Most Marketable Bobcats

[FARMERMAN10]

Hey Everyone,
I'm currently working on a project involving the marketability of NBA players. It's partly for personal curiosity, but I'd like to know who you, as hardcore Bobcats fans, see as the most marketable on the team.

Here's the twist. I want to know who you see as marketable OUTSIDE the big three. Ignoring Gerald, J-Rich, and Emeka, who would you find to be the most appealing from a marketing perspective?

Factors to consider might include personality, name recognition, all the usual stuff. I look forward to reading your thoughts on this.

[amcoolio]

Adam Morrison

[W_HAMILTON]

I was going to have a hard time coming up with someone if you included the entire roster, much less when you take our best three players out of the equation.

Probably Morrison, for a variety of reasons, none of which pertain to his performance as a pro.

[FARMERMAN10]

well thats part of what makes the problem interesting, I think the Bobcats have one of the least marketable rosters in the entire league. J-rich's days of dunk contest fame are over, Wallace is having to change his high flying ways due to the concussions, and Okafor plays stiff and will be a RFA this year, which could get ugly.


so why Morrison? building on the college fame? I'm looking at this problem from a Charlotte area standpoint, so disregard Morrison's nationwide status.

[CatNation]

raymond, because he went to UNC

[Walt Cronkite]

Top 3 most marketable, in order:

1. Jason Richardson-has played in every game of his Bobcat career and while his "days of dunk contest fame are over", you obviously haven't seen his season highlight real, because he's caught some sick ones. Further, he's become a big time threat from the 3 point line, having already surpassed Bobcat season highs as well as his own career season high.

I guess Wallace is probably 2nd most marketable, because of his play over the course of the Bobcat's career, but he lacks Richardson's winning personality--which is a huge factor.

STILL...going into the 4th offseason, I'd be inclined to list Felton and Morrison as more marketable than him at this point for a couple of reasons. First, they've been on the team for a shorter time frame than Gerald, so if they improve their play, more people will buy their jerseys. Even if they don't improve, I think Felton already has more jersey sales than Wallace because of his UNC background (should also be noted the vast numbers of May jersey's worn in the Bobcat crowd for the same reason).

Morrison is potentially more marketable than Wallace because of his 3rd pick status, which pegged him as Charlotte's great white hope. The Wiki has demographic estimates of 54.7% caucasian as of 2006 and theories exist claiming that one of the significant factors relating to his drafting was the instant marketability his name status would have on the franchise.

Only then would I list Emeka Okafor. Despite being the first draft selection by the franchise, his lack of consistent offensive production really limits his marketability. Ben Wallace was undoubtably necessary for the Detroit Pistons, but did he sell more jerseys than Chauncey Billups or Rip Hamilton? (Totally unsure but inclined to say no, defense and rebounds don't really sell jerseys--generally these players are gritty and grimey, so while their contribution to the team is unquestionable, they normally have personality "flaws" that scare away entire demographics-- think Charles Oakley and Dennis Rodman)

Just my 2 cents, great thread.

HM-deserved for the Hammer. If he had less of a disappointing season he'd probably warrant consideration since we're stuck with him after his resigning.

[Rich4114]

If you ignore Emeka, J-Rich, and Wallace then I think it's between Felton and Morrison. I think those are the only other two guys on our roster people would even recognize nationally.

Felton I'm sure would have a strong local following and other teams announcers seem to talk about him a lot when I'm watching league pass. Morrison is just a rare type of guy and I think if he were to have a strong season next year then he would undeservingly be the most popular/marketable Bobcat.

[FARMERMAN10]

Thanks for all the responses everyone, I would personally tend to agree with all your picks.

Cronkite, to follow up on some of your excellent analysis, here's some info from my side of things.

As far as the Carolina connection goes, market research indicates that the Bobcats course of drafting so many carolina players may actually be alienating the fan base. Although close to 1/3 of basketball fans in the Charlotte area identify themselves as Tar Heel fans, a larger percentage call themselves a fan of another ACC team (specifically Duke and State).

Because of that, many basketball fans are actually alienated by the Bobcats supposed loyalty to Carolina players. For the same reason some local corporations are hesistant to throw their marketing dollars behind players like felton and may, despite their status as "popular" players.

Also, although the demographic may be mostly white, do you see the same representation in the casual NBA fan? I don't have any numbers on this, but I see possiby a larger portion of the fan base being black.

