2015 AGENDA*

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TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 2015


8:45am
Opening Remarks
 
9:30am
SUPER PANEL: "What Keeps You Up at Night?"
 
Moderator: ABE MADKOUR, Executive Editor, Sports Business Journal/SBD
 
Panelists:
GENE SMITH, Athletic Director, The Ohio State University
STEVE PHELPS, EVP & CMO, NASCAR
HOWARD HANDLER, CMO, Major League Soccer
LEN KOMOROSKI, CEO, Cleveland Cavaliers
 
Gene Smith
Ohio State University
Steve Phelps
 
NASCAR
Howard Handler
 
Major League Soccer
Len Komoroski
 
Cleveland Cavaliers
Sports Business Journal/SBD

11:00am
Coffee Break presented by Hood Branded Environments

11:20am
Breakout Sessions (8 CONCURRENT SESSIONS)
 
SPONSORSHIP
 
Session Leader: RON SEAVER, President, National Sports Forum
 
Session Title: "BROUGHT TO YOU BY... AN INSIDE LOOK AT THE NSF SPONSORSHIP SYSTEM"
 
Session Description: Over the 20 years of The National Sports Forum (NSF) we've had the great privilege to work with many sponsoring organizations. Each year, one question always arises:
 
“How does NSF go about building such an active group of sponsors?” (After all, NSF is a conference ...and not a 60,000 seat arena with TV, Radio and a section of the newspaper every day talking about it.)
 
The answer, a very specific, step-by-step sponsorship sales system that NSF president, Ron Seaver developed. With over 30 years of sponsorship sales experience,Seaver is the author of "Getting Yourself Sponsored" and a featured speaker at event and association conferences all over the country.
 
To this point, he has never discussed ​the SponsorFX Sponsorship System with his own NSF attendees ... until today.   Join us for an insightful "...behind the scenes..." look at the secret weapon we use that could work for any organization in the business of selling sponsorship.  
Ron Seaver
 
MARKETING presented by
 
Session Leaders:
MARILYN COX, Marketing Principal, Oracle Marketing Cloud
GEET DHILLON, Principal Solutions Consultant, Oracle Marketing Cloud
 
Session Title: "SCORE BIG WITH YOUR MARKETING EFFORTS: RALLY AND CONVERT GUESTS INTO FANS"
 
Session Description: Sports entertainment is tasked with the difficult challenge of driving lifelong loyalty, deeper relationships, and increased revenue. They must make those personal connections that turn ticket buyers into subscribers and guests into fans.
 
And yes, that is becoming more challenging because communication channels are multiplying. Marketing teams are tasked with engaging across a multitude of fan channels including email campaigns, direct mail campaigns, print and digital ads, social media, websites, blogs, events, press releases, and on and on and on……
 
So, how do you deliver that exceptional customer experience, align offers to interests, develop event awareness, and establish loyal relationships across all these channels?
In this session we’ll discuss how to:
 
- Increase revenue through personalized offers and promotions
- Effectively engage and rally fans across complex channels and spheres of influence
- Collect and analyze data and metrics to make smarter business decisions
Marilyn Cox
 
Geet Dhillon

Oracle Marketing Cloud

 
TICKET SALES presented by
 
Session Leader: DAVID MCELWEE, VP Ticket Sales, Service Operations, Washington Nationals
 
Panelists:
JASON GONELLA, Vice President, Team & Venue Services, Van Wagner Sports & Entertainment
 
Session Title: "PUTTING YOUR BROKERS TO WORK - CREATIVE WAYS TO MANAGE YOUR SECONDARY MARKET"
 
Session Description: Secondary Market ticket sales are American Capitalism at its finest. If there’s a demand, someone is going to find a way to make a profit off of the supply.
 
