"Nice Guys" are
Emptying Sponsors' Pocketbooks

"No more Mr. Nice Guy, no more Mr. Cleannnn. . ." and so the song goes. This sentiment does not seem to hold true in the marketing arena. A recent trend in product endorsement is using athletes that portray a clean image, someone who can be a role mode l. The "throw a tantrum, make a buck" ideology is passé these days. The new goal moves toward establishing a "halo effect"--the positive relationship between a product and the sports celebrity that pitched it. As we see, public perception represents r eality and these "nice guys" finish first.

This is bad news for the more visible bad boys in the sports arena who made more money with every tantrum they threw. The Dennis Rodman's and Michael Irving's of the sports world are losing market appeal and their deals are either canceled or are a whole lot leaner.

More than skills on the field or court, it is a combination of talent and image in our media driven society that lead to lucrative endorsement contracts and post-career opportunities. While Rodman's antics have allowed him to make $2 million this yea r in endorsements for Victoria Secret and Oakley, charismatic Tiger Woods will walk away with $60 million over 5 years from Titlelist and Nike. From a business viewpoint, who would you rather have promoting your product: Mike Tyson or Michael Jord an? Enough said.

As we can see, constant media exposure does not always yield the big dollars, especially if the athlete is just making "noise." Having a good boy image is no longer considered "boring", instead it's bringing in the bucks. Just ask Cal Ripken Jr. or Grant Hill or new 14 year old World Figure skating champion, Tara Lipinski. Lipinski is slated to make millions before the next Olympics. This "kid--role model" is expected to open the lucrative kid market up to advertisers like no athlete endorser h as ever before been able to do.

Kathleen Hessert

President

Sports Media Challenge