2. Organization Overview
• American professional football league operating with 32 teams spread over two
divisions (AFC & NFC).
• The teams participate in a 17-week regular season, with each playing 16 games
and having one bye (or “off”) week.
• Following the conclusion of this regular season, 12 teams compete in a post-
season tournament for the right to play in the Super Bowl, one of the largest and
most marketing-heavy annual events across the world.
• Boasts the highest average attendance of any professional sports league of
anywhere in the world.
3. Organization Leadership
• The NFL’s executive officer is the
commissioner, Roger Goodell.
• He has held this spot since 2006,
when he took over from Paul
Tagliabue
• Goodell has overseen some of
the most prominent changes in
both player safety and player
conduct rulings since taking
office--often to much criticism.
4. Audience
Fans
●Currently the NFL holds over 150 million fans in America. In the US, this accounts for >65% of all adults, with 56%
saying they tune in via television and 9% tuning in via the internet.
●Outside of the US, 38% of the international adult audience tunes into NFL games, with notable spikes in Mexico, India,
and China. This means that the international audience for the NFL is nearly 4x that of the audience within the US.
●American men are more likely (74%) than women (56%) to be fans, while 25-34’s are the most tuned in age-group.
5. Audience (cont.)
Fans cont.
●That said, women are the NFL’s fastest growing demographic. They now account for 45%of total NFL fans and helped NFL
revenue top a record $9.5 billion last year.
●Nielsen data shows women have grown to represent more than a third of the league’s average viewership. “Sunday Night
Football” ranked first among women ages 18 to 49 for the first time last season, and Fox said its female football viewing audience
had hit a record high.
●Further, NFL fans are 20% more likely to buy products they are advertised during games than non-fans.
6. Audience (cont.)
Employees (including players)
●In the last decade, over 90 players have been arrested for cases of domestic violence, 5 of which have been charged with the crime
twice.
●In 2014, the NFL instituted a new conduct policy primarily focused on ending domestic violence. This policy imposes a six game
unpaid ban for first time offenders and up to a lifetime ban for second time offenders.
●The NFL has also increased its efforts with new players, instituting a mandated anti-domestic violence training session for draft
picks. The first session of this training will occur with the 2015 class.
7. NFL’s Reactions
Blaming the victim
Steve Bisciotti, Ravens
Owner, blamed Janay
Ray Rice punches his then-fiancée Janey
Palmer
8. Manipulating the Law
The law states that “Any defendant charged with a crime is eligible for
enrollment in a pretrial intervention program. If accepted, candidates must
obey several conditions and, upon completion, have no record of conviction and
no mark on their criminal record”
'What was the prosecutor thinking,'"
said Donna D'Andrea, a legal advocate
for the women's center.
9. Misleading the Public
Goodell denies seeing Ray
Rice video
"We had not seen any videotape of what
occurred in the elevator," Goodell said.
"We assumed that there was a video, we
asked for video, we asked for anything
that was pertinent, but we were never
granted that opportunity."
14. Communications Strategy
Goodell appealed to the fans’ desire to put the issue to rest by:
•Recognizing publicly that they had a problem.
•Showcasing players’ introspection & executive commitment “to
get it right” this time.
•Leveraging reputable and popular domestic violence Brand
Ambassadors and experts.
•Securing new communications strategists as expert resources on
domestic violence.
15. Communications Objectives/Publics
•Manage NFL image more effectively, starting 2014.
•Educate 100% of the coaches, players, family members, and
selected college and high-school students, starting 2014.
•Establish relationships with the top influencers in domestic
violence influencers –nationally-- to partner for a 2014-2015
awareness campaign.
•Launch multi-media Public Service Announcements (PSAs) to
raise public awareness with NoMore.org and others.
16. NFL Strategy
Traditional & Non-Traditional
Tactics:
August: Letter to 32 teams. Sept. Press Conference: Updated personal conduct policy.
•Announced positioning VP SR and three expert advisors, incl. law enforcement.
•Internal training, extended to family members & coaches. Developed a NEW outreach
program for high school and college players.
•Began airing NO MORE PSAs during football broadcasts, NFL donated time to air an ad on
domestic violence during Super Bowl.
•NFL donated Super Bowl airtime 100 million viewers w/video by Grey Advertising at no
cost.
