Athletes and sports brands are like rhythm and melody. One rarely exists without the other. The symbiosis between the two creates a working relationship where one can benefit from the other and vice versa. It is important for owners of sports brand names to be aware of the relationship of their product and its ambassador.

Basically when the public sees a familiar face next to a brand name they will forever associate the face with the name. Therefore, sports brand owners need to be able to understand the impact of their chosen athletes on their brand names.

When you are a businessman, the success of your business relies only on one group of people – your customers. One of the things that made the late Steve Jobs a successful businessman was that he understood the minds of his customers. Many popular brand names all around the globe love associating their brand with a celebrity. Many sports marketing experts also believe that one sure fire way of getting a brand to reach as many customers as it can is by putting a face to the brand. The idea is to capitalize on the popularity of a person representing the brand name to attract more customers and even more importantly, create loyal fans of the brand.

Logically, a sports brand will get a well-known athlete to represent their name. Asia is full of budding young athletes who are considered role models for children, teenagers and adults alike. Athletes like Lin Dan (China’s badminton champion) and Khairul Fahmi Che’ Mat (Malaysia’s football favorite young goalkeeper) are considered as good examples for the younger generation. Their popularity is not limited to one age group but to sports fan of all ages. The public wants to wear what they wear and eat where they eat. These inspiring athletes hold so much influence wherever they go that it is quite impossible to ignore them.

The personality of an athlete is also the key to ensuring that your brand is being represented by the right person. If your brand concept is loud and brazen, you would not want to put the face of an athlete who is known for being somber and solemn in any occasion. The personality of the athlete of your choice must be able to reflect the personality of the product you are selling. The idea is to get potential customers to be able to get the relationship between your product and its brand ambassador. If the public sees no connection whatsoever between them you have probably made the wrong choice.

Another aspect you may have to consider when choosing your sports brand ambassador is that the public or your customers are fickle. They might like one thing today and dislike the same thing when they wake up the next morning. This is why fluidity is also an important quality that your brand ambassador should have. Basically your chosen sports brand ambassador must not be too rigid that he or she cannot change their look or sometimes even their likes and dislikes. Of course, this does not mean that they should lose their sense of self in order to gain the public’s approval.

Research has shown that people trust athletes more than they trust celebrities from the entertainment industry. Therefore, putting a popular athlete’s face next to your brand logo may be a sure fire way for you to generate more sales and attract more customers. However, before you do so you probably need to understand the relationship between your sports brand ambassador and your brand. Ultimately, the athlete will represent your brand and your customers will see your brand in the athlete.

Larry Lim is a business writer based in Kuala Lumpur. Among the topics he writes about include sports marketing and sports sponsorships.

Larry Lim is a business writer based in Kuala Lumpur. Among the topics he writes about include sports marketing and sports sponsorships. (http://www.worldsportgroup.com)

Author Bio: Larry Lim is a business writer based in Kuala Lumpur. Among the topics he writes about include sports marketing and sports sponsorships.

Category: Advice
Keywords: business, marketing, sports marketing, sports sponsorship, sports events, brand marketing