Tao of Sports Podcast

As M.M.A.'s popularity explodes, so do the various options used to measure a fighter's success. Author Reed Kuhn comes onto the podcast to talk about his book, Fightnomics, which looks at breaking down statistical factors in where a fighter's focus is on and questions various fighting tactics over the years. What really matters in a fight? What surprising factors don’t? Kuhn discusses why the M.M....

  Partnership development in sports is one of the key ways of ensuring corporate sponsorship growth. Aileen McManamon works as a conduit between the sports organization and corporate partner, trying to ensure that brand development fosters an ROI for any major business affiliation with a team or sports event. McManamon talks about some of the factors that go into creating good activation, as well...

  In the last 10 years, Ralph Morton has helped initiate one of the most active sports commissions in the United States. As Executive Director of the Seattle Sports Commission, Morton has been in some of top dealings for major league teams, area data and political conversations over publicly-funded stadiums and arenas. Morton also helps bridge the game for major outside sports promotions that want...

Nate Silverman has worked for two NBA teams, run his own sports consulting firm, and sold corporate sales for Learfield Sports. Silverman knows the sales game and how to move inventory. Silverman talks about some of his methodology, including how to engage high dollar CEOs into buying the night of a game for the rest of the season, as well as getting them to pull out that infamous "black card" wit...

Mike Veeck is part of baseball marketing lore. Veeck is third in the fourth generation of marketing geniuses which have graced baseball since William Louis Veeck Sr. became president of the Chicago Cubs in 1919 and created Ladies Day, bringing out more women to the ballpark. Not to be outdone, Mike Veeck's father, Bill Veeck, was famous for "umpireless games" and sending 3-foot-7-inch Eddie Gaedel...

Ryan Madayag has a had a long successful career in sports marketing, starting with the NFL's Seattle Seahawks in 2004 as the team's fan development manager, which fostered a Super Bowl run in 2006 and the berth of the Seattle Sounders FC in 2008. Madayag talks about the Seattle market, some of the aspects of what traditional media still means even in a tech-savvy city, and how to impact fan engage...

Athletic administrators cannot do better than to replicate someone like Bill Hogan, who has been in the sports field for over 30 years at three different universities. Hogan talks about his time at Seattle University, especially mentioning the fighting to search out the department's long history which had been placed underneath a pool to rot. Hogan discusses his vision for bringing back Division I...

  Jessica Smith is one of the best sports social media analysts who completely refrains from calling herself an expert and never trusts anyone who claims to be an expert. Smith talks about what really works and what doesn’t in social media, especially in the world of branding. Smith discusses strategies and tactics of ever evolving platforms such Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn. Smith stresses the...

In 1999, Leroy Denton recognized an issue of redemption of tickets for local sports events and decided to do something about it, forming Ticket Return, a company that has grown from a lone client in the Peoria Chiefs its first year into becoming the largest ticketing vendor of minor league baseball clients. Denton has now set his sights on developing one of the premier ticket conferences annually,...

  Michael Mink has been around football for his entire life and now considers himself blessed with an opportunity to found his own indoor football conference, the X-League. Mink has seen the challenges of running minor league football franchises in the past, with an experience in Yakima where the team was doing well, but the entire league was not and collapsed around him. Now in Florida, Mink feel...

The real star of this episode isn't Steve DeLay, it's The Ultimate Toolkit, an 11-workbook effort co-authored with sports marketing legend Jon Spoelstra as a way to redefine ticket sales in the modern age. DeLay explains the various ways in which The Ultimate Toolkit came to form, including the reasons why its important for every franchise and athletic department to take a hard look at their reven...

  Fifteen years after leaving the Dallas Stars for the Texas Rangers, Paige Farragut is now one of the top executives selling tickets in Major League Baseball. Farragut talks about the highs and lows of selling both two straight seasons of World Series appearances by the franchise, as well as methodology toward keeping those customers long-term through incentivized season ticket holder programs. F...

With an office in Hong Kong, IMG Vice President of Business Development and Digital Media Tom Broom showcases various ideas for the future in terms of activating the globalization of sport brands. Broom explains how specific digital media rights in countries such as Singapore, India and China are exploding as demand for content as well as corporate sponsorship activation grows. Broom talks about s...

