The pros gave back yesterday… for the right or wrong reasons?

Sports fans were sent a few notable “I love yous” from the professional sports world yesterday. Only problem is only one of the gestures seems to be from the heart.

Yesterday I railed on Tiger Woods attempt to manipulate the media. In case you missed it; on Twitter Tiger promised to donate one million dollars to the Tiger Woods Foundation if no one asked him about his leg injury during his AT&T National press conference. First question of the press conference was about his leg. No donation, right? No. Tiger later tweeted that he would still donate one million dollars to his foundation. That was a shrewd marketing ploy by Tiger. 1) See if I can get away with not having to answer the same questions about my leg injury. 2) Promote my foundation. 3) Donate a million dollars to a charity so I can gain public approval. I’m not buying it.

Barry Bonds made positive headlines yesterday by setting up a college trust fund for the kids of Bryan Stow; Bryan is the San Francisco Giants fan who is still in critical condition after being beaten earlier this year after a Giants vs. Dodgers baseball game. The news of the college trust was made public through Bryan Stow’s attorney.

Another smart publicity stunt for a professional athlete widely considered to be a bad guy and not well liked by both the public and his peers. Remember Bonds is still waiting sentencing on his perjury charges. If someone out of Bonds’ camp made the press release regarding his kind gesture, this would’ve been a direct attempt to gain public favor. By having Bryan Stow’s attorney release the information, this makes Bonds look like a good guy that cares about others. I’m not buying it.

The Golden State Warriors used a marketing tactic that made headlines yesterday as well, and they used a tactic that I liked. They made four promises to their fans:

1) The Club will reach the NBA Playoffs in 2012.

2) The Club will have a player participate in the 2012 NBA All-Star Game in Orlando.

3) The Club will win 25 or more home games at Oracle Arena.

4) The Club will honor a risk free renewal, with a 5% interest free guarantee option for the 2011-2012 NBA season.

If the team fails to meet these goals, the Warriors will give gifts back to their season ticket holders. The gifts range from autographed Warriors paraphernalia to a promise to not increase their season ticket prices the following year.

What a great idea! Give back to the people that support your team year after year regardless of the players on the team, win or lose. Let your fans know you care.

Does anyone out there have a direct connection to Frank McCourt and the Dodgers or Donald Sterling and the Clippers front office? They might find the Warriors marketing strategy as blasphemous, but hopefully at some point they will see the value in treating your fans properly.

Just to clarify, I’m happy that someone out there will receive the benefit of a good deed by people with a less than honorable character. I’m also happy to see the owners of the Golden State Warriors letting their fans know that they care. Even if one of the rewards is to not raise season ticket prices on their season ticket holders the following year, thus getting them on the hook for two seasons of paid tickets. A discount is a discount and the Warriors fans definitely deserve that. The Warriors have only made the playoffs once (2007) since 1994.

What would you like to clarify? Send me an email or post your comments.

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