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WNBA commissioner: 'We have a marketing problem'
Yahoo ^ | February 15, 2020 | Melody Hahm

Posted on 02/16/2020 5:51:04 AM PST by C19fan

The Women’s National Basketball Association and the Women’s National Basketball Players struck an eight-year labor deal that includes boosting the average player salary to six figures, guaranteeing full pay during maternity leave and providing better travel conditions. Cathy Engelbert, the commissioner of the WNBA, was instrumental in negotiating the collective bargaining agreement. A core part of the vision is to help catapult WNBA’s players like Candace Parker and Sue Bird into global superstardom, akin to the way LeBron James and Steph Curry have become household names.

(Excerpt) Read more at sports.yahoo.com ...


TOPICS: Sports
KEYWORDS: basketball; nba; wnba
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To: C19fan

I like college Women’s Basketball, we actually have seasons tickets, but I do not see the point in Women’s Pro basketball, then again, I dislike Men’s Pro basketball too.


21 posted on 02/16/2020 6:25:05 AM PST by HangnJudge (Kipling was right about Humanity)
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To: devane617

Try double-headers with women’s beach volleyball - that’s at least got a *chance* of expanding the fan base!


22 posted on 02/16/2020 6:25:57 AM PST by Stosh
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To: C19fan
Marketing problem...like the game is so much inferior to the men and only the L in LGBT attend the games?

This is the definitive, spot on assessment. Oh, and that money for maternity leave will be pretty safe, except for the occasional, artificial insemination.

23 posted on 02/16/2020 6:33:28 AM PST by Thommas (The snout of the camel is in the tent..)
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To: C19fan

Sue Bird has a “partner”

Megan Rapinoe the american hating lesbian soccer player.


24 posted on 02/16/2020 6:34:11 AM PST by Popman
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To: C19fan
I hear LeBrina James is going to make an appearance


25 posted on 02/16/2020 6:34:25 AM PST by MuttTheHoople
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To: Josa

They didn’t come out much when the league started and it was a nice

amusement as some of them were nice to look at.

Since they announced as carpet munchers and flaunted their partners they

have lost the visual interest of normal men.

They are not a betting commodity which had a big bearing of the growth of

men’s sports.


26 posted on 02/16/2020 6:37:27 AM PST by Surrounded_too
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To: VTenigma
"All the “marketing” in the world can’t sell a product that sucks licks."
27 posted on 02/16/2020 6:38:35 AM PST by moovova
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To: devane617

Learn from Roller Derby. Chick fights.


28 posted on 02/16/2020 6:40:09 AM PST by spintreebob
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To: C19fan; All
".... We have a marketing problem...."

Sounds like the same problem Obama had when he couldn't get support for his unpopular policies.

The voters just don't understand our policies so we need to educate them more.

We need to give more speeches to get them to come around.

The problem wasn't that people didn't understand. It is just like this WNBA problem. It's that they don't like the product. No amount of convincing will work.

29 posted on 02/16/2020 6:40:41 AM PST by HotHunt (Been there. Done that.)
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To: All

Don Imus


30 posted on 02/16/2020 6:45:08 AM PST by gibsonguy
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To: C19fan

guaranteeing full pay during maternity

...

That’s a safe bet.


31 posted on 02/16/2020 6:45:34 AM PST by Moonman62 (Charity comes from wealth.)
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To: DoodleBob
All the marketing in the world won't make inferior, superior.

McDonalds. Their food sucks but their profits? Outstanding.

32 posted on 02/16/2020 6:46:02 AM PST by usconservative (When The Ballot Box No Longer Counts, The Ammunition Box Does. (What's In Your Ammo Box?))
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To: HotHunt

This is about the economic concept of marginal utility—that is different for each of us for each product or service.

So—for me—to get me to watch their game at Mohegan Sun (CT), my marginal utility is minus one thousand dollars per game.

That means they would have to give me casino credit of one thousand dollars to get me to watch one game.

Nine hundred and ninety-nine dollars in not enough!