17. NFL Tactics
TACTICS
• NoMore Tool Kit
• NoMore Pledge
• Television ads
• NFL wearing purple in October “Domestic Abuse Awareness Month”
(Proctor & Gamble no longer NFL partner)
• Partnered with NBC’s Special Victims Unit
• “A Call to Coaches” video
• Social media Campaign (Instagram)
• NoMore Week event
19. TOO LITTLE TOO LATE
• SIMPLE is a Strategy (not easy)
• Be FIRST in doing something
• New alone is not a position
• Rely on WOM
• Deliver on promises “Authoritative Source”
20. Strengths
•Huge fan base in the USA
•Most attended domestic sports league in the world
•Some loyal fans defend the NFL’S position
•High advertisement view
•Super bowl its an international event
Strengths
•Huge fan base in the USA
•Most attended domestic sports league in the world
•Some loyal fans defend the NFL’S position
•High advertisement view
•Super bowl its an international event
Weaknesses
•Reputation
•Lack of response toward crisis
•Seeks profit from every action
•Operates as a business
•Lack of credibility from its audience
•High suicidal rates among players
•Criminal records among players
•Corruption within NFL
Weaknesses
•Reputation
•Lack of response toward crisis
•Seeks profit from every action
•Operates as a business
•Lack of credibility from its audience
•High suicidal rates among players
•Criminal records among players
•Corruption within NFL
Opportunities
•Transform into the biggest advocacy group against domestic violence
•Employment opportunities for women
•Counseling and guidance for players
•Partnership with Women Collision and experts in domestic violence
Opportunities
•Transform into the biggest advocacy group against domestic violence
•Employment opportunities for women
•Counseling and guidance for players
•Partnership with Women Collision and experts in domestic violence
Threats
•Women’s disgust toward the NFL
•Lost of endorsements
•Public perception
•Domestic violence support groups
•Popularity of other American leagues such as MLB and NBA
Threats
•Women’s disgust toward the NFL
•Lost of endorsements
•Public perception
•Domestic violence support groups
•Popularity of other American leagues such as MLB and NBA
SWOT Analysis
Ray Rice, Baltimore Ravens star, punched his then-fiancée Janay Palmer Rice in the head, knocking her unconscious. Ravens owner, Steve Bisciotti, blamed Janay and claimed it was a misunderstanding. Bisciotti emphasized that Janay had been drinking and provoked Ray, he also suggested her head was too close to the elevator wall and she accidentally hurt herself.
The NFL is known to befriend police officers in order to avoid its players a long prison time. Even after Ray Rice incident, police force allowed him to enter a lenient pre-trial investigation program, a very unusual move that happens a lot to NFL players.
Instead of accepting responsibility for its player’s violence, the NFL is known to blame them trying to separate their domestic life from their professional one. They act as confused as the public may be, trying to portrait themselves as another victim in the whole conflict
The survey found that 61 percent of millennials identified the NFL as a sleazy organization, 67 percent of millennials don’t trust NFL players, and 54 percent of all respondents believe that the NFL is anti-gay. With statistics like these, it’s no surprise that the NFL is in danger of losing the trust of its viewers (Sports Business, 2014).
Published on Oct 23, 2014 - NFL players say 'No more' to domestic violence
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UGw9XOPVXao
Sept. 2014 LAX: STRATEGY by Commissioner “break with the past and a STRATEGY 2014 LAX Press Conference: Commissioner Roger Goodell Roger Goodell announces changes in NFL to address domestic violence (Farmer, 2014)
Goal: Inform and change negative attitudes with the help of experts, including a well-know law enforcement representative (Hamilton 2011)
NFL’s Multi-media Communications Strategy appealed to audience’s interest to stop talking about something unrelated to the game
Emphasized the value of recognizing mistakes and move forward (BREAK WITH THE PAST/NEW CHAPTER)
Hire reputable Domestic Violence expert (former NYC Prosecutor/Chief of the Manhattan DA’s Sex Crimes Unit) to address the issues, and 3 other white American women. “The NFL has tapped one of its female executives to run a "social responsibility" team and hired three domestic violence and sex crimes experts…as advisers. The initiative — announced as the league faces a public-relations nightmare from the Ray Rice and Adrian Peterson scandals — will be headed by Anna Isaacson, a community affairs vice president. (McManus, 2014)
SMART OBJECTIVES TO inform of changes with players/coaches/institution and change attitudes of fans
Commissioner Roger Goodell’s educated public of multimedia “game plan” and shared STRATEGY at a Sept. Press Conference in LAX: Letter in “August 2014 sent to players/coaches a letter and announced changes in NFL to address domestic violence” (Farmer, 2014)
NFL’s Multi-media Communications Strategy:
By appealing to audience’s interest to stop talking about something unrelated to the game
By emphasizing the value of recognizing mistakes and move forward
By hiring a reputable Domestic Violence expert (former NYC Prosecutor/Chief of the Manhattan DA’s Sex Crimes Unit) to make the issue disappear, and 3 other white American women. Also partner with top influencers such as the Joyful Heart Foundation, founded by a reputable actress intimately aware of domestic violence issues since she has played a detective in the TV series Law & Order.
“The NFL has tapped one of its female executives to run a "social responsibility" team and hired three domestic violence and sex crimes experts…as advisers. The initiative — announced as the league faces a public-relations nightmare from the Ray Rice and Adrian Peterson scandals — will be headed by Anna Isaacson, a community affairs vice president. http://nypost.com/2011/07/03/manhattan-das-office-ignored-concerns-about-dsk-case/
1) Letter in August 2014 sent to players/coaches – September 2014 LAX Press Conference: Commissioner Roger Goodell announced changes in NFL to address domestic violence. “TV–secured $45 million in donated air time and reached every single one of the 210 media markets in the United States.” (from www.nomore.org website)
2) More stringent terms.