Our panel believes that if corralled and controlled in a partnership format, Brokers no longer have to lurk in the shadows and exploit your organization’s ticketing or compensation strategies. Join us to learn more about progressive and outside-the-box approaches that will help you achieve symbiosis with your secondary market.
David McElwee
 
Washington Nationals
 
SENIOR MANAGEMENT
 
Session Leader: TOM HOOF, CMO/VP Marketing & Communications, University of South Florida
 
Session Title: "EVERYTHING MATTERS"
 
Session Description: Everything matters. From the ticket experience, to the quality of the creative, to the media promotions and the in-game experience. Fans are touched by all of it and you can control how they feel about your brand.
Tom Hoof
 
University of South Florida
 
SOCIAL MEDIA presented by
 
Session Leader: CHAD SEIGLER, VP, Team Marketing Services, NASCAR
 
Panelists:
DAVID JORBA, SVP Vizrt Americas Operations, Vizrt
CRAIG LALIBERTE, Director of Business Development, Vizrt
MICHAEL ROCHA, Director of Content Services, Panasonic
JAIME CARLIN, Director of Marketing, Texas Motor Speedway
BRIAN WALLS,  Associate Director of Production & Broadcast Operation, Virginia Tech
 
Session Title: "BIGGER, BRIGHTER AND SUPER HIGH RESOLUTION!"
 
Session Description: The astonishing graphics and social media workflow from Virginia Tech and Texas Motor Speedway. A dive into the world of next generation stadium graphics and the most advanced content delivery platform for your in-venue experience.
 
 
   
Jaime Carlin
Texas Motor Speedway

Chad Seigler
NASCAR
 
BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT presented by
 
Session Leader: WILL ELLERBRUCH, Regional Sales Manager, Daktronics
 
Panelists:
LISA BRAUN, Director of Digital Media, Cincinnati Reds
STEVEN HUDY, Manager of New Digital Production and Social Media, Cincinnati Bengals
ADAM LANE, Senior Director for Production and Creative, Cincinnati Reds
 
Session Title: "HASHTAG FOR THE CASHBAG! REVENUE GENERATION VIA SOCIAL MEDIA ON GAME DAY"
 
Session Description: Listen to multiple experts in the industry discuss ways they integrate social media with stadium/arena signage. Attract advertisers with new sponsorship opportunities using social feeds during your events for additional recognition outside of traditional stadium/arena advertising methods.
Lisa Braun
 
Cincinnati Reds
 
Adam Lane
 
Cincinnati Reds
Will Ellerbruch
Daktronics
 
FAN ENTERTAINMENT
 
Session Leader: MIKE SCHAIMAN, Managing Partner, Helios Interactive Technologies
 
Session Title: "FAN ENGAGEMENT TECHNOLOGY: HANDS-ON DEMO"
 
Session Description: Get hands-on with some of the latest/greatest technologies and experiences being deployed in the sports world. Mike Schaiman from Helios Interactive will be leading this session to share insights, trends, and provide live demos of some of the most impactful technologies being used by venues, brands, and teams.
Mike Schaiman
 
Helios Interactive Technologies
 
WILD CARD
 
Session Leaders:
GEOFF JOHNSON, CEO, Parametric
 
Panelists:
TOM SHERIDAN, Senior Director of Ticket Sales and Premium Seating, Chicago White Sox
 
Session Title: "WHITE SOX AND PARAMETRIC: REDEFINING THE SUITE EXPERIENCE WITH MOBILE TECHNOLOGY"
 
Session Description: Case Study: How the Chicago White Sox partnered with Parametric to enhance the guest experience, streamline operations, and collect big data in the premium suites.
 
Tom Sheridan
Chicago White Sox
Geoff Johnson
 
Parametric

12:20pm
Lunch in the Trade Show

2:00pm
Breakout Sessions (8 CONCURRENT SESSIONS)
 
SPONSORSHIP
 
Session Leader: JIM KAHLER, Executive Director Center for Sports Administration, Ohio University
 
Session Title: "THE SPONSOR'S PERSPECTIVE"
 
Session Description: This session will take you behind the scenes with a roll up your sleeve’s open panel discussion with sponsors and agency executives who deal with  corporate partnerships on an everyday basis. This session will be hosted by Jim Kahler, Executive Director of the Center for Sports Administration at Ohio University  along with  sponsor representatives  from Pepsi, Anheuser Busch, Procter & Gamble and 5TH 3RD Bank.
 
