Take That Brand Lady: New Commish Slips Three Brand References Into One Sentence!
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Where to start after Wednesday's introductory news conference for eventual former LPGA Commissioner Mike Whan?
I did enjoy Stephanie Wei's firsthand account of Ron Sirak and LPGA flak David Higdon sparring, but really, how can you not love the notion that the LPGA failed miserably after hiring a marketing gal from California, going right back to the well and hiring another marketing maven from the same place and with the same propensity for empty jargon.
Anyway, just before we get to the good stuff, I want to be clear: most of us Californians do not speak like this.
Why don't we start on his exclusive chat with AP's Rachel Cohen, talking about the exciting 2010 schedule news.
Whan said he was "surprised and excited" when he saw the 2010 schedule, which will be released in mid-November.
"If that's a downturn year, then this brand's more resilient and stronger than I even thought coming in, and I was pretty confident going in," Whan said. "The LPGA's just fine."
Sounds just like the Brand Lady. Which reminds me, I'm taking nominations for Whan's nickname. Brand Boy? MacJargon Man (an homage to his original family name, MacWhan)? Please, help me with this important task.
Okay now to the good stuff.
Whan has also worked in marketing for non-sports companies, including Procter & Gamble.
"I don't think anybody was immune to the business downturn in 2009, but at the end of the day, having been on the brand side of the big corporate brands, they're always looking for partnerships that can build their business and build their brand," Whan said. "The LPGA represents a very unique and powerful one."
And from the press conference:
At this stage of my career, or maybe I'd even say this stage of my life, I really look to three things when I think about the future, and that's people, that's opportunity, and that's passion. When it comes to people, this search more than anything else proved to me that this LPGA organization is literally surrounded with overwhelming talent, and I don't just mean business acumen talent; there's plenty of that, but the value-based passion for the game, passion for the brand, passion for the sport. It's really overwhelming.
The more I got into the process, the more I realized these are the kind of people I want to surround my life with and be a part of.
You know, maybe that's where I have blown it in life. I haven't surrounded myself with people who have a value-based passion for the game.
I can't wait to get started, not just because of the upside potential, but because of the base we've already built, but where we can really take the LPGA in the years to come.
He's so eager to get going, but he's going to wait another two months to start the job. Let the doublespeak begin!
John Paul Newport thinks that for all the brand talk, there's a bit more to the job.
Stephanie Wei posts some video of the new conference and you can hear the doublespeak. She also offers this "not so revealing" interview with Whan.
And Ron Sirak sums up the day this way:
The magnitude of the challenge was reflected in the turnout for the announcement, at which the number of people behind the microphones (5) equaled the number of reporters on hand.
Perhaps that was because Game 1 of the World Series was to be played in New York that night. Perhaps it was because only 12 hours notice had been given for a 9 a.m. press conference. Hopefully, it was not because, in the world's largest media market, that was the extent of the interest. That's something Mike Whan will be gauging as he listens and learns in preparation to lead.