Again, thank you all for your input, its great to get a different perspective on these things.

[Walt Cronkite]

The UNC thing has definitely alienated some casual fans. You also have to take into consideration that Felton is from Latta, SC, so he has an even larger local following than most "territorial" pro selections.

I would agree that the casual NBA fan is more likely to be black than white, but I'd question the validity that has on Charlotte marketability.
In my experience going to the Charlotte Bobcat Arena, 70% of the patrons seem to be of European descent. Isn't it then more relevant to ask what people living in what location have the expendable income to buy high priced items that are marketed towards them?

Further, doesn't the draft status associated with the #3 pick influence the local citizens that are not familiar enough with the product to be considered casual fans? Is a family more likely to purchase a jersey as a gift if the family members look more like Adam Morrison than Rudy Gay?

[FARMERMAN10]

Your argument of demographics as related to disposable income is entirely valid, Although it certainly depends on what is being marketed. For example, I could see food and soft drink companies not needing to discriminate between incomes, while higher end products would probably need to take this into account.

Second, do you see draft status as having an impact on marketability?

for example, take your average hardcore NBA fan. They watch the draft, see Morrison drafted as highly as the #3 spot, and their interest in him may be heightened by seeing him picked so high. At the same time, such a hardcore fan probably already has his own set of opinions on Morrison, limiting the impact his actual draft position has on the fans opinion.

Regardless, that person is not who marketers are trying to reach.

Take the average casual NBA fan. I would say the majority of fans in Bobcats arena on a given night don't even watch the draft. (example: at the game tonight a season ticket holder was asked what their favorite bobcats moment was, they answered the SIGNING of Jason Richardson)

Therefore, it may be assumed that their first association with Morrison and the Bobcats would be from the Observer, a local news channel, or perhaps ESPN post draft coverage.

If the fan finds out about the draft from a local source, what is most likely to be featured in the story? My best guess is that what will stick with a reader is not the fact that Morrison was the third pick, but that the Bobcats drafted Morrison in the first round. Therefore, does the difference between a third pick and a fourteenth pick really play into marketability on a local scale?

Unless your local team is drafting in the 1 or 2 spot (getting a Durant, Oden, Beasley, Rose, Etc.) I see very little correlation between draft pick and marketability.

[Walt Cronkite]

So are we considering which players the Bobcats would want to put on collector's edition cups or billboards and commercials? If we're trying to figure out which player a soda company would want to endorse and put in adds, that changes things again.

Which Bobcat outside of Richardson and Okafor* would an independent company be most likely to select to endorse their product for a national add campaign? I really don't know. Morrison has experience (the tall ninja commercial) and I seem to remember Felton being involved in a couple of Bobcat promo commercial's last year... but then Jared Dudley is in Charlotte Metro advert and I highly doubt non NBA Charlottian's know who he is (which is why they run the spot during games). I really think Morrison has more national recognition with an audience, while Felton would be the selection if it was for casual NBA fans because he's played better than anyone else. If this is for some food product, I'm seeing what Sean May is up to, unless it's for a diet food (unless it's the "This Tofurkey tastes so good! I can't tell a difference and I've already lost weight!" angle)

*NO company ever selects Gerald Wallace to do advertisements for their add if it involves speaking into a microphone. If it's a narrator over video highlights, sure. Shoe add photoshoot, alright. Nothing with a microphone, enunciation is not his thing.

[doc.end]

Well,

Richardson - obvious reasons
Wallace - well, except the voice
Felton - what others wrote
Morrison - for many fans he was Larry Bird wannabe, unique type
Dudley - he is perfect but he is lacking the fame, he would be very marketable in Boston area (no clue how could Bobcats benefit it) - but still every hardcore fan has to love him
Okafor - our best big man, so marketbale by default
Carroll - already surpass his peak marketing wise. white role play 3pt shooter with a cinderella story - now he has long contract and J-Rich is on roster, so his marketing role could kind a regress
Boykins - having the smallest player in the league on your roster is always useful for marketing
May - UNC thing still working?
08/09 rookie - whoever it is
Nazr, Hollins and Davidson could be useful in supporting roles (Nazr for his veteranship, other for his youth, athletism) I doubt there could be a campaign based only on them.

just my two cents from an outside view.

[amcoolio]

Could be OJ Mayo if we are able to snag him in the draft

[BigSlam]

Fabio would have been, by far, but we shipped him out.

