Internet Marketing New York City, Golf Masters Tiger vs. Mickelson: What organizations can learn from world sports, winners and hype
Posted by Salem Global on Apr 13, 2010
More people have been following the Tiger Woods saga in the US and around the world than actually understand and follow the world of golf. I will never forget the first time I learned that soccer or “futbol” is actually the most popular sport in the world. According to Answers.com, golf ranks #8 according to this list:
1) Football/Soccer: 3.3-3.5 billion fans (Europe, Africa, Asia, Americas, etc.)
2) Cricket: 2-3 billion fans (India, UK, Pakistan, Asia, Australia, etc.)
3) Field hockey: 2-2.2 billion fans (Asia, Europe, Africa, Australia)
4) Tennis: Around 1 billion fans (Europe, Americas, Asia)
5) Volleyball: Around 900 million fans (Asia, Europe, Americas, Australia)
6) Table tennis: Around 900 million fans (Asia, Europe, Africa, Americas)
7) Baseball: Around 500 million fans (US, Japan, Cuba, Dominican Republic)
8 ) Golf: Around 400 million fans (US, Canada, Europe)
9) Gridiron (American football): 390-410 million fans (US mainly)
10) Basketball: Not more than 400 million fans (US, Canada mainly)
You have to put things into perspective. Golf is a rich person’s sport. Football (not the American Gridiron kind but the global kick a ball around kind) is the sport of the masses. Think about it. You basically take a ball, any ball, (and sometimes even a can or a plastic bottle if you are that poor), and kick it with your leg. That’s it. No other equipment necessary. Maybe you get a few more players and set up teams. Maybe you even make up goals. Between that tree and that rock. Or just throw down four shirts or pieces of cardboard in a large rectangle on any surface, dirt, grass, Astroturf, and BAM, you’ve got yourself a soccer field. Oh – and the rules are… um, kick the ball into the other sides goal. Now that’s a sport!
On the other hand, golf requires acres and acres of land. But not just any land. Land with 18 holes drilled in. But not just drilled in randomly, but designed behind wood, rough, dirt, grass and water. Golf courses cost millions of dollars to design and then millions more to landscape and construct. Then of course you need to buy golf clubs and golf balls. Golf tees, golf clothing and accessories. So only the wealthy are playing golf. And only the wealthy are really watching and following the sport. It’s the sport of kings because only kings had the money, time and land to make it all happen.
Joel Osteen (who I have been reading and listening to lately because he is an incredibly positive attitude preacher and not an over the top evangelist) tells the story of the king who invited a famous golfer to his country for a few days to play with him. The golfer accepted and they played and had a great time for a few days. When the golfer was about to leave, the king told him he would like to give him a gift. This was in addition to the healthy fee that he had already paid him. He said no thank you but the king insisted. So the golfer says that he collects golf clubs. After a few weeks, the golfer gets a letter in the mail. The king sent him a deed to a 500 acre golf club.
Ok – back to Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson. As I understand it, Phil Mickelson is a great golfer. Though he will not win as many green jackets as Jack Nicklaus or Tiger Woods, he is known to be an all around swell guy. So when Tiger made his return to golf after five months of scandal to this seasons Masters at Augusta National, Tiger was the celebrity everyone was talking about, not Phil. Unfortunately, Tiger temporarily ruined his reputation by succumbing to his vices. As did Pete Rose, the baseball great, and his gambling and betting habit. As did the immature decision of Michael Phelps to hang out at college parties and get caught smoking from a bong. (See Will Ferrell as President Bush referring to the tiger Woods guy. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/10/23/will-ferrell-back-as-bush_n_137399.html)
The point is, you can be the best and get credit from it. But the challenge is to make it to the top and then stay there. The hype is only part of the equation. You need to put in the time and the effort and keep it clean.
The same applies to businesses and organizations that get to the top of the search engines. You have to make sure you don’t do anything to upset the powers that be. Too many pages and too many links created all at once throws red flags at the Google chief scientist. SalemGlobal took a hit recently because we started building our http://www.MarketingDirectories.comperhaps too fast and with too many links back to our homepage. Whereas we used to be #1 for “website marketing,” now we are in the #4 position. As for “internet marketing,” we have fallen off the charts completely. On a positive note, we have remained in the #1 position for all keywords related to Internet and website marketing “NY” and “New York.” So the message is to keep it slow and steady. In this game, consistency wins the race, not the sprint.
If you would like to know more about NYC website or NY Internet marketing, sports, linking strategies and getting higher up and staying on the top of the search engines, please call me at 212-993-5828, email me at raphis@salemglobal.comor check out www.SalemGlobal.comfor more information. Oh and a final note and plug for #1 in local search for Dr. John Frank of http://HairClinicUSA.com. Do a Google search for “hair transplant ny” and you will see what I mean.
Improve Your Golf Swing With A Great Golf Gift, the Xtensor
Posted by Salem Global on Feb 14, 2008
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-9213900560118110656For years now; core training (the idea of strengthening a group of muscles that support the primary muscles involved in specific activities) has been the leading edge of fitness training philosophy. This type of training is often associated with hips, back and abdominal areas of the body. Leading information now employs the thought that core training muscles exist throughout the body depending upon which area of the body is in motion. The Xtensor is the core training tool for the hands, wrists and elbows. No other device is better designed to exercise the muscles that stablize the wrist and elbows which until now have been virtually off limits core training principles. Strengthening the muscles that open the hands is on the leading edge in helping to prevent overuse injuries that effect the performance of millions of golfers and tennis players every year.