 
Jim Kahler
 
Ohio University
 
MARKETING
 
Session Leader: DR. BERNIE MULLIN, Chairman & CEO, The Aspire Group
 
Session Title: "OLDER FANS QUITTING; MILLENNIALS WON'T SPECTATE: HOW DO YOU SELL MORE TICKETS?"
 
Session Description: The Fan Life Cycle is a topic that affects all of us at our respective properties and properly segmenting, targeting and marketing to them is crucial to optimizing our revenues and to driving their attendances to our events. We will present on the "Fan Life Cycle" and the various opportunities at different times of the fans life where historically we have been able to attract and grow a younger fan base, and what ticket products, marketing and sales strategies have been effective for each targeted age/ life cycle segment. We will share actual ticket #'s and $'s for each program from our collegiate sports properties and professional properties around the world that generally are doing a better job of targeting children and families than we are doing here in the USA.
Dr. Bernie Mullins
 
The Aspire Group
 
TICKET SALES
 
Session Leader: ERIC FERNANDEZ, Managing Partner, Sports Desk Media
 
Session Title: "USING SOCIAL MEDIA TO SELL TICKETS"

Session Description: What do the Charleston RiverDogs, Corpus Christ Hooks, South Carolina Gamecocks and South Florida Bulls have in common?

These teams have all executed digital marketing ticket strategies that have produced ROIs north of 400% with the Hooks generating a 4400% ROI and the Gamecocks a 2400% ROI.
 
No matter the size of your sports organization, selling tickets through digital and social marketing is becoming a mandatory staple in all team’s fan engagement plans.
 
SportsDesk Media Founder Eric Fernandez will lead a panel discussion outlining how teams are driving incremental ticket sales through digital and a blueprint for you to achieve greater ROI through your marketing spend. This session will cover:

 
Digital Marketing Strategies
  • Campaign planning: selecting the right media strategies to match your ticketing product
  • Creative and offer segmentation and live testing
  • Social selling – how Facebook and Twitter can be effective sales channels 
The Online Customer Experience
  • How to improve online conversions and turn traffic in sales
Removing friction from the transaction
Eric Fernandez
 
Sports Desk Media
 
SENIOR MANAGEMENT
 
Session Leader: JIM COCHRANE, SVP Partnerships & Client Services, Texas Rangers
 
Panelists:
KEVIN ROCHLITZ, VP Corporate Sales & Development, Baltimore Ravens
CHAD STEELE, Senior Director of Public Relations, Baltimore Ravens
 
Session Title: "KEEPING THE CALM WHEN ALL CHAOS BREAKS OUT - HOW TO HANDLE NEGATIVE OFF-THE-FIELD EVENTS WITH TEAM PARTNERS"
 
Session Description: This timely and insightful session will get participants candidly sharing with one another insights and recommendations as  to what to do (...and what not to do...), when off-the-field incidents get the fans, community and sponsors/advertisers enraged.

During this session you will also hear from panelists who have had experience in dealing with negative off-the-field events within their team and how they kept calm during the chaos.