[FARMERMAN10]

Walt,
I'm not trying to change the parameters of the discussion to suit my arguments or anything, I'm simply opening up our options to look at every angle.

As you said, Gerald Wallace, no thanks for a speaking part, but footage of him playing sure looks great (Bobcats "12 minutes" spots)

May and Felton have the UNC connection, with the right target demographic that could be huge in the Charlotte area.

A beverage or food company? perhaps Morrison, Carrol, or Dudley.


all your thoughts are valid, its just a matter of looking at where these players are being utilized, as you yourself stated.

[Walt Cronkite]

I didn't mean to insinuate that you were changing the parameters if I did, I was just generally curious. Like I said, these are the threads I'm actually interested in responding to (soooo tired of Felton threads).

I love hypotheticals, but after my knee-jerk reaction (Which Cats would the Bobcats market for tickets/jerseys) and the ensuing analysis, it became so open-ended that it required some type of guideline.

I liked doc's analysis too. I wanted to mention Boykins but wasn't sure how to qualify the details by that point and I agree that Carroll was waaaay more marketable last season than the current one.

[FARMERMAN10]

Ok, just wanted to clarify I wasn't trying to turn it into a hostile argument, just exploring alternate viewpoints of the same discussion.

Lets clean up all the open ended hypotheticals a bit, and narrow it down.

Your representing a national corporation who is marketing through the Bobcats at a local level. Your company is a consumer driven, food sales company (maybe chips, soft drinks, etc). You need to sign players for the following purposes:

10 public appearances. These could be at a product showcase, public service programs with your brand behind it, etc.

Local radio, television advertisements.

autographs

other misc. uses.



Your options are:

you can sign ONE of the big three, Wallace, J-Rich, or Okafor.

or you can sign TWO of the remaining players, perhaps a combo of Morrison and Dudley, etc.

by signing two, you lose the instant name recognition, but you get twice the "bang for your buck"


if you were making this signing this offseason, in preparation for marketing programs for the upcoming season, what would you do?

[Walt Cronkite]

The easy answer is to sign Jrich. He had enough great highlights this season to put together a clip reel, can hold his own in a radio or TV interview and is a large enough celebrity that there's a good chance most people recognize him immediately at the public appearances. I don't think Okafor or Wallace would even get a second thought.

In the two for one scenario, I think Raymond Felton has done enough for the basketball franchise to be selected, especially considering his local history. I think the only two logical choices to partner with him are Morrison or Dudley and an argument could be made for either. It's a really tough call. Morrison has more name recognition, probably has more impressive highlights (while obviously less current) and is likely to do well amongst the local demographic. Dudley is more current and has more personality, but I don't know what else would make him a better selection than Ammo. I'm not a Morrison backer and I think it would reflect poorly on my product if he came back and continued to disappoint, so I'd select Dudley, but I'm looking forward to reading what other people write.

[FARMERMAN10]

Interesting take Walt, I agree with the potential mix of Felton/Morrison or Dudley.

Here is my take on the "big three"

I agree J-rich is probably the more exciting, marketable player. His style of play is fan friendly (dunks, threes) and I don't see any gaping character flaws. He lacks a local connection, but at the same time is relatively "new".

One area I would consider Okafor is if my company wanted to move in a youth oriented, public service campaign. The guy seems to be fairly articulate, and if I remember correctly he graduated from Uconn in three years, with a finance degree. I would love to have him at a read to achieve kind of program, as I think he'd represent both the NBA and whatever brand we were putting behind him in a very positive manner.

Still, If I had to make a choice between the single player (J-rich) Vs. a combination of two (Felton/Morrison) I think i'd take the group of two. On such a local level, I think I'd get a more positive response per dollar spent if I took two players, even ones with lower name recognition, and put them out in the community. Especially since I could then target two very different demographics with those two players. I could send Felton to do a clinic at an outdoor court downtown, and could simultaneously have Morrison signing autographs at southpark mall. (Please excuse what seems to be a blatant racial and cultural stereotype, I'm simply using generic examples)

I just see more potential versatility and cost savings from the deployment of such a two for one scheme, as opposed to putting all my eggs in the Richardson basket.

[doc.end]

I agree with Walt - J-Rich or Felton and Dudley.

(Davidson and Dudley did some event with kids outside, check the official site, and every pixel of Jared's face tells how he is enjoying it - that can't be teach quickly)