Coyle Media has created a great info-graphic providing insight into the demographics, behaviors and affinity of fans that follow NHL teams on Twitter. Take a look…

[Via Coyle Media]

Some of the items that I found to be most interesting were:

• 78% attended at least one game, which is particularly impressive since only 68% live within the team’s metro area. These engaged Twitter users represent an important source of potential ticket revenue.
• 87% check Twitter multiple times a day, but only about 1/3 of these users have used a geolocation service. While geolocation has a lot of potential, the adoption rate is still much slower than other forms of social media usage.
• The fact that 88% are multi-screeners shows how much value fans see in social engagement as a key facet to the home viewing experience. The more that media outlets integrate social media, the better experience these viewers will have.

For more insights from Pay Coyle, including his thoughts on how this data relates to sponsorship potential, visit his blog post at CoyleMedia.com.

Update:  Coyle Media just released a similar info-graphic on Facebook usage – click below to view that one as well, or visit CoyleMedia.com for the complete blog post.

On my drive home last night, I was thinking about the differences between the visibility and marketability of NBA vs. NHL players.  At first, I thought there were enough similarities between them that NHL players should get more name recognition about casual fans than they currently do, especially compared to the recognition that NBA players have.  Let’s take a look at some of those similarities, then I’d like to highlight one particular item that I think the NHL’s media partners can help with.

Similarities:

• Time of year – both start in the fall and finish in late spring
• Season length – both have around 80 games per season with similar playoff structures
• Venue – both have similar capacities and most arenas are designed to host both sports
• Markets – the NHL has more Canadian presence, but most major U.S. markets are represented
• Players in action – both sports are 5 on 5 (plus goalies for hockey), which should be an advantage compared to baseball (9 on 9) and football (11 on 11)
• Uniforms – both feature the players’ last names and numbers prominently across the back
• Action – both games feature a constant flow of action for about the same length of time

Differences:

• TV Coverage – while the NHL’s coverage is increasing, the NBA has more network and cable coverage
• Grassroots – there are many more basketball courts across the country than hockey rinks, leading to more familiarity and interest
• Scoring – there’s a big difference between a 3-2 final score and a 104-96 final score
• Roster size – hockey rosters are about double the size of basketball

If I keep drilling into more details, I can list out more similarities and differences, but there’s one more difference that I want to focus us…line changes. Unlike basketball, where you have a lot of continuity with the players on the court, hockey has a constant stream of player changes that makes it very difficult for a casual fan to know who exactly is on the ice at any given time. Combine that with the lack of scoring (in basketball, every basket provides a chance to share the name of the player that scored), and the amount of exposure that the players gets throughout the course of a game is limited.

With this in mind, I have a simple suggestion for the NHL’s media partners that can help… an “on-the-ice” bar at the bottom of the screen that lets the viewers know what players are currently on the ice.  I know the idea of putting more things on the screen takes away the amount of space available for the game, but with the popularity of widescreen televisions, I feel that two thin bars at the bottom of the screen could easily be added in the same place you’d see a score ticker.  Seeing the names of the players involved in the action and updating them with each line change could have a huge impact in building awareness for these athletes, which will benefit both the players and the league.

I know I write about email marketing a lot, but it is an important way of communicating with your fans. Even with the constant increase in social media usage, email marketing is still the most effective way to reach your customer base with targeted messaging. One way to make those messages stand out even more is to use personalization.

When I mention personalization, most people think about using the customer’s name, such as starting your email with “Dear Russell” or including the customer’s name in the subject line. Both of these can be effective options for increasing open and click-thru rates. However, sometimes the best way to personalize is to use other information you know about the individual receiving the email.

Take a look at this example from the NHL (viewed from my Gmail account):

The important think to note here is the subject line – ‘Vote for “THE CAPTAIN’S GUARANTEE” as the greatest Stanley Cup Playoffs moment in history.’ From my NHL.com preferences, they know that I am a New York Rangers fan, and Mark Messier’s famous guarantee from the 1994 playoffs was an incredible moment for all Rangers fans. This subject line resonates with me in a very personal way, increasing the likelihood that I’m going to open the email and vote for this moment. I’m sure that Bruins, Canadiens and Penguins fans received a very different subject line to encourage them to vote the historic moment that they care most about.

