Straight from His Inbox: Five Questions with Jordan Looby
We're talking all things Attendance, Atmosphere & Brand with the University of Maryland Assistant Athletic Director for Marketing Strategy & Fan Experience, Jordan Looby.
Mike: What has been the biggest change in sports branding that you’ve seen from your start in the industry until now?
Jordan: Here’s one change (and challenge, really) that I think a lot about: It’s no longer “okay” for a brand to abstain from the conversation.
Whether this conversation is about something as important as racial justice in America or as insignificant as a viral moment on “Love Island”, brands need to be prepared to react—and better—engage on these topics. This reality highlights the need for those who control the brand’s voice to understand on a very deep level what the brand actually stands for. What does it represent? Why was it initially created, and how has it changed over time? What are its guiding principles? What’s the goal and what’s the vision for the future? Knowing the answers to these questions is non-negotiable, in part because it informs brand managers what their role in these conversations should be.
Ultimately, a brand is no longer just a logo, a catchphrase, and a set of PMS colors. It’s a living, breathing thing with a personality. And just like us living, breathing humans have thoughts, perspectives, and values, a brand needs to as well.
Mike: In your eyes, what is the perfect gameday driveway-to-driveway experience for fans?
Jordan: This is a difficult question to answer specifically because the “perfect” gameday is so subjective. Maybe there isn’t such a thing? Regardless, I know all of us who play a role in the gameday experience hope we can get as close to it as possible. While being a sports fan is rewarding, it’s also stressful (for some more so than others). The last thing you want to do on gameday is to add to this stress for fans, so you really need to think long and hard (and do research) about what those potential stress points are.
Are our parking lots clearly marked? Were there enough porta potties for tailgaters? Did we get fans through security screening quickly, and were our ushers polite when doing so? Did our signage make it easy for you to find your seat? The goal is that the answer to all these questions is, “yes.” If, after arriving back home, the only thing that a fan can recall stressing them out was the game itself, then it was probably a pretty good gameday.
One thing I would add… before fans leave their driveways, did we effectively communicate with them? It’s our job to be proactive about limiting these potential gameday stressors by making sure they have every piece of information available.
Mike: In today’s world, what inspires someone to attend a sporting event?
Jordan: The ability to socialize and all of the social expectations and needs (and pressures) that come along with it. Sure—there are diehards who haven’t missed a game in two decades, but, if we’re being honest, that’s a much smaller group of people than many of us probably want to admit to ourselves. It’s important to appeal to those folks still, but you also need to find a way to satisfy the other fans’ social desires.
For example, Gen Z-ers spend almost three hours a day on social media, but only 53% of the generation identifies as a sports fan. How can we connect those two things?
Mike: You started at the University of Maryland as a Marketing Assistant in January of 2013. On March 6, 2013 against the University of North Carolina, a new tradition was born at a Maryland Basketball game: the famous flag unfurling. How did this incredible tradition begin? How does the Maryland student section make an impact on games?
Jordan: I wish I could take credit for this, but I was probably too busy trying to find my desk and make sure I had enough sharpies for women’s lacrosse’s postgame autograph session (shout out to Cathy Reese and Lauri Kenis). My boss, Carrie Blankenship (who oversaw our Men’s Basketball marketing at the time), spearheaded the development of this tradition. In any case, the short history of the flag goes like this…
We previously debuted another now-tradition, the flash mob, and it was really successful; we felt it really exhibited how important the crowd/student section is to the overall atmosphere at our games at XFINITY Center. And, to quickly answer your second question, our student section (re: “The Wall”) gives us an incredible competitive advantage. I’m biased, but I would put our in-game atmosphere up against any school in the country. But I digress…
Carrie used the success of the flash mob as the catalyst for executing an idea she had long had: the “flag unveil.” She approached a donor, who helped spearhead a fundraising effort to pay for the flag (which is approximately 85’ x 50’). None of it would’ve been possible without that group.
We then executed it for the first time ever at the UNC game. It exceeded our expectations, so we adopted it at football and have done it at almost every Men’s Basketball and Football game since. We've also done it at select Men’s Lacrosse and Women’s Basketball games.
Mike: The University of Maryland has been a partner with Under Armour for over fifteen years. Can you talk about how Under Armour plays a role in the fan experience at all your sporting events? What is it like to work hand-in-hand with one of the largest apparel companies in the world?
Jordan: I’m not sure Maryland Athletics exists in the way it does without our incredible partnership with Under Armour. Whether it’s their innovation and boldness in developing our uniforms, their collaboration on marquee athletic department events, or even their contribution to our gameday atmosphere (when I started at Maryland, they actually produced our football intro video), UA is essential to our operations.
Only two athletic departments in the country are able to say that one of their former student-athletes went on to found a top-three sports apparel brand in the world, and we’re one of them. That’s powerful.
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