Sports are a multibillion-dollar global business that will continue to grow by leaps and bounds into the foreseeable
future. The bad news is: It's never been harder to attract, engage, and retain the sports fan.
Today's sports fans are bombarded by choices. Traditional sports, such as baseball, football, and basketball, compete
for fans' dollars with snowboarding, lacrosse, poker�even paintball. The old business formulas, developed in the
age of three TV networks and creaky stadiums, no longer apply.
World-renowned communication expert Irving Rein, international marketing guru Philip Kotler, and communication
specialist Ben Shields deliver an innovative new business model centered squarely on fan satisfaction and retention.
They give you the tools to transform your sports product into an enduring brand-immune to the vagaries of winning
and losing-that quickly adapts to changing market conditions. Along the way they illustrate their points with fascinating
case studies, including
Manchester United's transformation from a plucky home team to a billion-dollar international franchise
Professional golf phenomenon Michelle Wie's quest to maximize her talents and marketability
Southlake Carroll High School football team's benchmarking of professional and college football programs to
build its own brand
Daytona International Speedway's reinvention of fan intimacy
Combining expert analysis with field-tested strategies for winning hearts and minds, The Elusive Fan is your
guide to surviving and thriving in today's ever-widening world of sports.
Table of Contents
PART ONE: Reaching the Elusive Fan
1. The Fan Challenge
2. Sports in Trouble
3. How Fans Connect
PART TWO: Connecting to the Elusive Fan
4. Reinventing the Sports Brand
5. Generating the Sports Brand Transformation
6. Implementing the Sports Brand Transformation
7. Communicating the Sports Brand
PART THREE: Surviving in the Sports Fan Marketplace
8. Sustaining the Fan Connection
9. Successful Cases in Sports Branding
10. The Future of Fan Connection