Think of it this way – imagine you are a Rangers fan. Which email would you want to open?

- Subject 1: Vote for “THE CAPTAIN’S GUARANTEE” as the greatest Stanley Cup Playoffs moment in history
- Subject 2: Russell, vote for the greatest Stanley Cup Playoffs moment in history

In this case, personalizing with my name would seem flat. There’s nothing about adding my name that makes me more interested in opening the email and voting. On the other hand, referencing a historic moment that brings back wonderful memories as a Rangers fans drives much more interest in opening this email. In general, I believe that name-based personalization is a much better approach for customer service related communications, while interest-based personalization can have more impact on sales and marketing communications.

With the NHL Playoffs starting today, it’s a great time to look at how the NHL differs from other major American sports leagues in crowning their champion.

National Football League (NFL)

Only 12 of 32 NFL teams make the playoffs each year. At 37.5%, the NFL has one of the lowest percentages of teams allowed into the postseason. Four division winners from each conference automatically qualify, plus two Wild Card teams (non-division winners with the best record). At times, this can make for interesting seeding. In 2011, for example, the Seattle Seahawks won the NFC West with a 7-9 record. They were slated to host the first round matchup against the 11-5 New Orleans Saints, the non-division winner Wild Card out of the NFC South. There was quite an uproar about whether Seattle deserved to host that game, but they quieted  (most of) the critics when they pulled out a 41-36 win.

National Basketball Association (NBA)

In the NBA, 16 out of 30 teams (a whopping 53.3%), make the playoffs. Once those 16 teams are seeded, the bracket will never change, regardless of any upsets that occur.

Major League Baseball (MLB)

MLB doesn’t refer to their tournament as the ‘playoffs.’ For baseball, it’s the ‘postseason’ that determines the champion. Only 8 of the 30 MLB teams (the lowest of all major American sports leagues at 26.7%), make the postseason, often coming down to the very last game, and occasionally needing an extra game as a tiebreaker.

Major League Soccer (MLS)

The youngest of the major American leagues, MLS advances 10 of their current 18 teams (55.5%) to the playoffs. Five teams from each conference are seeded, and while the first three seeds get byes, the #4 and #5 seeds play each other for the right to face the #1 seed. Once the bracket is set, no changes are made to account for upsets.

National Hockey League (NHL)

The NHL may just be the most fair when it comes to their playoff system. While they do allow a large percentage of their teams in (16 out of 30 – 53.3%), teams are re-seeded after each round. What this takes into account, that no other major American league does, is the regular season. A lower-seeded team that didn’t perform as well over the course of the 82-game season, doesn’t get an easier path to the Stanley Cup Finals just because they upset the higher seed. Kudos to the NHL for keeping the regular season more relevant than the other four leagues.

What is your favorite playoff system? Do any of these five leagues get it right? Should MLS consider going to the European-style of crowning the regular-season champion and forgoing any regular season?

Image courtesy of NHL.com

Today’s post is courtesy of guest blogger Adam Sherlip from The Hockey Foundation.

At the end of the day, we all know the sports industry is about making money.  Sure, there’s a part of it that is entertainment, but not to the degree that the industry claims, and certainly not how we perceive it to be.  Listen to sports radio.  People rarely call in to talk about the amazing entertainment of the teams they watched.  They call in to complain or criticize or say they can do better.  Look at the advertisements by the teams, that tell you about the “grit”, “energy” and “determination” of their “experienced” or “youthful” team.  It’s a marketing of emotions.  It’s the business of sports.

I have no issue with capitalism.  Everybody deserves to make money for what they do.  Owners deserve to make a profit off of sales/sponsorship reps that fill the arena with fans and sponsors that are paying to see players they believe can help their local team win.  What I do have an issue with is pretending that it is for the betterment of the community if this team wins.  I’m not saying local fans shouldn’t enjoy themselves when their local favorite team wins a game or a championship, but keep in perspective that watching highly compensated salaried athletes from another state/country play against others of the same breed should not determine your mood the following day.  If/when those athletes go out into the community to do charity work, keep in mind that while there are absolutely those that do these events out of the kindness of their hearts, many more of them go out of obligation to an organization/league that requires they do goodwill because it will endear the player/team/league to the fans, ultimately resulting in more tickets sold.  Many community relations departments will strategize what organizations to help based on how it affects ticket sales.  Not all, but most.  An important distinction is in the case of natural disasters or tragic events, like Hurricane Katrina or 9/11.  Everybody opened up their hearts when these disasters happened, and players that supported recovery in any way should be appreciated as kind-hearted human beings, not charitable athletes.

