For those of you interested in football (soccer) in the UK, you won’t have failed to have noticed a stunning transfer which took place last week. Manchester City striker Craig Bellamy, one of the club’s top players last season, joined his hometown club and the team I support, Cardiff City, on loan for the entire 2010/11 campaign.
It was a transfer that shook the football world and divided opinion, mainly down to should a player of Bellamy’s undoubted ability be “allowed” to join a second-tier side like Cardiff when his talent would be better used at another side in the Premier League?
I don’t want to make this post totally about football but but I have also found the media coverage that surrounded it fascinating and there have been several marketing lessons learned:
1. Be Passionate
I have previously blogged about the importance of passion and I believe you should base your online business around something you are genuinely passionate about to give yourself the best chance of success.
If you know one thing about Craig Bellamy, it’s he is a passionate footballer.
While opinion is divided on him and his temperament often comes into question, nobody will argue that he is a winner, always gives 100 percent for his team and does not stand for fellow players who do not pull their weight.
In football and indeed business, ability alone is not enough in a competitive environment where they are limited places at the top.
You need that added passion, that tireless drive to succeed on your way to the top while others fall by the wayside.
2. Take a Stand
Bellamy is a strong-minded individual who is not afraid to express his opinions.
His out-spoken nature has seen him fall out with more managers and fellow players than perhaps any other Premiership footballer in the history of the game and indeed, at the age of 31, Cardiff City is his ninth professional club.
However, his stance means that everybody in football knows who Craig Bellamy is and managers know what to expect from him when they sign him for their club.
You either love him or hate him. There is no in-between with Bellamy.
But, has his controversial nature affected his career as a professional footballer?
Probably not.
While he only spent one season at a “top four” club – Liverpool during the 2006-07 season – Bellamy has played in the top flight for 10 seasons before joining Cardiff, earning close to £100,000 per week.
There were no shortage of Premiership clubs willing to take him on if his parent club, Manchester City would let them.
Add a touch of the “Bellamy factor” to your online business – speak your mind, stay true to yourself and earn recognition and respect from your fellow peers.
3. Develop a Strong, Personal Brand
Bellamy has one of the strongest personal brands in professional football today.
Sure, he doesn’t sell as many shirts as the likes of David Beckham and Ronaldo but his outspoken nature means everyone in the game will know who he is and have an opinion on him.
If you are to make yourself known in whatever niche you operate in, a strong personal brand is one of the best weapons you can have in your online armoury.
You can brand yourself however you want and work it into all of your marketing material.
Your own personal brand can also be part of what you want your customers to say about you.
Do you want to be known as the “ethical marketer” or “the marketer who says what others are afraid to”?
If you build your personal brand around these statements or beliefs, you can!
4. Marketing… Just… Works…
It is incredible how marketing can affect your perception of a product, or in Bellamy’s case, a player.
He is often portrayed as a loudmouth, a trouble maker and a disruptive influence but in the Welsh media his signing was portrayed as a “homecoming” and Bellamy was the “local boy done good”.
Indeed, the whole city went “Bellamy crazy” and I haven’t seen a player’s signing be marketed more aggressivley, yet so positively.
His image was beamed onto the walls of Cardiff Castle on Friday night and over £400,000 in ticket and merchandise sales were made in the 24 hours after he signed.
Genuine scarcity was evident when the club ran of number “3′s” and letter “Y’s” to adorn the back of replica shirts (“Bellamy 39″ became “Bellam 3″ for those who couldn’t wait) and the last few tickets for his debut against Doncaster Rovers sold out on Saturday morning – undoubtedly ramping up the desire for them even more.
The club were quick to stock further Bellamy-related merchandise in the shop and even had a DVD of his debut match and goal within hours of the final whistle.
Amazing stuff from start to finish…
5. Jealousy is Rife
Wherever there is success, jealousy is never far behind.
In my opinion, there has been some laughable, negative reporting in the predominantly “English” media around Bellamy signing for Welsh club Cardiff, including:
“After all their financial troubles, how can Cardiff afford Bellamy?”
