What the Mavericks Taught Me About Marketing

The Dallas Mavericks are the 2011 NBA champs. The photo with this post is the owner, Mark Cuban with the trophy on their plane ride home. Quite a story how they got there, not just the work from this year, but from the past decade. Their team leader Dirk Nowitzki says that all the work he put in over his lifetime makes holding the trophy today all worth it. I think we all would agree with that idea. The Mavericks got me thinking. Here are a few lessons I got from this story, and some questions you might consider too.

What the Mavericks Taught Me About Marketing

I take inspiration from observing the best of the best. How they get there, and how they respond and reflect once they have arrived. Here are some thoughts about the 2011 Dallas Mavericks and their 2011 NBA championship.

Lesson #1 Winning Takes Time

Nine of the players on the 2011 Mavericks have been in the NBA for 10 years or longer. Considering that the average NBA career is just under 5 years a winner has to be in it for the long-haul. Their point guard, has been in the NBA for 17 years, Jason Kidd is 38.

*Questions: As an online marketer and/or entrepreneur are you willing to stay the course long enough to win at what you do? Are you tempted to bail early, or think you cannot keep up with “younger marketers”?  (see point #5 on experience).

Lesson #2 Winning Ingredients Don’t Always Equal Victory

LeBron James took a lot of heat for how he decided to leave the Cleveland Cavaliers for Miami in the summer of 2010. Uniting with two other All-Star players was smart on the surface, but resulted in a great backlash, that they weren’t able to justify this year with a championship.

Here’s what the owner of LeBron James’ former team Tweeted after the Mavericks won it all:

“Congrats to Mark C.&entire Mavs org. Mavs NEVER stopped & now entire franchise gets rings. Old Lesson for all:There are NO SHORTCUTS. NONE.”

Talent alone doesn’t result in championships.

*Questions: Are you striving to make the most of the resources you have while adding pieces (marketing tools, etc) over time? Are you tempted to relax after investing in a course or tool instead of working harder to maximize the investment?

Lesson #3 Winning Takes Hard Work, Motivation, and Dedication

In an interview Dirk mentioned the hard work he has put it, the summers off where he would do two workouts a day. Of Dirk others have written about:

• The pain of loosing the championship in 2006 after going up 2-0 in a best of 7 series, only to lose the next four straight, with their opponent celebrating on their court after the final loss. He wanted another chance to win.
• The commitment of he had to the city of Dallas and to the team owner, having never considered resigning elsewhere in the summer of 2010 while the rest of the NBA was in a free-agency shake up.

*Questions: Are you willing to put in the time to improve your marketing? Refine your messages, review and dial-in your autoreponder sequences, implement testing and tracking necessary to improve results?

Lesson #4 Remember Teammates and Customers

When presenting the trophy, owner Mark Cuban honored the franchises original owners by having them accept the championship trophy for the team. Then when being interviewed he deferred credit and questions to the head coach and players, understanding they were the ones executing on the floor. In every interview I saw, Maverick players and coaches reflect on the team and it’s members as the ones making them successful, not one individual.

*Questions: Are you aware how important your team is to your overall success? You may be a solopreneur but you still have a team, think about your hosting company, webmaster, email service provider, etc. What about customers? Do you have a regular communication channel to them, do you thank them for their feedback and contribution to your success?

Lesson #5 Experience Trumps Talent

While there may be more talent in “south beach”, there was more experience in Dallas. Evidently, a LOT more. There was also more hunger, more desperation for a championship.

Jason Terry was so bold as to tattoo the NBA championship trophy on his right bicep at the start of the season, believing his team had what it took to win it all.

*Questions: Do you believe with every “failure” you have, you are getting valuable experience, discovering what doesn’t work? Thinking of failure is merely a test result has helped me gain perspective. Do you believe in your abilities so much tattoo it on your body?

*These questions are not designed to beat up those who take them seriously, but to highlight areas where you can elevate your game moving closer to championship status. Read them twice. Not every question will apply, but they should get you thinking.

A Wrap

Marketing doesn’t require special physical abilities, but it does require critical thinking and sound execution. I’m reminded that victory takes time, and that experience is our greatest asset, learning, and refining as you go. By surrounding yourself with the right team players, and maintaining a team first approach, success just might be closer than you think. For LeBron James, Dwayne Wade, and the rest of the Miami Heat, they’ll have to dig deep, and put their hopes on next year.

It’s your turn. What are you thinking? Chime in using the boxes below.

Photo Credit: Mark Cuban twitpic