I comment on this because of the Winter Classic, the annual NHL game played outside on New Year’s Day.  It’s a relatively new brand concept for the NHL, but for what my opinion’s worth as someone that has now worked more time since my time at the Islanders than working for the Islanders, it was the purest hockey game event I’ve seen at the professional level in quite a while.

The Winter Classic is a big business for the NHL.  It is the Super Bowl (because it’s a one day event in the Winter), without the ring.  NBC throws a lot of money to televise this game, and sponsors have returned to the league to be aligned with a magical event.  And I get it.  Even Mike Milbury was warmer than usual because this game was about a bunch of hockey players and hockey fans enjoying themselves.  The fun was palpable, even through the fighting and aggression, because it was highly skilled children playing in front of a lot of people.

When the players were asked whether the poor weather was a factor, they all brushed it off as a natural aspect of playing outside.  They were blinded with adrenaline because of the experience of playing outside in front of a large crowd, but also because they were just playing outside like many of us did when we were kids.  That’s what it’s all about, getting back to the child-like state of playing sports.

As a sports-crazed nation and species, we love watching highlight reals.  We love it because we get to witness world class athletes execute elite athletic achievements, like we envisioned we could when we were children. The next time you watch a sporting event, remember what it was like to play that game as a child, but with the knowledge as an adult that we are not them.  We can achieve what drives us, the way the sport drives the athletes.  Appreciate human achievement when Alex Ovechkin, Sidney Crosby, or any random minor-league call-up performs an incredible feat.  Appreciate it because it’s an art-form unto itself.  If you enjoy the art of the sport, the way hockey players change lines on the fly, the way the ball swooshes through the net from a perfect shot, striking out 20 players in a game, etc., appreciate it as you would a Broadway musical or a Van Gogh masterpiece.

Ultimately, you will learn to love the sport for the beauty of the game, won’t care who wins, won’t stress out when “your” team loses, and will be happy to pay your hard earned money to see the continuation of the art you loved as a child but weren’t qualified enough to continue.  Remember, the players you watch probably can’t do what you do, because they’re human, not superhuman.  At the end of the day, you’ll have more fun, and isn’t that what it’s all about?

Adam Sherlip is the Founder & Executive Director of The Hockey Foundation, a non-profit that uses ice hockey as a means to improve life in remote communities around the world.  The UN & US recognize sports as being a key component in international/cultural cooperation, and Adam’s philosophy is that the ideals of hockey stand above other team sports to achieve these goals.

The Hockey Foundation is about to embark on a journey to Ladakh, a predominantly Buddhist region, in a predominantly Muslim state, in a predominantly Hindu country.  It’s a high altitude desert that is heavily populated with the Indian military, as it’s located between Tibet & Pakistan.  The Hockey Foundation is going to Ladakh to help communicate a message of peace while on the ice.  For more information, please visit www.hockeyfoundation.org.

I’m always on the look out for new, fun ways that teams can use social media to engage their fans and customers, so I was quite pleased to see this latest initiative from the Los Angeles Kings and the Colorado Avalanche (with a big assist to Digital Royalty, who worked with the Kings on this program).

On Saturday, October 23, the Los Angeles Kings and Colorado Avalanche “faced-off” in a the first-ever NHL Hashtag Battle, as part of Hockey Fights Cancer Awareness month. From the start of the game until the final buzzer, fans of each team could tweet with either the hashtag #GoKings or #GoAvs, and for every tagged tweet, $1 would be donated to the Childrens Hospital Los Angeles or local cancer organizations in Colorado involved with the Hockey Fights Cancer program.

This type of social media initiative has a wonderful combination of competition between rival teams, fan engagement and community outreach. The battle was actively promoted on the teams websites and via email. So what did the results look like?

