Brand management in professional sports

In early April, said the marketing manager of Vfl Bochum, Andrea Peschke, about 100 students in the lecture hall of BiTS why the Association has developed the first soccer Bundesliga club its own credo.

"A mission statement is the basis for every brand management: It defines what the brand should stand for," said the 35-year-old marketing manager as part of the BiTS Forum lecture series at the private university in Iserlohn. Professional football clubs are brands these days and therefore need to be managed as such.

Vfl Bochum is subject to high competitive pressure in the Ruhr area.

Half a dozen professional clubs, including market leaders such as Borussia Dortmund and Schalke 04, compete for the favor of the fans within a radius of 50 kilometers. In the target group of 25 to 40 year olds in particular, Vfl Bochum has a small market share, as these age groups were led to the more successful Ruhr area clubs by their fathers when they were children. A clear mission statement is intended to sharpen the profile of the Vfl Bochum brand in order to clearly stand out from the competition with its own values ​​and thus remain competitive. But also for the internal organization of the association, a mission statement, as a kind of framework for daily work and dealing with each other, is gaining in importance. The number of employees at Vfl Bochum has increased from 10 to over 10 in the last 30 years, which has resulted in new work processes and communication channels that must be subject to a certain process structure.

There is also a desire for a mission statement among Bundesliga fans, especially when there is no discernible concept for the club's strategic direction and the fans are worried about the club's future.

The mission statement of VFL Bochum conveys core brand values ​​such as "inflexibility" or the regional identity and tradition, which will be lived by all people involved at Vfl in order to convey a clear brand image. "Even when acquiring new licensed players, the guidelines serve as a basis for communication to determine whether the player identifies with the club," says Peschke.

In 2010, the marketing manager at VfL Bochum had to learn that the image of the club is primarily dependent on sporting success. Despite the mission statement and its implementation in all marketing campaigns, the typical football mechanisms come into play in the event of failure. The relegation of the club from the 1st league, the unattractive football, the complete resignation of the board of directors and the associated sharp drop in the number of spectators led to a loss of image among fans and in public perception.

As football legend Adi Preißler said almost 50 years ago, "All theory is gray - it's what's important on the pitch."

Source: Iserlohn [ Business and Information Technology School ]