ABSTRACT
This chapter examines several important aspects of preparing for a sports marketing career. One of the greatest obstacles faced by students seeking to work in sports marketing is a lack of awareness and understanding of the types of jobs available. For organizations that host live events, sports marketing are more than selling tickets and using brand communications to promote games and events. In contrast to ticket sales jobs that often focus heavily on customer acquisition, the role of customer service personnel is customer retention through their responsibilities for customer satisfaction. A career in sports can be very rewarding, but it will take effort and planning to make it happen. The planning should begin with an understanding of the different career paths that can be pursued. A sponsorship sales job involves a great deal of communication, from making initial contact with prospective corporate clients, to making sales presentations, to maintaining relationships with sponsors.