Final score:

• #GoKings: 29,374 tweets
• #GoAvs: 13,876 tweets

Specifically looking at the Los Angeles Kings:

• $29,374 was raised for the Childrens Hospital of Los Angeles
• The Kings were also the #1 trending topic world wide during the game (better than UFC, which had two fights going on, and Kanye West, whose short film “Runaway” debuted at the same time)
• The team added close to 1,000 Twitter followers during the battle

Sounds like a pretty effective campaign from the folks at the Kings and Digital Royalty. You can read more about the Kings use of Twitter here.

Earlier today, Jonathan Goldberg (@JRGoldberg on Twitter) pointed out a promotion that the Florida Panthers just launched. Take a look at the screenshot below:

While the team can’t actually use LeBron James to sell hockey tickets, the references are obvious and offer a creative way to try to leverage the buzz of LeBron’s potential move to Florida to sell hockey tickets.  Panthers President and COO Michael Yormark said “Based on the hype surrounding rumors of a new King headed to South Florida, we wanted to remind our fans that we want them to feel like royalty. Certainly, it’s an exciting time to be part of the South Florida sports industry.” (ESPN.com)

What do you think of this type of promotion? Some people would call it creative and outside-the-box, while others like @JRGoldberg call it “tacky” and says “This makes them look minor league, desperate and silly.” Share your thoughts in the comments (after you watch LeBron’s special of course, which is on in 10 minutes!)

On Tuesday night, I finally took in a New Jersey Devils game at the Prudential Center, which opened back in October of 2007. Having been to several Devils games at the older Continental Airlines Arena (now the Izod Center), I was looking forward to seeing what the new building had to offer. Here are some quick thoughts from the game, including some tweets that I sent during the game.

Stadium Environment

• Taking in the Devils/Bruins game at the Prudential Center. My 1st time here at “The Rock.” Definitely like it http://tweetphoto.com/16470860
• Prudential Center has a great open-back design on one end of the mezzanine seating/concourse area. Unique feel for http://tweetphoto.com/16475479
  • It almost had the same feeling I get when walking a baseball concourse, where you can still see the on-field action while you get to your seat.
• They’re doing Score-O (four fans try a shot from mid-ice with most of the net blocked off). I did Score-O back in high school and made it on the first shot! One of the sports highlights of my life.
  • I was 16 when I did this contest, so that means they’ve been doing it for at least 13 seasons now, and fans still seem to enjoy it, especially when the first guy made the shot.
• Fun video during the break of the Devils’ ushers dancing to the music. Crowd got into it too. http://tweetphoto.com/16480551
  • I love when the personality of the arena staff comes through like this.
• Guy not paying attention to the mascot’s t-shirt toss just got hit it the back of the head w/ a shirt. At least it wasn’t a puck!
• There was a “deck” in one lower corner of the arena where the Devils had some female dancers. The location was odd as only part of the arena could see them, and only some of their dances ended up on the center-hung scoreboard.
• They also featured jerseys of all New Jersey high school and college hockey teams hanging on the walls throughout the entire building.
• The food selection seemed pretty standard with typical prices. The one “extra” that I really noticed was the “Taste of Newark” section on the mezzanine concourse that featured food from popular local restaurants.
• The egress from the mezzanine level was a little rough. They could definitely benefit from additional escalators.

Sponsorship

• The permanent naming rights signage for Prudential Center is prominently featured everywhere inside and outside the building, and always includes both the company name and logo for full branding impact.
• PNC Bank has a strong presence, particularly in the PNC Tower, which is also where the box office is located (more visibility). You can’t miss PNC in the building – they also had frequent appearances on the scoreboard and LED.
• Frank’s Red Hot Sauce was just on the scoreboard and ribbon LED. Don’t think I’ve seen them in any other sports sponsorships.
• Great presence by Verizon at the Prudential Center. Phone demos, sales staff, free co-branded t-shirts, games and more http://tweetphoto.com/16477636
  • I cannot over-emphasize how effective this activation was. There was a “Text Battle” station where kids used Verizon phones to answer Devils trivia, a long line to get the free Devils/Verizon t-shirt (which also included a product demo), and Verizon sales/service staff answering questions and showing off new phones.
• The Belvedere Vodka Ice Lounge premium club seating. Looks very nice inside. http://tweetphoto.com/16477896
• @SeatGeek I walked past it (The Fire Lounge) on the other side. Can’t get into either tonight but they look great. Love the Fire and Ice theme between the two.