  Matt McGovern is running one of the top smaller promotions for unarmed combat sports with World Fighting Championships. McGovern covers not only the Las Vegas-Tahoe-Reno markets with his fights, but also into Louisiana with an eye on the Pacific Northwest. McGovern talks about some of the challenges he faces while running boxing and MMA promotions, as well as whether multiple major fight leagues...

  In an industry where administrators jump from job to job every few years, John Gruppo has only been in two positions during his 13 year career. Gruppo served as a jack of all trades at Northeastern, in the capacity of Assistant Athletic Director of Business and Ticketing for over 10 years, then left for George Washington University, to work as the Assistant Athletic Director of Budget and Financ...

  Mike Mossholder has sold marketing inventory for the NFL, NASCAR, Horse Racing, and MLS Soccer, but for the last three years has sold the UFC globally. Mossholder talks about what the differences are with brand managers between perception and reality, as well as how he utilizes UFC President Dana White to help facilitate some of the biggest brands in the business. Mossholder discusses where the...

  Chuck Lamson brings over 30 years to his sports consulting business, trying to help potential owners understand exactly what they need to know about running a franchise. Not everyone heeds the advice, but Lamson talks about some of the easiest ways that owners avoid making revenue in sports business. Lamson talks about his time with the Tulsa Drillers, as well as how drawing people to a sports e...

  In 2012, The Big Sky Conference reformed their logo and brought in several changes both on and off the college field. Associate Commissioner Ron Loghry discusses the challenges that were presented and met by the Conference’s leadership, as well as how the conference expansion led to some unique opportunities with new school membership. And Loghry also confirms one of the stories about University...

  From the first moment that Charlie Hildbold walked into the indoor football league franchise in Allen, Texas, he has been fighting to keep the franchise alive. Hildbold talks about the early days of the former IFL Allen Wranglers, where NFL Wide Receiver Terrell Owens played for half a summer and the corporate sponsors were trying to revolt. Hildbold talks about the Wranglers franchise folding a...

  Guest services takes on a whole new meaning at the Washington Capitals. Rick Olivieri explains that the title means really focusing on retention of season ticket holders, ensuring that the VIP customer service is promoted heavily, rather than simply a concierge service for high-end fans. Olivieri discusses some of the ways that the Washington Capitals have chosen to grow their audience as well a...

  CJ Johnson knows the Winston-Salem market well. In his second stint with the Carolina League franchise, Johnson talks about some of the changes that have gone in over the last few years, including a team name change and venue upgrade into a new ballpark. Johnson discusses his plans for selling in the Winston-Salem community as well as communications with season ticket holders as well as growing...

  Long-time sports marketing legend David Hersh has formed a new company to change over how college athletics promotes and sells their teams. Hersh has formed the Viking Athletic Partnership with Portland State University, which he considers wholly different than the third party concept used by most major university athletic departments in terms of ticket sales. The VAP examines ways to use the en...

  Robert Roveta has managed some of the top MMA fighters in the sport. Roveta talks about the period in MMA from 1993-2003 known as the “Dark Ages” prior to MMA’s acceptance by the mainstream. Roveta discusses his goals for managing fighters, some of the issues that have arisen without MMA agent regulation which have caused anyone and everyone to go into the role of fighter representation, and his...

  Chuck Johnson operates one of the most successful minor league brands in the Pacific Coast League. Johnson talks about some of the issues surrounding the 51s name as it has now been extended past two different ownership groups, as well as how the 51s deal with the struggling Las Vegas economy. Johnson discusses some of the ways that the 51s have to be creative at Cashman Stadium to draw crowds w...

  Some of the biggest names of the NFL use Jamie Fritz as a branding agent. As Fritz explains, he doesn’t deal with the contractual obligations on the field, instead focusing on the athlete’s brand for corporate America. This is a new trend in the world of sports, as more athletes are focusing on their brand and how to best affiliate themselves with the right type of products. Fritz talks about th...