in which a digital message can align impact for fans, as well as how to ensure that it retains the voice of...

With 400 episodes of the Tao of Sports in the books, its only fitting to have on Brian Wickstrom, who is quickly gaining a leadership factor in the NCAA after his second athletic director stint at a Division-I institution. Wickstrom discusses his motivation and goals when coming into a new situation, how to handle both legacy employees as well as new ones, and ways to ensure that he is doing due-d...

Ken Myers has presented a credible solution to helping expand the MMA community, through the Fightmatch App. Myers explains his reasons behind the app's creation, as well as how it can help extend both the ability for fighters to find credible fights, as well as the promoters to know who should be fighting. Twitter: @KenneyMyers  

Eric Fernandez operates as the managing partner of PCG Digital, focusing his efforts of SportsDesk Media, which may actually revolutionize how data analytics are brought into a franchise. Fernandez talks about the role of analytics, as well as how it can help franchises seek further sponsorship opportunities by capturing fan buying habits. Twitter: @SportsDeskMedia

In business communications, the world of CRM and analytics collide. Phil Prombo provides this expertise for both the Chicagoland business world and the Chicago White Sox, explaining how each component works together to generate higher revenue leads for sales offices in both industries. Prombo discusses the nuances of what types of data work best to help a sales office grow their CRM, as well as ho...

Where the primary and secondary markets intersect, there is a place for Jared Cutler, who has been on both sides of the fence. First with the NBA's Team Business & Operations (TeamBo) and then with DTI. Cutler shows respect for both worlds, and discusses how both should be working in tandem to generate revenue, instead of working apart. Not that he thinks it will happen anytime soon on a universal...

The world of strategic sports sponsorship consulting is examined with one of the premier experts in the game: Tim McGhee. He has worked with some of the largest sports franchises and sponsorship clients in the world, and provides his knowledge throughout the podcast. McGhee helps undercover, beyond the numbers, the responsibilities of the franchise and the sponsor when it comes to activation princ...

Jimmy Sanderson didn't start off his career with a doctorate, instead working 11 years for human resources management in the private sector. Now teaching at Clemson University, Sanderson weighs in on some of the biggest, current sports topics of the day, including the NFL Domestic Violence Policy and Roger Goodell, as well as Hope Solo and how Americans view female athletes overall. Sanderson also...

Old school technology such as beaconing has become some of the hottest new trending sports revenue drivers used in college athletics and professional sports. Signal 360's Alex Bell explains how beaconing works, and with the advent of the smartphone, how it is becoming the quickest way to deliver localized content to sports patrons in the facility. Bell discusses some of the ethical challenges of b...

Vinny Accardi discusses how he draws in corporate clients to the small college atmosphere of Stony Brook University, amid all of the hype of the Big Apple. Accardi shares his thoughts on developing great activation for clients, as well as getting them involved in the campus community long-term through the front porch of the athletic department. Accardi talks about his supervision of the ticket off...