33 posted on 02/16/2020 6:51:26 AM PST by cgbg (The Democratic Party is morphing into the Donner Party)
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To: IndyTiger
I’d be willing to wager that a good high school boys team would wipe the floor playing against a WNBA team.

You would win that bet. The occasional pick up game between the WNBA champion team and a Boys H.S. State champion team has always resulted in a massacre of the Lesbian team.

34 posted on 02/16/2020 6:52:57 AM PST by Thommas (The snout of the camel is in the tent..)
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To: cgbg
Raise salaries and benefits, _then_ figure out how to get people to buy your product.....clever......

Aren't they financed by the NBA?

35 posted on 02/16/2020 6:55:36 AM PST by fso301
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To: C19fan

If your team can be beat by a team of selected high school boys,

If your team is made up of people who publicise a particular angry sexual lifestyle,

If your team intentionally markets to a fan base that is a particular angry sexual lifestyle,

If the sparse audience at the arena is made up of an angry sexual lifestyle,

If the men’s game is made up of powerful specimens who are the best in the world and do freakish acts of athleticism,

Chances are your product will not thrive.


36 posted on 02/16/2020 6:56:33 AM PST by lurk
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To: moovova

Women’s college basketball does pretty good because local people feel connected to the college team. The WNBA doesn’t have that fan loyalty and never will. Maybe they could advertise free beer and food at every game. That might fill some seats.


37 posted on 02/16/2020 6:56:52 AM PST by Rdct29 (Democrats are the new Nazi's. They think they deserve total control over the people)
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To: C19fan
There has been a great deal of discussion on why professional women’s team sports are not as popular as similar men’s team sports. Popular is defined by viewership, ticket sales and sponsorship. Much of the current analysis centers on the difference in the caliber of play that is displayed to the viewers. It has been said that spectators prefer the speed, agility and athleticism of men’s team sports and are willing to pay more to see such performance rather than a similar women’s competition. I think it goes deeper than that.

What follows is a comparative analysis of men and women’s team sports or one on one, face to face competition. Examples would be soccer, football, rugby, baseball, boxing, wrestling, etc. What is not being considered is individual time trial, scored or judged events such as swimming, track and field, golf, gymnastics, etc.

So…..the foundation ancient team sports were related to military training. The training was intended to give the soldiers the best chance of surviving and victory in battle. It included strategy, tactics, and physical skills. The tactics included, introducing deception, creating fear, creating unequal advantage, and showing no mercy. These armies were men only. Why?

There is a basic observation that women have a civilizing effect on men when they are present and there is some kind of relationship. If you have ever gone camping or hunting with your buddies leaving the ladies at home, you know what I am talking about. Men’s behavior among men is much “baser” than when women are present. People expect women to be civil and even nurturers. I could discuss the effect of having women alongside men in the military in the context of the above paragraph but that is for another time.

Now, fast forward to sports of today. Team sports allow people to exhibit antisocial war-like behavior under a carefully constructed set of rules. Deception is allowed, overpowering without mercy is allowed, double teaming is allowed, taunting and humiliation is allowed. It seems to me, that this being a setting for a mach war, men are more acceptable in these antisocial roles than women. Why people enjoy watching antisocial behavior is another question.

Somehow the image of a woman linebacker clothes-lining as wide receiver does not play as well as if it is a man doing it to another man (penalty flag aside). What seems natural for a man to be doing is unseemly for a woman to be doing it.

This is why I do not watch women’s sports. It is a bunch of women trying to act like men (lesbian or not) and I do not find it entertaining. And the whole sport thing IS only about entertainment.

38 posted on 02/16/2020 6:58:11 AM PST by super7man (Madam Defarge, knitting, knitting, always knitting)
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To: fso301

They are subsidized by the NBA, but they still manage to lose $10M a year!

They truly have a product with a value below zero.


39 posted on 02/16/2020 6:58:32 AM PST by cgbg (The Democratic Party is morphing into the Donner Party)
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To: Rdct29

The free food better be Bloomberg event quality... ;-)


40 posted on 02/16/2020 7:00:15 AM PST by cgbg (The Democratic Party is morphing into the Donner Party)
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