20 Jun

The Marketing Behind the NBA Championships

Posted in NBA, News, Promotional Products on 20.06.16 by John Meloche

Congratulations to the Cleveland Cavaliers on their championship. It was a great series and had one of the best game seven’s in NBA history.

Last week I talked about the Stanley Cup and all the promotional marketing that takes place within that championship. Well the same applies to the NBA championship. I don’t think I’ve ever seen Lebron happier than after he donned his NBA champions hat and t-shirt. Just like the Stanley Cup championships, these promotional items become more than simple clothing items. They become engraved in the moment. They’re walking proof that you’re a champion. All the blood, sweat, tears, and hype that go into winning a championship all resonate within these items. Like the NHL, the NBA has been able to create immense value out of these promotional items.

Not only does that value translate into happiness for the victors, but it also translates into sales. After Golden States won the championship last year, Golden State jersey and merchandise sales skyrocketed. This was seen throughout all of this year as according to NBA.com Steph Curry’s jersey sales had passed Lebron’s. Not only that but Golden State merchandise sales had surpassed Cleveland’s amount and became the most popular team merchandise. These augmented Golden state sales, then contributed to producing the largest Black Friday and Cyber Monday figures for NBAstore.com as their combined sales had been up 20% from the previous year.

The NBA championships have served as a great host for promoting merchandise. The league has done a great job of preserving the championship effort, determination, and memories all through these promotional merchandise. So congratulations Cleveland, wear those hats proud and remember how it all happened.

tags: , , , , ,

Comments Off on The Marketing Behind the NBA Championships

16 Jun

Kings And Spurs On Top Of The World!

Posted in News on 16.06.14 by John Meloche

Newspaper Headlines SportsWell, it was certainly and exciting weekend in the world of sports. The World Cup kicked off in Brazil and already, there have been some eyebrow-raising upsets and incredible plays on the pitch. Soccer (“futbol” for the real die-hards) fans all across the world have been glued to their TV sets watching what is arguably the most beloved tournament in all of sports. But it will be weeks before a champion is crowned.

This past weekend, however, saw the crowning of two new champions in North American professional sports. On Friday, the Los Angeles Kings bested the New York Rangers in just the fifth game of the Stanley Cup Finals to win their second cup in three years. They last won it in their shocking playoff run of 2012. In 2014, it would be fair to say that their latest championship run was equally as surprising.

“The Kings kind of crept into the playoffs as the sixth seed in the Western Conference,” reminded one of our Synergy Marketing team members this morning, “It just goes to show you that you never know what will happen in sports. Once you get to the playoffs, it’s a whole other game. It’s just too bad that the series only went five games though. You kind of always like to see game sevens.”

And while a sixth and seventh game were clearly not necessary to decide upon this year’s Stanley Cup Champions, there was no shortage of excitement during the finals, In fact, Friday’s Cup-clinching victory was taken into double overtime. “That was crazy,” commented our rep, “Overtime wins are always exciting no matter who gets them, because it’s do-or-die, last goal wins it all.”

Overtime wasn’t necessary at all for the San Antonio Spurs to reclaim their place at the top of the NBA mountain last night in Game 5 against last year’s champions, the Miami Heat. After overcoming an early deficit, the Spurs went on a rout to dismantle the Heat by a final score of 104-87. “It was over before it was over,” offered another member of our staff, “It just didn’t look like the Heat wanted it as much this year.”

It would be hard to argue with that. All four of the Spurs’ wins in the NBA Finals were by sizeable margins. They were clearly the better team although they were playing against the often-touted LeBron James who led the Heat to championships in the past two NBA seasons. Instead of a “threepeat”, however, James was forced to endure some revenge at the hands of the Spurs who lost in seven games to the Heat last year.

“I wonder if there is something to wearing black and white uniforms that just help you get rings,” joked our team member, noting that both the Kings and Spurs have similar colour schemes for their team uniforms, “They both got revenge this year. The Kings are back on top and the Spurs beat the guys who broke their hearts a year ago. I don’t know, I’m just saying, it’s an interesting coincidence.”

Perhaps, it is coincidence that the black-and-white-clad teams of the NHL and NBA respectively have claimed championships over the weekend. And then again, maybe hard work, determination and an undying need to succeed is what propelled the Kings and Spurs to become champions. We congratulate both teams on their fantastic seasons as we look forward to a fantastic World Cup tournament. Anyone know if there is a country that wears black and white?

tags: , , , , , , ,

Comments Off on Kings And Spurs On Top Of The World!

20 Jun

Perseverance Produces Champions

Posted in Synergy Suggestions on 20.06.13 by John Meloche

champsWell, tonight’s the night! It all comes down to Game 7 in the NBA Finals pitting the defending champion Miami Heat against the San Antonio Spurs. No doubt, basketball fans are still in awe after the incredible back-and-forth match up that was Game 6 this past Tuesday night. The Spurs seemed destined to capture their 5th championship.

Near the end of the fourth quarter, Heat fans were leaving the building under the impression that their season had been lost. Then Ray Allen hit a three-pointer heard across the world. The game went to overtime only to see the Heat climb back from the dead to win and force a seventh game. So what’s the lesson in all of this? Never leave a game before the final buzzer! But there is another lesson to be learned as well.

You can never give up. In business, we all come to points in our careers when we think that it’s impossible to succeed. Self-doubt and a lack of motivation to reach new heights can kill a business. As a business owner, it’s up to you to dig deep and find ways out of seemingly impossible-to-escape holes. Just a few years ago, Canada was facing a recession.

Naturally, many businesses were affected and undoubtedly some had to close their doors. Others, however, persevered and are more successful today than ever before. So what is the secret to overcoming the odds? According to Gem Misa from UK-based, The Guardian, you have to plan for curve balls. In other words, prepare yourself against your worst-case scenario.

Having started her own company, Misa became all too familiar with financial difficulty. But through her experiences, she found that it’s important to leave room for unplanned expenses and potential pitfalls. She lists a number of helpful tips that can help entrepreneurs avoid such pitfalls – or at worst, help dig themselves out of holes. We’d like to share a few.

Learn how to adapt. As mentioned, there are bound to be bumps in the road. You would be wise to expect them. You can write a business plan, says Misa, but it’s important to draft a Plan B. There may be issues that you didn’t think of that you’ll have to address along the way. Be prepared to revisit your plan and make changes if things don’t go the way you originally expected.

Make room for errors (emotionally and financially). Writes Misa, “When putting together your business plan, you would normally list your sources of income, compare it against a list of expenses, and from there you would work out your profit…Make sure to leave room for those unplanned expenses and attempt to make a profit, or at least break even, on the most conservative and even the worst case sales scenarios.”

In tomorrow’s blog, we’ll continue to take a look at Misa’s tips. Tonight, however, the team that has learned the most from their hardships will likely be crowned the 2013 NBA Champions. If you’re looking to be a champion in your industry, you’ll have to learn how to bounce back from crushing defeats. Here’s hoping that you won’t have to suffer too many along the way.

tags: , , , , ,

Comments Off on Perseverance Produces Champions