Steve Arters joins the Ziga Zoga Team
April 12, 2006
Ziga Zoga is proud to announce the appointment of Steve Arters as its Chief Marketing Officer. Steve will be responsible for Ziga Zoga’s strategic marketing and communications.
Steve’s expertise stretches from the board room to the newsroom with 12 years of Agency experience before spending more than 10 years in the media. His specialization is utilizing marketing and media to produce a dynamic synergy to brand products, companies and individuals.
He has been an integral part of advertising/marketing agencies in Dallas and San Antonio after being a news/sports writer and editor for eight years with United Press International and two years with The Associated Press.
He has worked on national, regional and local accounts and his background includes automotive, educational, financial, food service, healthcare, medical and sports marketing, including working with professional teams and organizations, collegiate athletic conferences and various companies.
Steve, who graduated from West Virginia University, and his wife, Suzanne, who graduated from the University of Texas, have three sons, Steve, Sean and Scott – all top soccer players in their age groups. Steve is on the board of the San Antonio Metropolitan Youth Soccer Institute (SAMYS) and a longtime supporter of growing the game in the San Antonio community.
Creating Passionate MLS Fans
April 3, 2006
How does Major League Soccer create passionate soccer fans? That was the question posed by former Fire GM, Peter Wilt. I wonder this myself and have to admit I am one of the "soccer snobs" referenced in Jeff Carlisle’s article on ESPNsoccernet titled "Growing the game" .
Creating that emotional connection with the fan is something I have personally thought alot about. Thus, this premise is a primary reason for why Ziga Zoga came about. With the youth participation levels being so high across the country, one has to wonder where are all these prospective fans are? With over 25+ million registered soccer players, something is just not connecting and I believe Wilt and Alexi Lalas are on to something with trying understand the diverse market mix and how one becomes emotionally connected to their teams and their league. Different strokes for different folks right?
Well, that statement is truer today than you might possibly know. What I don’t see for fans is the opportunity and messaging behind a voice that calls people to connect to the league in their own way. It might be a different language or connecting to the league through different mediums - who knows for sure? Although, let me submit to you - I am passionate about the game but I too have not caught the MLS bug. Is it because I’m not in an MLS market? Is the bug out there? Is it a bug, a buzz?
Well, I’m not in England, Germany, Spain or Argentina and I catch a lot of what’s going on in those leagues. Is it the product on the field? Truthfully, it could be better however; the league has come a long way. The quality of players have come a long way. The NFL, NBA, and MLB were once in similar and unique positions as the MLS. Lamar Hunt - a founder of the NFL - recognized the potential in the MLS years ago along with Mr. Anschutz and both men are passionate about sports but more importantly, they are keen businessmen that are in this for the long haul. It will take time and the MLS’ days in the spotlight are soon to come.
Important work for the MLS is ahead and it is taking many of the right steps. What I believe the MLS needs is a grassroot uprising. Although, building the grassroots has been ongoing for years - I think it is again a matter of time but also a matter of amplification and feeding the grassroots more. I believe the MLS needs to become much more accessible to its fanbase outside of existing markets while continuing to focus on increasing attendance with in MLS markets.
So what is the key? Peter Wilt was exactly right as he stated, "What MLS needs to do a better job of is creating passion for their teams," - "What you ultimately want to do is create an emotional connection between the community and the team."
Passion is what you see across the globe. You can feel it, hear it, see it and you can really, really "feel it". The EPL is a great example. When you watch a game - the announcers energy for what is happening on the field is in sync with the crowd. And the crowd, AHHH - the chants, the songs. Then there is South American football that has a distinct flavor that you can just taste and it is beautiful. When you see that Brazilian yellow you can almost immediately hear the drums, the whistles and you know you are about to witness something special yet, all of this is part of a unique and long-lived history. This game is ingrained in fabric of culture in these countries and America’s passion is young - its evolving.
So, what must the MLS do? Frankly, it must let the consumer become the producer. It must allow the community of fans have its voice and listen to it MLS. Create a dialog with fans near and far and build deep rooted emotional connections. The central purpose of the league and its teams should be to drive a deep desire and need for fans to know what is happening with their team and our league on a daily basis. Most importantly, how does the league help its base ….???
Stay tuned Zoggers there is more to come soon.
Ciao,
Jason
