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In this interview, we speak with Amy Marper, Senior Sales Manager for Advertising and Sponsorship at SPORTFIVE, a leading international sports marketing agency. We delve into her experience and insights within the world of sports marketing and sponsorship.
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The most rewarding part of my job is being able to deliver some of the biggest sales deals in sport and work with the most recognisable brands and rights holders in the world. At SPORTFIVE, we work on some of the biggest partnerships in the industry and across a host of different sports, meaning that I can be working with a Premier League asset in the morning and a major golf asset, such as Jon Rahm, in the afternoon.
As well as working in an industry that I am genuinely passionate about, I'm also lucky to work in a team where we all trust each other and enjoy working together. This is mirrored throughout the business too, where there is a real fun and collaborative culture across all departments.
Equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI) is a top priority for SPORTFIVE and a topic which the whole business is committed to improving. Our HR and leadership team are working with external experts to provide unbiased support in this process and ensure that we have the most well-rounded workforce.
The sports industry is known for having a number of challenges in regard to EDI, where functions such as Sales have a particular challenge in attracting female candidates. This is a topic which is particularly important for us at SPORTFIVE and something which I have been involved in trying to improve.
Through working with schools and universities, we are aiming to encourage and educate more females about commercial opportunities in sport and build a sustainable long-term interest.
The Sales department is one of SPORTFIVE’s biggest teams. In the UK, we have a team of +35 people working together on various sporting properties. Despite often working on different accounts, all the sales teams work collaboratively to support each other on the various projects.
This means that we understand that people’s skills, backgrounds, and experience lie in different areas, so we use this to our advantage and rely on knowledge sharing within the team to get the most out of everyone’s unique perspective.
In practice, this often leads to colleagues asking each other for advice or support, particularly from those who have work experience or contacts in certain sectors or geographical regions, as well as experience of other cultural backgrounds and languages.
Collaboration is also crucial outside the UK Sales team, where we are constantly connected with SPORTFIVE’s wide global sales network, including regular Global Sales Retreats with all SPORTFIVE sales staff from around the world, and visits to other SPORTFIVE offices. These opportunities are great to learn more about your colleagues, and build trust and reassurance, so that when you need support , it’s easy to pick up the phone.
In my two and half years at SPORTFIVE, I’ve been given the tools to develop my professional skills considerably. The business puts a lot of time into creating an environment where you feel supported and have the opportunities to develop.
This environment ensures that you are surrounded by some of the most experienced people in the sports industry, who are always keen to support you in processes and offer advice.
Additionally, I have attended Women in Football Leadership events, sales training courses, and multiple workshops which have all been invaluable. The most rewarding support I have received has come from being exposed to sales processes and learning from experienced colleagues that are always open to sharing their knowledge.
You’re always made to feel like the business is open to any suggestions you have in regard to learning, events, or courses that will improve your skills. These have greatly helped me develop my knowledge and skills, and in my second year, I was promoted to Senior Sales Manager. It feels like there is almost no limit to how much you can progress in an organisation like SPORTFIVE.
Our Sales Team is made up of a variety of different types of people, all with different qualities that make them great at what they do, but like any sales role, there are a few attributes that are crucial.
Resilience
As a team we put a lot of emphasis on building meaningful partnerships, where brands and rights holders come together through shared values. Some of these processes can take months or even years, and before joining SPORTFIVE this wasn’t something I had experienced.
Of course, things don’t always go the way you would like, and when you have invested so much time and energy into a process, it can be disheartening if it doesn’t go the way you thought it would. Here, it’s important to have resilience and learn to pick yourself up and go again, there’s always something better round the corner and we’re all so lucky to work in the industry we’re most passionate about.
Adaptability
Working across 30+ sports globally, you have to learn to juggle and switch from one project to another.
Sport is the most exciting industry in the world, where its unpredictability is its greatest asset. For all the excitement that this brings, it can also lead to certain challenges. Whether it’s dealing with promotion and relegation or late fixture changes, to sponsorship regulations changes, you need to be able to constantly adapt your approach. On the brand side of things, anything can happen too, so every process can present its own set of challenges.
Communication
Communication is crucial in all sales roles, but when dealing with briefs of the scale and nature that we do on a daily basis, it is important to be thorough and extract the right information to help brands.
The team has taught me so much about asking the right questions and making sure you truly understand a brand's needs before presenting options to them. As collaboration is central to our success at SPORTFIVE, colleagues are great at sharing information, both between local teams, but also global offices.
In sales, we have all had to have difficult conversations, but being able to ask for support really does make things easier, and I believe that the open nature between colleagues transcends to how we treat our clients.
The term ‘Great Culture’ is often used by employers, but in my opinion, any organisation would struggle to beat the working environment that SPORTFIVE has to offer. It is rare to walk into a business and feel like everybody genuinely enjoys working there and wants to support colleagues with their success.
From development courses, sales incentives, regular team socials, and the best snack selection I’ve ever seen, SPORTFIVE really invests in their people. This starts right from the recruitment stage, by ensuring that whoever joins the business is fully aligned with the SPORTFIVE values and will fit the ‘One Team’ mentality, which runs through everything we do.
I highly recommend SPORTFIVE to anyone who is passionate about sports and looking to build their career in sales or marketing.
Check out the wide range of latest vacancies with SPORTFIVE here and consider taking your career to a leading global sports agency 👍
Find more great articles to learn about the sports industry on our Learn.
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