Are #SportsBiz Sales Reps About to Become Extinct? - pt. 2

In December of last year I wrote a column tackling this question. My answer was 'no' in the short run, but 'yes' in the long term. If #COVID19 has been anything, it's been an accelerant. THOUSANDS of quality #sportsbiz salespeople are without jobs right now, and my site has had a number of people write in with the following question?

'...When will teams be hiring again?'

The answer is, 'I don't know.' Part of me wants to believe that that will be early 2021 when every league is either playing in front of fans, or preparing to play in front of fans. There are a couple challenges with that, though. Will teams be hiring if they are not playing in front of 100% of their fans? I think probably not. AND, if we've rolled over a lot of season ticket and sponsorship revenue from 2020 to 2021, BUT have used that money as operating costs...will owners want to take another GIGANTIC loss in 2021? I think probably not. I don't believe the industry will be fully back on its feet until 2022. That's a gut feeling...and one informed by a few hundred conversations.

I also think that whenever teams start to ramp up, they'll be more thoughtful about their sales rep numbers. They'll have had time to look at historical numbers, financial models, budgets, etc...and what they come up with may not have as many reps, or may not have inside sales departments, or may combine sales/service roles, etc. etc. etc.

It may accelerate what I talked about last time, BUT there will ALWAYS be a role for sales reps in a #sportsbiz organization. We count on that positive interaction to bring in and maintain fans. A good sales reps is ALWAYS the most valuable marketing tool for a pro sports team.

So, when trying to get a job, show how you'll be one of those reps. What'd you do during this time to get yourself better? If you've been let go, and have a tough time answering that questions...check here!