Bellamy signing for Cardiff, despite his estimated wage of almost £100,000 per week, raised eyebrows. But did it ever occur to the reporters, such as this agenda-lead clown, Cardiff may only be contributing to a small percentage of his wages while cash-rich parent club Manchester City pick up the majority of the bill?
However, this jealousy has acted as positve marketing for the club and I believe it has further cemented the bond between Cardiff fans and Bellamy.
His arrival has created a real “them and us” mentality which, while has always been at the club in terms of Welsh vs English, has not been seen on this scale in the 15 years I have supported them.
If your online business becomes successful and you “dare” to talk about it or have the “nerve” to enjoy the money that comes with success, prepare for the fall out from small minded, jealous people who will claim it’s “unfair”, that you have “scammed” or somehow “cheated” to become successful or that you are “showing off”.
6. Help Those Lower Down the Food Chain
Bellamy’s arrival at Cardiff certainly falls into this category.
He was arguably one of the Premier League’s best players last season and has now dropped down a division to play for a team which fell at the final hurdle last season, losing in the play-off final.
If he takes Cardiff up this season, he will be a legend among Cardiff fans for eternity.
This is something you should look to achieve in your own online business and have a long-term interest in the success of your prospects.
If you can help other people become successful, then it will be repaid multiple times over – they will become long-term customers and even future JV partners as they align themselves with you.
If you don’t think you are at a stage where you can help out other people in your niche then you are mistaken.
You only need to be one step ahead of somebody else to teach them and if you have knowledge and passion about your niche, you will already be in a perfect position to pass on some of your expertise.
7. It’s Not Just About the Money
Finally, you shouldn’t lose sight of the reasons you are running an online business.
I suspect it is because you hate your job, you are fed up of struggling to pay the bills but most importantly of all, want to create a better life for you and your family.
Of course, more money is one of the biggest benefits of working online but it’s not the be all and end all…
Freedom, no stressful commutes, not being told what to do and spending more time with those who mean the most to you are all huge reasons why people decide to quit their 9-5s and set up an online business.
Family and loved ones seems to be a point missed in a lot of reporting about Bellamy’s transfer.
During the press conference to announce his signing, he confessed he had left home at 15 to embark on a career as a professional footballer and was now looking forward to being able to spend more time with his young family.
Bellamy could have arguably moved to any of the top clubs in Europe and picked up yet another mega signing on fee but he put his family first and chose a lower level of football in order to be closer to them.
I think that speaks volumes about him as a person, regardless of how he is portrayed in the media.
Summary
While this post was written a little tongue-in-cheek, the marketing principles described can be applied to Craig Bellamy’s transfer to Cardiff City. If you have any comments to make on the transfer or have any further marketing additions to the list, please add them in the comments below!
Great post buddy, and it’s all true!
James Francis recently posted..How Do I Sell More Stuff
Hi David
If you meant your post to be tongue in cheek you certainly failed.
I found the info to be solid and extremely thought-provoking. The anolgies are great and I shall certainly share this post with my connections!
Hi David
I am NOT a football supporter but your comments are very much applicable to Internet Marketing no matter what niche you are in.
If only more of those at the top of their fields would think about those lower down the scale we might have a better world rather than the attitude we see all the time of “Screw you, i’m all right Jack”.
I agree that a lot of Internet Marketers do not take this attitude but some do and are constantly coming out with the “latest” new thing hoping to take our money.
Richard
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Still don’t believe he’s gone to Cardiff! Talk about 1st apperance though! I read in the paper yesterday he’s scared to go out because everyone will crowd him because they love him so much! haha
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Great post David, Good Luck to Bellamy.
Your post gives me further incentive to do more with my new site and promotions. The giving it all, and marking out a distinctive presence is really important.
Roger
and City beat Liverpool 3-0 without him!
David,
I am a retired soccer player and still love the game. I thought your post was eye-opening for me. While I was reading my post this afternoon for any last minute changes, I instantly thought of Sally Struethers. She used to do a commercial about rescuing children. One day she was on t.v., the next day-gone! I heard it was because she showed too much passion. I started questioning myself until I read your post. Thank you
That is a great way to bring out the truths of two completely different topics.
Great post!
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I certainly agree with the principles you have laid out in this article.
