| Royal
Spirit Alive!
How to be a Beacon
in a 40-watt World |
 |
From August 13-29th
, the focus of the media and the attention of the
entire world will be on the sporting events in Athens, Greece,
the host site for the 2004
summer Olympics.
In a survey of popularity, conducted by Sponsorship Research
International of London, the Olympic Games are rated as
the premier sporting event among global sporting events
like World Cup Football/Soccer and Wimbledon. Even
in the United States, where the Super Bowl is embraced like
a national holiday, the Olympic Games are top rated.
Researchers conducting
the popularity survey also discovered that the
most recognized symbol in the world is the Olympic Rings
and for a majority of the athletes, winning an Olympic
medal is perceived as the highest sporting achievement.
The Olympic medal
stakes, though, are not the only high stakes game at the
Olympics. Media pull, ratings, brand recognition,
and positive perceptions are part of the high stakes world
of Sports Marketing and Sponsorship executives.
Participating in the Olympics sponsorship program is only
one marketing mix opportunity in their quest to build potent
customer loyalty and generate higher revenues. For these
brand-makers, the decision
to participate in sponsorship opportunities is measured
in business terms like return on investment,
a medal of a different kind.
 |
| Dockery
Clark |
Enter the day-to-day
world of Dockery Clark, a Greensboro native, who
is Senior Vice President of Sports Marketing & Sponsorships
at Bank of America, an official sponsor of the 2004 U.S.
Olympic Team. She’s renowned for garnering high media
focus for Bank of America’s
Higher Standards brand statement.
Y.E.S.
(You Expressing Spirit) Showcase
Dockery’s
world may appear glamorous. Her career path reveals,
though, that building a stellar career in the sports marketing
and sponsorship industry is more about attention to details,
negotiating win-win value
propositions, and knowing the nuances of
the industry.
The industry has
been a familiar environment in Dockery’s world for
a long time. She grew up playing competitive tennis.
Her special event experience began while she was a teenager.
She worked at tennis courts during the summer and was involved
in planning and coordinating four special events.
Getting
into the business professionally became her goal.
She pushed, prodded and landed her first job as a sales
and marketing manager for a men’s pro tennis tournament.
She laughs as she describes entering the industry
at a time when it was basically tennis and golf events for
players and their agents.
“I think I was
lucky at the infancy of the business. You could
still be driven by passion. Now, if someone were
to come and interview with me, I’d
probably be looking for candidates that have more traditional
training in marketing,” she says.
Growing up with the
industry serves Dockery well in her current high-profile
position. She’s acquired a breadth of knowledge and
expertise, which she refers to as understanding the business
from multiple perspectives, “the
promoter’s side, the corporate side and the agency
side.”
 Her
expertise is revered among brand makers. Search
the Internet and you’ll find her name among top brand-maker
presenters at the 2003 Sports Symposium in New
York, which featured several notable brands and the key
executives behind them. Her case study presentation addressed
the success behind the 2003 Bank of America Colonial Golf
Tournament, described in the
press as a “hole-in-one” for corporate sponsorship.
The big buzz surrounding
the 2003 event, the first year Bank of America took over
as title sponsor, went beyond forging a partnership with
Ben Hogan Company, owner of the Hogan brand. An
all-out media sensation occurred when Annika Sorenstam became
the first woman to compete on a Professional Golfers Association
Tour in 58 years.
Some industry experts
estimate Bank of America received
nearly thirty percent more brand exposure from the media
than a typical title sponsor at a PGA tour event.
“We made the
bold decision to give Annika an exemption, which solidified
our sponsorship,” says Dockery. “Usually,
you have to invest in an event 3-5 years before consumers
really associate you with the event. With
that decision, instantaneously, it solidified our sponsorship
of the Bank of America Colonial.”
When asked to describe
the experience, Dockery replied, “I don’t even
know how to tell you what a great experience it was, other
than to say complete and total admiration for her [Annika],
what she accomplished and how she handled herself. Also,
strong pride in the company. Our
slogan is Higher Standards and to give someone the opportunity
to take their game to a higher standard, without any consideration
of gender, just equal opportunity, without
a doubt, I would say [that was the] best career experience
I’ve ever had. Bar none. I’m not sure everyone
gets that opportunity in their career.”
Much like the athletes
competing in the Olympic Games, Dockery is a stickler
for paying attention to the minutest details. She
says it’s less about focusing on the industry and
more about focusing on opportunity. When
asked to define opportunity, she replied, “making
the most of what’s presented to you.”
Dockery’s tips
for a gold medal performance in the sports marketing industry:
Could it be that as
Dockery prepares to head for Athens, she
already has an Olympic gold medal equivalent in the Sports
Marketing and Sponsorship industry?
Let the Games begin.
Contact Dockery at
704-386-9550; or e-mail dockery.clark@bankofamerica.com |
Marilyn
Sprague-Smith,
M.Ed.,
is
an
award-winning
consultant,
trainer,
author,
professional
speaker,
and
certified
laughter
leader.
Through
her
consulting
and
training
firm
Miracles
&
Magic,
she
partners
with
individuals
and
organizations
seeking
a
catalyst
for
long-term
positive
change.
She
is
one
of
only
six
people
in
the
world
authorized
by
The
World
Laughter
Tour
to
deliver
laughter
leader
certification
training.
As
a
frequent
guest
on
National
Public
Radio’s
WFDD
88.5
FM
Real
People.
Real
Stories.
www.wfdd.org,
she
shares
true
stories
about
the
magic
of
laughter
and
the
sparkle
it
brings
to
relationships.