Kevin Rochlitz
Baltimore Ravens

 

Jim Cochrane
 
Texas Rangers
 
SOCIAL MEDIA
 
Session Leader: DAVID WARSCHAWSKI, Founder & CEO, Warschawski
 
Session Title: "GETTING SOCIAL MEDIA RIGHT IN A VUCA WORLD"
 
Session Description: There is a new normal in the sports business world. VUCA is an acronym for volatility, uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity. In the past, VUCA was an every once in a while occurrence for most sport brands, or they had a low level of ongoing VUCA. In today’s digital and social media world, brands need to be prepared for and do battle in an ongoing state of VUCA. The new normal is constant chaos, and brands big and small are working hard to come to terms with it.
In this session you will learn:
• What smart brands do to ensure they are well positioned to deal with VUCA from a communications standpoint
• What are the mistakes you want to avoid
• What is the proper role of social and digital media in the communications mix and how do you do it successfully
• What other leading brands have done and what we can learn from their case studies
David Warschawski
 
Warschawski
 
BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT presented by
 
Session Leader: BRYAN RASCH, Chief Digital Officer, GMR Marketing
 
Session Title: "HOW TO PICK THE RIGHT DIGITAL EXTENSIONS FOR YOUR EVENTS"
 
Session Description: Feeling overwhelmed by too many technology options? This session will focus on tips for selecting the right digital technologies to enhance live consumer experiences and how to implement them in a cohesive way. From RFID to Facebook, Twitter and content capturing opportunities, get insights into the vital art of finding the right blend of digital extensions. Learn how to identify your event’s core elements, and get fresh ideas for creating fun, memorable experiences for your fans and brand partners through digital integration.
Bryan Rasch
 
GMR Marketing
 
WILD CARD
 
Session Leader:  ANDY MILOVICH, General Manager, Myrtle Beach Pelicans
 
Session Title: "BEST OF THE SUNDAY WORKSHOPS - TOP IDEAS & TAKE AWAYS FROM SUNDAY'S WORKSHOPS"
 
Session Description: The Sunday Workshop Series features the best practices and idea sharing from the industry leaders across the entire spectrum of the sports world.  The “Best Of” Breakout allows NSF attendees the opportunity to become part of these industry exclusive Workshops by joining 3 round tables of your choice in a virtual speed dating with the greatest minds and ideas in the sports industry.
Andy Milovich
Myrtle Beach Pelicans
 
CUSTOMER SERVICE
 
Session Leaders: RUBY NEWELL-LEGNER, President, 7-Star Service
 
Session Title: "THE FAN EXPERIENCE: CREATING A CULTURE TO TURN EVERY CUSTOMER INTO A FAN"
 
Session Description: How would your fans rate their experience at your games? Do they have a positive experience interacting with your staff? Would they give it a 7 Star Rating? Would they spend their hard earned money to invest in season tickets or a premium level suite? If you’re ready to turn every customer into a fan and keep them coming back for more, Ruby can take you there! Ruby has the tools and experience to elevate your service delivery and motivate your staff to increase their customer satisfaction and their sales. This program will review the 7 Steps Ruby outlined in her new book “The Fan Experience:  Creating a Culture to Turn Every Customer into a Fan.” Come learn how to create a truly memorable experience for every fan.
Ruby Newell-Legner
7-Star Service

3:15pm
Afternoon Break presented by Hood Branded Environments

3:30pm
TICKETING SUPER PANEL
 
Moderator: BILL GUERTIN, President, Corporate Development, The 800-Pound Gorilla
 
Panelists:
AARON EISEL, VP Tickets & Business, Cincinnati Reds
CHUCK GREENBERG, CEO, Greenberg Sports Group
BRIAN BYRNES, Senior VP, Sales & Marketing, Oklahoma City Thunder
JOHN BROWNE, President, JMB Sports & Entertainment
 
Aaron Eisel
 
Cincinnati Reds
Chuck Greenberg
 
Greenberg Sports Group
Brian Byrnes
 
Oklahoma City Thunder
John Browne
Bill Guertin
 
The 800-Pound Gorilla

5:30-10:00pm
Budweiser Gala; transportation provided to Great American Ball Park
 
PRESENTED BY BUDWEISER
 
HOSTED BY Cincinnati Reds & Delaware North/SportsService
 
Keynote Speaker: Phil Castellini, COO, Cincinnati Reds

HOSTS

Cincinnati Reds Delaware North

Phil Castellini

Cincinnati Reds