Sales

• My favorite Devils sales rep (@isatten) swung by and dropped off a season ticket flyer. And I’m actually contemplating it.
• The Devils have put together some creative season ticket offers, including a 12 month payment plan, guaranteed early purchase/renewal benefits, additional higher-end pay-in-full benefits, and 15 different top-tier prize drawings that all early-buyers are eligible for.
• The team also offers a $15 and $30 price point for select locations, which is a pretty affordable option for hockey tickets (and I firmly believe there is no such thing as a bad seat for a hockey game).

I have to say that I came away very impressed with the arena across the board. I’m sure the Devils are quite happy with it as well!

I attended last night’s Rangers/Thrashers game at Madison Square Garden (unfortunately, the Rangers lost in the shootout). While I was there, I decided to send out a series of sports business “tweets” based on some of my observations. In case you missed them in real time, here they are again for your viewing pleasure. As always, I’d love your feedback and thoughts in the comments.

• Some #sportsbiz thoughts from tonight’s #NYR game: I don’t like the “I am a Ranger” messaging. Been done too many times by other teams.
  • Reply from Stefmara “I am a Ranger” has been their tagline for 3 seasons now.
• I want to ride the SpongeTech zamboni! http://mypict.me/266xU
• Rangers dashers are packed tight, only one spot that I can see with an in-house ticketing message and two for MSG HD.
• No ribbon bands at MSG, which limits inventory a bit. Even so, there is still some internal facade that could easily be used but isn’t.
• Some scattered no shows in the building, but still very good for a Monday vs. Atlanta. Rangers have had a great show rate all year.
• Also find it interesting that the MSG teams refer to their season ticket holders as subscribers. Makes me think of a magazine subscription.
  • Reply from bluejayrock - Or perhaps a subscription to your friendly local cable company, say maybe Cablevision?
  • Reply from mario_prosp – “Subscriber” makes the fan sound more connected w/ the team, “ticket holder” sounds transactional.
  • My reply – I see that perspective. But I also think that of a subscription as something that I can just cancel – I don’t feel invested in it.
• Just had the Coca Cola fan music choice of the game. Nice way to activate in a unique way around a basic part of the game experience.
• Sponsor of the Night: FXDD – in the ice, on screen for replays, text messaging promos. I have no idea who they are, but now I want to know.
• Might have spoke too soon. The NY Lottery’s Human Puck Race was great! Engaging participants and the crowd loved it. http://mypict.me/269e6

Last week the NHL had their 2008-09 end-of-season awards ceremony at the Palms Casino in Las Vegas. It was a night to celebrate a great season of hockey, with Alex Ovechkin taking home three awards and three different players from the Bruins winning individual awards.  From all accounts, the event seemed to be a great way for the NHL to cap off a successful year.  However, I want to talk about a different event that took place out there.

While the NHL was taking over Las Vegas, they partnered with PokerStars.net, a free online poker site, and the World Series of Poker for a special charity poker tournament.  The tournament (which was appropriately a “shootout” style event) featured a combination of current NHL players, celebrities and amateur poker players that won their seats through PokerStars.net.  Scott Hartnell from the Philadelphia Flyers ended up winning the event, earning $25,000 for the ASPCA.  You can read more about the event at NHL.com and PokerNews.com.

Now the NHL and the World Series of Poker might seem like an unusual pair of companies to work together.  After all, poker is viewed as a gambling activity, and most professional sports do everything they can to avoid connections to gambling. But in this case, the pairing seemed to work out well for both sides.  The NHL found a way to gain more exposure for their first Las Vegas awards show and create another unique event to add to their get-away weekend. The World Series of Poker got to add a unique hockey flair to their events for a day and tap into some of the NHL’s recent positive publicity.  Take a look at some of the pictures here, courtesy of PokerRoad.com. I particulary like the hockey rink style poker table and the hockey boards in front of the spectators.  They even brought out the Stanley Cup during that day’s WSOP tournament winner’s ceremony.

Ultimately, both “leagues” are looking to increase their public exposure.  The NHL is still viewed as a distant 4th in the “Big 4″ U.S. sports, but is arguably gaining ground.  Meanwhile, poker and the WSOP want to grow their audeince and be viewed as “sports entertainment” with their coverage on ESPN.  I think both brands benefit from an event like this, and they deserve credit for their unlikely partnership.