3) Experts didn’t include any Black American woman and are from a different economic upbringing than the majority of the women most affected by domestic violence nation-wide.
4) According to sources close to some of the players’ families, the new training they had to take was basically cover the old material and was just “repackaged” differently. One of the initiatives that was novel was the development of instructional videos for high-school/college students.
5) NoMore videos series (30 & 60 minutes) featured “23 current and former players.” The “NFL players Say NO MORE” PSAs (from www.nomore.org website)
According to NoMore website the “PSA campaign reached 1.6 billion people – online, in-print. The NO MORE print ads have appeared in publications from the Wall Street Journal to Vogue and Vanity Fair. And, they are popping up on billboards from Hollywood to the Midwest.” Videos “were co-produced by the Joyful Heart Foundation and Viacom Velocity. The spots were directed by Hargitay and fellow actors Blair Underwood and Tate Donovan.” (from www.nomore.org website)
More tactics
Recommendations from Reis & Trod:showcasing players’ commitment to stop acting violently and “get it right” this time.
“The Power of an organization is derived from the power of the product’s position in the prospect’s mind” (Reis & Trout, 2011).
Tried to re-position NFL leadership without including the demographic that was most affected, with an elaborate Public Relations campaign. Audience’s interested in NoMore, but they didn’t do anything wrong. There is a time and a place to discuss serious issues, and the middle of a game is not it!
Could have focus on being unique on something (i.e., leaders offering 6 months of counselling free for anyone interested and mandatory for anyone w/misconduct issues) instead of more training. Literature indicates anger management training is not an effective approach and information is not enough to change.
Released NEW training for coaches and future potential players, in high school/college.
We NOW “get it right” (a sudden group epiphany) positioned the NFL as a source of answers. What was in the mind of the fans? Could have re-position the NFL as the only sports organization to offer free counseling for all employees in case of domestic violence, for 6 months. Be the leader in something
WOM vs. Showcasing players’ commitment to stop acting violently and “get it right” this time.
One of the new executives reported receiving hundreds of letters related to the brand’s old position. But one of the 4 musketeers seems to be a “spin doctor,” Jane Randel, is known for being the former Kate Spade reputational spin doctor and co-founder of NoMore.org (please refer to her LinkedIn profile). Some experts have questioned another member of the new team, the new Vice President of Social Responsibility “The fact that this woman is making these decisions is surprising, to say the least. At 35 years old, with limited prior experience working on domestic violence and sexual assault issues, Isaacson is the most unlikely of NFL saviors.” (McManus, 2014)
5) “The NFL last year turned down a comprehensive, multiyear proposal by a national nonprofit organization to educate the league about domestic violence issues. An NFL executive told Esta Soler, president of Futures Without Violence, that the league preferred a short primer, she said. Ms. Soler said she told NFL officials: “Domestic-violence training isn’t a one-hour tool kit.” (Langley, 2014). Now that they raised people’s expectations…can they actually deliver?
How The NFL Plans To Change Its Culture by Jane McManus Oct 3, 2014 downloaded from espnW.com
http://espn.go.com/espnw/news-commentary/article/11631520/how-nfl-plans-change-culture
NoMore.org Website
http://nomore.org/about/
Manhattan DA’s office ignored concerns about DSK case By Brad Hamilton July 3, 2011
http://nypost.com/2011/07/03/manhattan-das-office-ignored-concerns-about-dsk-case/
Roger Goodell announces changes in NFL to address domestic violence By Sam Farmer September 15, 2014
http://www.latimes.com/sports/sportsnow/la-sp-sn-roger-goodell-nfl-domestic-violence-20140915-story.html#page=1
Can Anna Isaacson save the NFL? 11/12/2014 - ESPN
Wayne Drehs, ESPN Senior Writer
http://espn.go.com/nfl/story/_/page/hotread141105/new-vp-social-responsibility-anna-isaacson-tries-save-nfl
No More, The NFL's Domestic Violence Partner, Is A Sham by Diana Moskovitz – downloaded from deadspin 2/05/15
http://deadspin.com/no-more-the-nfls-domestic-violence-partner-is-a-sham-1683348576
One year after Ray Rice incident, impacts abound for Ravens, NFL, domestic-violence activists
By Childs Walker downloaded from The Baltimore Sun Online February 15, 2015
http://www.baltimoresun.com/sports/ravens/bs-sp-ray-rice-one-year-20150214-story.html#page=2
NFL’s Roger Goodell Seeks to Right Past Wrongs
By Monica Langley
The Wall Street Journal online Dec. 10, 2014
http://www.wsj.com/articles/nfls-roger-goodell-seeks-to-right-past-wrongs-1418182760