Industry insider: Ed Kiernan.

Kadlecek, Jim

Title: Senior Vice President, Sports--GMR Marketing (Omnicom)

Education: BA in Sport Business, University of Mount Union

Career: Senior Vice President Sports--GMR Marketing (Omnicom) --New York, NY Executive Vice

President and Chief Marketing Officer --Partner at Peter Jacobsen Sports (PJS)--Portland OR and Naples, FL

Vice President Southeast Operations--Pro Links Sports (PJS)--Tampa, FL

Executive Tournament Director--Canon Greater Hartford Open--PGA TOUR--Hartford, CT

Director of Global Operations at Championship Management Company (CMC) --PGA Tour--Akron, OH

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Ed Kiernan joined GMR Marketing in July 2009 from Peter Jacobsen Sports (PJS), where he was the Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer (CMO). As Jacobsen s business partner, he oversaw the agency's sports marketing and corporate consulting practice with a special emphasis in overall brand strategy/management for blue chip companies, athlete representation, global event management/promotion, and the negotiation of complex multilevel/multimedia contracts for sports and entertainment properties. He was directly responsible for growing the sports marketing practice and establishing and implementing new business and sales strategies, marketing plans, programs, and objectives for an international sports marketing agency.

A veteran with nearly 20 years of experience, he joined Peter Jacobsen Sports in 2000 from Pro Links Sports, Inc. (PLS), where he was the Executive Director for The PGA Tour's Verizon Classic and Vice President of Southeast Operations based in Tampa, Florida. Prior to that, he served as the Executive Tournament Director for the PGA Tour's Canon Greater Hartford Open, spearheading the sales, marketing, and overall operations. He began his professional sports career as the Director of Global Operations for Palm Springs, California-based Championship Management Company, where he oversaw and consulted on the following events: The NEC World Series of Golf (Akron, Ohio); The Las Vegas Invitational (Las Vegas, Nevada); and The Senior Slam (Los Cabos, Mexico).

Q: GMR has quietly become one of the top sport marketing agencies in the world. What is your vision as you go forward?

Kiernan: Our domestic and global growth over the last few years has been incredible. Our founder and CEO, Gary Reynolds, is truly a genius and visionary that continues to build and provide us with the resources we need to be the best in our space. We can offer our clients the same look and feel from New York to Beijing and from Sao Paulo to Moscow without skipping a beat. The team is truly amazing! We like to get to the heart of the matter so we hire people who love their work. Making the right brand and consumer engagement requires the right strategy and strategist. We have a diverse mix of marketing professionals who boast an equally diverse mix of personal experience. We support our clients by hiring employees who represent the perfect balance between skill and personal connectivity. At the end of the day, we ensure that our people have a passion for the work we do and the clients we represent. The vision moving forward? Simple. Continue to offer best in class service, while remaining completely property and athlete agnostic for the brands we represent.

Q: How does GMR determine what sport properties and brands are suited for each other?

Kiernan: Obviously, each scenario is on a case-by-case basis that can be impacted by a variety of internal and external influences. That being said, we work with our clients tactically and strategically on overall analysis, planning and goals, and objectives across their various lines of business. One example would be a systematic four-tiered approach to the analysis: (a) we would conduct an overall review and provide a POV to determine provisions, various scenarios, implications, and potential measurable results, (b) then, we would analyze competitive programming and positioning to determine the impact on the category competitors, necessary protections, and potential opportunities, (c) next, we would provide a review of all other sponsorships/assets in their current portfolios which may be able to be leveraged and/or enhanced, (d) and finally, we would evaluate any/all potential sponsorships not currently in the portfolio which may provide comparable promotional or media coverage and programming.

Q: Heading into 2011, what predictions do you have with respect to: sponsorship activation?

Kiernan: NFL? THE ONE TO WATCH IN 2011. With the possibility of an NFL lockout in 2011, all companies and brands involved with the NFL on a league, team, media, or player sponsorship should be analyzing their current campaigns and promotional activation to determine how they may be impacted. This analysis should consider all potential lockout scenarios and timing and how those will affect current programming and develop contingency plans to minimize the impact and potentially benefit from proactive counter programming. Who will win this battle--billionaires or millionaires?

Q: How sponsors are measuring ROI/ROO?

