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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tWelcome to Episode 30 of Navigating the Fustercluck\u2014a podcast full of snackable insights to help you keep your head in the intense world of creativity & marketing.\xa0My name is Wegs, like eggs with a W, joining you from Deaf Mule Studios in Dallas. Here to talk about sports marketing for those who hate sports. Though I\u2019m confident that people who love sports will like this, too. I also promise to do my very, very best not to use sports analogies. The bane of many, many meetings.\xa0So let\u2019s go beyond the clich\xe9s. Let\u2019s understand why sport teams and athletes have been and continue to be favored marketing partners.\xa0\xa0Here\u2019s my favorite sports story that I personally witnessed:\xa0Back in the early 2000\u2019s, 7\u20196\u201d Yao Ming from China joined the NBA Houston Rockets. He was greeted like the Chinese Elvis. Press from all over the planet.\xa0Yao\u2019s first few games did not go well. Some quickly declared him a bust. Then, suddenly, Yao flipped on a switch. The game came to him, and he took it to the competition. However, his biggest challenge was up next. And I mean big. A 7\u20192\u201d 300lbs mountain of an obstacle named Shaquille O\u2019Neal. The man most responsible for their worst defeats of the recent past.\xa0The game was in Houston and the battle of the big men heated up quickly. Shaq put up his first shot and Yao blocked it. The crowd went wild.\xa0Shortly after, Shaq put up his 2nd shot. And again, Yao blocked it. The crowd got even crazier.\xa0Finally, Shaq put up his 3rd shot. And again, Yao blocked it. From the floor to the rafters, insanity erupted.\xa0Now that\u2019s what brought the Houston fans to their feet. But I saw more. Something much more.\xa0\xa0From my vantage point, I had been watching two father/son duos. One pair was African-American. The other was Asian-American. They didn\u2019t know one another, they hadn\u2019t acknowledged each other. But they were sitting just one row apart.\xa0\xa0Now whether they got up to grab a beer or to visit the men\u2019s room, both sons had missed out on the early excitement. Leaving their dads with no one to celebrate with. That is until after Yao\u2019s final block, when both men, excited as the rest of the arena, found themselves facing one another. After a pregnant pause, these two-middle-aged men from very different backgrounds high-fived one another.\xa0\xa0They made contact. They connected. And in a small, yet meaningful way, they created a greater sense of community. Uniting two communities that are often segregated. At least that\u2019s what struck me. And made it all worthwhile.\xa0You see, once upon a time I was Director of Marketing of the NBA\u2019s Houston Rockets. That\u2019s why I was at the game. What might surprise you, is that before I accepted the position, I turned it down not once, not twice, but three times. Why? Well, lots of reasons:\xa0First off, I love hoops, but I\u2019m not a jock-sniffer. I don\u2019t have anything like an autograph or sneaker collection.\xa0Also, there are teams that treat marketing as a redheaded stepchild, believing that a team\u2019s fortunes rise and fall solely on the win-loss record of the team.\xa0Finally, because so many young people long to be a part of the sports experience, teams save money by hiring smart, energetic young people who don\u2019t have a lot of work experience. That can work to your advantage, or it can work against you.\xa0As you can see, working in sports is not as glamorous as it may seem.\xa0\xa0For me, it was the sense of community that I just described that made working in sports meaningful. And it\u2019s the many potential forms of meaning sports spawn that can be mined in your creative efforts. At its best, sport goes well beyond a mere game.\xa0\xa0It\u2019s all a matter of matching the team or athlete that best suits your brand\u2019s narrative. Is your brand an underdog? A dominant player? Faster, stronger, smarter than the competition? Chances are, there\u2019s someone in sports that represents or echoes your brand story.