However, I have never heard of Craig Bellamy!
cheers
Jamie recently posted..Top 4 Reasons to Use WordPress For Your Online Business Website
Still,
I am sure he has never heard of me either
Jamie recently posted..Top 4 Reasons to Use WordPress For Your Online Business Website
Hi David
I think your point about developing a “Strong, Personal Brand” is particularly relevant to an IM audience, as self promotion seems to be a key ingredient for success as an online marketer.
Since we’re on the subject of football and how it is relevant to marketing, I’d like to remind you of a god of the game, the best all round footballer of all time; John Charles.
Never heard of him?
Well, in the 1950s John Charles was reknown as the world’s best footballer (the only UK player ever to be rated as the best in the world) and was not only the best attacker but the best defender in the world at the same time! Today he would be priceless. When Pele was to play against him in his first World Cup in 1958 he said, “It would be the greatest honor of his life.”
All this and yet most football fans have never heard of him. Why? Marketing. Pele, Maradonna, Ronaldo etc. even David Beckham, are all footballers with lives that have caugth the world’s attention and are world class self-promoters. John Charles was a quiet, humble gentleman that shunned the spotlight… and was quickly forgotten because of it.
Lesson: if you’re good, let people know it!
Hi Richard,
Thanks for the comment – of course I have heard of John Charles, he was a Cardiff City and Wales legend!
We had a minute’s silence for him at Ninian Park shortly after his death in 2004 and visiting Sunderland fans booed throughout.
Justice was done though, we hammered them 4-0…
David
Hi Richard
Yep, John Charles is a true Leeds United Legend!!!
…who might also have played for Cardiff
Rob
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Hi David,
Great post here mate! I really enjoy these ‘parallel between the situations’ style of posts you do, especially (as I’m a big footie fan) the football related ones…
…though you do keep talking about this ‘Cardiff FC’…can’t say I’ve ever heard of them
…just kiddin’ mate, like I said on my blog now you’ve got Bellamy on board (like him or loath him, he is class) I expect your boys to tear up the division this year…though you shouldn’t expect any points from the match on the 23rd Oct
Rob
Rob Bradley (** RJB **) recently posted..Easy Squeezy & 100 Commissions
David
Great post, all too true, Whilst on the face of it it seems a strange decision by Craig, you have to respect his principles and morals and ultimately he has got something that works for him and is a massive boost for the local club.
You must be pleased with the signing….
Tom
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I must say that pulling 7 lessons from any given analogous situation, and then elaborating intelligently on each point, is no small feat. You did a bang up job with the post, and have made me infinitely curious about Bellamy!
I’m a footie fan, though I must admit I don’t watch it that often. Looks like RJB is a footie fan as well… perhaps we’ll have to get a little football challenge going at Alex Jeffreys’ next event! LOL!
Be Passionate… Take a Stand… Strong Personal Brand…
It strikes me that the individuals who do this, probably don’t need to be instructed to do so.
These folks have probably been doing this all their lives. For those who haven’t developed these aspects of their personalities / identities thus far… it’s probably a bit difficult to LEARN.
Bellamy sounds like an original, who didn’t do these things because they would benefit him, but did them because it is who he is.
#6 and #7 are also incredibly poignant.
But folks either already do this / believe this, or they don’t.
These, too, are things that are inherent to one’s personality and identify.
Net – this is a great analysis of what makes individuals stand out. In footie or in business.
But probably won’t be very effective in changing the behavior of marketers who don’t possess these qualities already.
Autnenticity is a trait, not a tactic.
Thanks for the thought-provoking post.
Keep us posted on Bellamy’s progress!
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Hi David
Great post, and some great parallels you draw within it.
Got to say I am not a Bellamy fan, having said that my team (Spurs) wanted him and I would have been damn pleased to see him leading our front line. He doesn’t get paid £95k a week to be nice, and we need someone with a bit of hoyle!
There is no doubting his passion for football and yours for IM and bringing value to your readers.
A good read, much appreciated.
Cheers
Anthony
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Once again David this article clearly shows your ability to perceive certain qualities in a person regardless of what might be considered less than positive news about that person.Bravo my friend, keep up the good work. A.G.