Kiernan: During a time when marketing dollars are tighter than ever, the pressure to prove the effectiveness of programs is becoming more and more intense. With marketing spending being scrutinized at multiple corporate levels now, the need for agency accountability is vital. Marketing decision-makers must prove that the return they see is worth the expenditure. After decades of relying on ROI models based more on reach than impact, a breakthrough in the measurement of actual ROI has finally taken place! GMR's very own Dr. David Bohnsack (VP of Insights and Analytics) has developed an approach named QED that effectively quantifies the impact of marketing activities in terms of brand building, business building, and creating enthusiasm among current customers. The most difficult ROI challenge has always been to measure the link between marketing activities and the bottom line. The GMR QED model allows thoughtful exploration of that connection. Five important things to remember about ROI/ROO: (1) it's not about media impressions, (2) it's not the same as ROO (return on objective), (3) it should capture short-term and long-term impact, (4) it should allow comparisons across the whole market mix, (5) it should tell you how much money you're making.

Q: Technology?

Kiernan: You have to learn how to navigate the fragmented social media space in order to micro-target exact niche audiences. The key is to not interrupt the consumer; rather engage and empower them to participate. You must distribute clear brand messages to the right audience, while teaching clients how to be successful in the new world of digital word-of-mouth marketing. The philosophy is simple; bring people closer to the things they love and they will do the marketing for you. Some things to watch in 2011: (a) more website and blog integrations and promotions, (b) enhanced digital content distribution, (c) social network loyalty and engagement, (d) the ever-growing need for digital reporting, metrics, and analytics, (e) mCRM and commerce, (f) mobile social commerce.

Q: Rising sport property?

Kiernan: The NBA and their global expansion. The league has already beaten the NFL and MLB to the punch in Europe, Asia, and parts of South America. NBA games are seen on television in 215 countries, a demand driven by the presence of foreign players dotting league rosters, about a quarter of the total player count. The league has also partnered with Yahoo to bring webcasts to some markets without television access to games, as well as to China on a limited number of nights. You can attribute the roots of the league's global expansion to the 1992 Olympic "Dream Team," when top stars like Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson, and Larry Bird wowed crowds in Barcelona, Spain. As the first Olympic Games featuring professional players, the Americans' dominance raised the bar for basketball excellence in the rest of the world. It worked. After winning gold medals again in 1996 and 2000, the U.S. team settled for third-place bronze in 2004--bad for U.S. Olympic pride, but good for the league's global dominance.

Q: Sponsorship on the rise and on the decline in terms of dollars spent?

Kiernan: On the rise--"top three:" (1) NFL, (2) NCAA College Sports (Football and Basketball), (3) NBA Huge Global Expansion.

On the decline--"top three:" (1) PGA Tour, (2) LPGA, (3) PBR (Pro Bull Riding).

Q: With HD and now 3D sport broadcasts, what do properties need to do to ensure fans still purchase tickets and come to the events instead of viewing from the comfort of their living room?

Kiernan: Sports entities are facing more challenges than ever before but their biggest threat is the elevated, at-home viewing experience. As consumers weigh the cost benefits of attending a live game versus watching from the comforts of their home on a large HD television, sports teams are feeling the pinch when it comes to selling out venues. To combat the threat of the "new" at-home viewing experience, sports entities are turning to new technologies in an effort to improve the in-stadium fan experience, offer corporate partners new inventory, and drive their bottom line. Here is a quick breakdown of several new technologies that sports entities are turning to in an effort to enhance the game day experience for fans and offer new integration opportunities for corporate: FanVision: NFL and NCAA, Yinzcam: NFL, Augmented Reality Mobile Applications: USTA, Wimbledon, NASCAR, Massive Stadium LED Video Boards: Dallas Cowboys Stadium.

Q: What is on your "must read" list?

Kiernan: (a) Orbiting The Giant Hairball by Gordon MacKenzie; (b) Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion by Robert B. Cialdini; (c) Moneyball: The Art of Winning an Unfair Game by Michael Lewis; (d) The NASCAR Way: The Business That Drives the Sport by Robert Hagstrom.

Interview conducted by Jim Kadlecek, associate professor and chair of the Department of Human Performance and Sport Business at Mount Union College and Vice President for Industry Relations of the Sport Marketing Association.