Sox Win Series, But Yankees Snag Headlines
Red Sox Nation has to be a little ticked off.
They’re celebrating their second World Series championship in four years. But the only way you can tell that in our Stamford, CT office is by seeing our business manager David Bonneau in his Sox jersey, cap, playoff beard and mile-wide grin.
Thank you, New York Yankees, for ruining it for everyone else, even us Cleveland Indians fans.
You see, earlier this month the Tribe defeated New York three games to one to advance to the American League Championship Series and face Boston. But that entire seven game series was overshadowed by talk of the Yankees, and whether or not they would fire long-time manager Joe Torre.
And Sunday night, all the talk in a World Series-clinching game was about Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez deciding to opt out of his mega contract.
It got so bad that in post-game press conferences Boston manager Terry Francona was asked (during the ALCS) what he felt about the Joe Torre situation, and (right after his team won it all) what he felt about A-Rod opting out of his contract.
In other words, the Red Sox may have won the World Series, but the Yankees captured the October headlines. Marketers, take note.
How do you hijack the media the way the Yankees (and Rodriguez’s agent, Scott Boras) did? It’s pretty simple.
If you can’t make news, generate it. Make sure it’s something that will create a splash, too. Would the Yankees have stolen the headlines if they said they were looking to dismiss third base coach Larry Bowa? Or created controversy during the final game of the World Series by saying they wouldn’t bring back first baseman Doug Mientkiewicz?
Nope. Maybe in the New York tri-state area, but not as far away as Colorado.
And timing, of course, is everything. When the Yankees threatened Torre’s job in May, it kept the cross-town Mets off the back page, but the water-cooler talk still centered around the other baseball team in New York.
Yes, it was A-Rod’s agent, Scott Boras, who left the Yankees brass a voice mail that his client would opt out of his contract. And Boras was sure to deliver a bombshell announcement to the press at such a time when he knew his agent would become bigger than the game itself – during the deciding game of the World Series. Even if the release was embargoed, do you think the press would sit on that until after the season was a memory?
No way. That’s not how it works. The press is competitive. A reporter can’t explain to his or her boss that he or she decided to hold onto the story because something else was bigger.
So remember marketers: If you want to make a big splash, remember that timing is everything. Getting that word out in a big way can make your story bigger than the biggest topic going.
