Feedback Form
Home Features Mastermind Forums About Advertise Blog Network Contact Be An Author

RIPKEN BELONGS IN BRANDING HALL OF FAME

RIPKEN BELONGS IN BRANDING HALL OF FAME

This summer Cal Ripken will be inducted in the Baseball Hall of Fame -- not so much for his baseball numbers as for the fantastic brand he created. Cal’s career batting average is not even close to .300, and he did not average more than 25 home runs or 100 RBIs a season. Yet he is one of the most popular, memorable, and marketable players of recent history. Why?

Throughout his 21-year career, Cal Ripken was a living example of how a successful brand is built. Let’s look at the incredible, almost textbook branding lessons to be learned from Cal.

Stand For One Thing
You can’t be all things to all consumers. It never works. You have to carefully determine what the soul is behind what you are selling – what are you asking your consumers to identify with emotionally?

Hundreds of baseball players are selling baseball skills, but that doesn’t turn them into a popular brand like The Iron Man. Throughout his career, Cal was always selling RELIABILITY and DECENCY. Consumers identified with his blue-collar work ethic and “bought into” his brand.

Clarity of Message
Once you have determined what you are selling, you need to make sure that this is clearly communicated through all that you do -- from your products and customer service all the way through to your PR and marketing messages. Not 9 to 5, but 24 hours a day!

There is no room for confusion or mixed messages here. You can’t sell RELIABILITY one day and FLASHINESS the next. This creates “cognitive dissonance” for the consumer and always results in poor or unsuccessful branding.

This is the beauty of the Cal brand. Whenever or wherever you see him, he always bespeaks RELIABILITY and DECENCY -- never anything else.

Consistency and Repetition of Messages
A long-term successful brand has never been and never will be established overnight. The key is consistency and repetition of your core message.

Seven years into Cal’s career, people in the Baltimore/Washington area knew that he was reliable and decent, but people in Oklahoma and California did not. Over the next ten years, Cal’s relentless repetition of his unique selling point changed this to where he became known as the embodiment of the blue-collar work ethic throughout the country.

Be Best, Better or Different
Once you have determined what you want your core consumer to connect with emotionally, you need to figure out how to stand out from the crowd.

There have been many other ballplayers who were reliable and decent. Cal chose to make himself the best of this group by not missing one single game during a 16 year period. He further differentiated himself by playing for one team his entire career – a nearly unfathomable feat in today’s sports world.

This is also a great example of consistency of message. Cal is an Oriole. Had Cal played for a couple of different teams during his career, his brand would never have been as strong.

As a former baseball player, I loved watching Cal play the game the way it was meant to be played. As a PR and marketing professional it was a joy watching him create a brand the way it was meant to be created. See you in the Hall of Fame, Cal – the branding one as well as that one in Cooperstown.

David Warschawski (david.warschawski@warschawski.com) is CEO of Warschawski, a brand-centric PR and marketing agency based in Baltimore.





RIPKEN BELONGS IN BRANDING HALL OF FAME - To learn more about this author, visit David Warshawski's Website.

Like this article? Share it with your friends

Article Feedback
 Article Feedback No article feedback found.
  Leave Your Feedback
article feedback

Article Feedback

To learn more about the Evan Elite Author Program please contact us.

About The Author


David Warshawski
(Visit David's Website) Warschawski is dedicated to providing clients with the highest quality public relations, marketing and branding service. In the past seven years alone, Warschawski has won more than 115 industry awards for its work and has been voted “Boutique PR Agency of the Year.” For five years in a row, Warschawski has been ranked as one of the Top 15 “Best Agencies to Work For.” Warschawski clients include Fortune 500 and Inc. 500 companies. The company was founded in 1996 and is headquartered in Baltimore, MD.

David Warshawski is a Silver author on EvanCarmichael.com
About The Author

View Author Blog
View Author Blog

View Author Video
View Author Video

Free Downloads


David Warshawski's

Complete
List Of
Public-Relations
Articles

Name
Email
If you enjoyed this article, get David Warshawski's Complete List of Public-Relations Articles For FREE!

More David Warshawski
Outdated Marketing Myths
THE TRUTH ABOUT BRANDING
RIPKEN BELONGS IN BRANDING HALL OF FAME
Free Downloads


 
 
 


Evan Elite Authors
Dianne Crampton  
Anne Barr  
John Alexander  
Evan Elite Authors

Become An Author
Have you written articles that would be of value to entrepreneurs? Become an expert on our site by publishing them! Expose yourself to a wide audience, drive more traffic to your website and get more sales! Click Here for details.
Become An Author

Evan's Latest Video
Modeling the Masters: Learn the true secrets behind Walt Disney's business success factors & grow your company! Video produced by Phanta Media
Evan's Latest Video

Business Opportunities
"Learn straight from Evan how you can Make a Full Time Income (And More) from a Website"

How to Start An Online Business

Click Here To Learn More
Business Opportunities



Evan's Newsletter
Get advice & tips from famous business owners, new articles by entrepreneur experts, my latest website updates, & special sneak peaks at what's to come!
Name:
Email:
Evan`s Newsletter

Free Downloads
Get 'em Good or Get 'em Gone! Icon Get 'em Good or Get 'em Gone!
Managing Growth Icon Managing Growth
Integrity Guide Icon Integrity Guide
Networking Online Icon Networking Online
Powerful Living Icon Powerful Living
Free Downloads - Complete List

Entrepreneur Tools and Guides
Email The Reporters
Email The Reporters
Press Release Builder
 
Top 50 Marketing Blogs
Top 50 Marketing Blogs
Top Marketing Blogs of 2009
 
Entrepreneur Tools and Guides

SEO For Africa
SEO For Africa
Junia Poni Gudele, Sudan,
Junia Poni
Gudele, Sudan
SEO For Africa

If I Were A Startup...
Geoff Whitlock, $53k to $507k in 3 years
Geoff Whitlock
$53k to $507k in 3 years
Jeff Roick, $1.4 to $6.5 Mil in 2 years
Jeff Roick
$1.4 to $6.5 Mil in 2 years
If I Were A Startup... - Complete List

Famous Entrepreneurs
Estee Lauder, Estee Lauder
Estee Lauder
Estee Lauder
Terry Matthews, Mitel
Famous Entrepreneurs - Complete List

Entrepreneur Advice
Paul Kedrosky, Venture Capitalist
Paul Kedrosky
Venture Capitalist
Zig Ziglar, See You At The Top
Zig Ziglar
See You At The Top
Entrepreneur Advice - Complete List

Popular Articles
(Premium Authors)

     Successful Salespeople - Sell with Passion and Manage by Process - Buyer / Seller Interaction Part Two
By James Gracey
     Successful Salespeople - Sell with Passion and Manage by Process - Prospecting - Securing the Interview
By James Gracey
     Successful Salespeople - Sell with Passion and Manage by Process - The Interview
By James Gracey

Have A Suggestion?
Toronto Salsa Classes / Toronto Salsa Lessons Email us your ideas on how to make our website more valuable! Thank you Sharon from Toronto Salsa Lessons / Classes for your suggestions to make the newsletter look like the website and profile younger entrepreneurs like Jennifer Lopez and Sean Combs!
Have A Suggestion?

More Evan Carmichael
More Information