Brands Win Championships

by Jeremy Allen Darlow

Defense doesn't win championships. Defense wins games. Brands win championships. In ten years, the most consistently successful college athletic programs will be those with the strongest brands, not simply the strongest defense or most explosive offense from year to year. It's not just about x's and o's anymore. It's about polarizing uniforms on the field and massive billboards in Times Square. It's about making your brand sexy to seventeen- and eighteen-year-old blue-chip athletes. And this is your guidebook on how to reach them. In the world of college athletics today, it's easier to crash a party than throw a party. Brands Win Championships will show you how. Inside, you'll find three simple brand-building steps that can take your program from bad to good or from good to great. 
"A must-read for anyone in sports marketing. This book sees the future and shows you how to get there."- Nate Scott, USA TODAY Sports, For the Win"Win or lose, here's how to build a national reputation for your college sports brand"- Al Ries, Author, The Battle for Your Mind"Brands Win Championships offers a practical primer on how to build your brand with story and perception"- Tim Newcomb, Sports Illustrated"Die hard fans-that one concept, that one overlooked idea-is just one of the big ideas you'll find inside this book that's not actually about sports "- Seth Godin, Author, Linchpin

Genres: Sports, Business

190 pages, Paperback

First published January 31, 2015

Reviews

[Julie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Despite the fact that it is highly unlikely I'll ever be in a position where I need to know, "the secret to winning a national title in the 21st century," I really enjoyed this book. Although I do not work in a college athletic program, this book had solid branding advice that I will be applying in a variety of other contexts. The book was written in an easy-to-read format and by the end I was secretly wanting to apply to the marketing department of a college athletic program!

[Brand Content · Rating 5 out of 5]

This one’s for the sports lover in your life. Brands Win Championships takes a deep dive into the ways your favorite sports team’s uniform design, social media presence, and fan base influences their chances of winning games. It’s a quick read, less than 200 pages and full of diagrams to explain key points, but by the end you’ll feel like you know the secret to making it to the national championship. Darlow’s explanation of branding and audience are helpful for just about any brand, athletic or not.

[Charlie Zegers · Rating 3 out of 5]

A business book in disguise

I got this book as a giveaway not realizing that it is very specifically about college sports marketing - I thought it was more a general business and marketing book. That said, there are quite a few useful lessons in here for any marketer, if you can look past the football jargon and references.

[Connor · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is targeted for college athletic directors and marketing managers. However, as a high school AD I found many takeaways and things to consider implementing at my school. I enjoyed the easy read and have pages of jotted notes that will hopefully help the Cole Valley brand in the future.

[Kammie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great ideas to help with branding your team or adventure. Didn't finish because didn't have all the pieces to brand our school's business department.

[Robert Alfonso Jr · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome read

Solid book on building a brand. It is an easy read with good strategies and advice in contracting brand awareness

[Ricky · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oriented to the sport business audience, but has useful insight and strategies for general brand management of non sport franchises. Well organized and relatively interactive.

[Trey Meadows · Rating 3 out of 5]

Exciting, high energy, quick read. Valuable tool for some colleges or franchises but it will take some work for this to carry over to small college, “non-revenue” sports that will simply never have a fan base or resources to full enact the strategies. Also reference a lot of brands that time has not treated as well as it seemed a short time ago.

[Jake Lunemann · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book Brands Win Championships by Jeremy Allen Darlow started a little slow but otherwise is a fantastic book for anyone working in college athletics or hoping to be in the future.

[Justin · Rating 4 out of 5]

A book that I will definitely refer back to for branding knowledge

[Adam Lewis · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sports!

[Gary · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very good, clearly communicated branding book. Not just for sports people.