Bills' Job Opening: Director of Marketing

[Kirby Jackson]

Great post Kirby. I've always had dreams of getting into pro sports but I'm kicking myself for not having done internships while I was in college. I'm honestly debated trying to do one now but I'm way too old!

 

If only I had a connection!

You almost have to get in during college or shortly there after. It is pretty rare that someone enters sports at an elevated level unless they have some sort of connection to the owner, president, gm, etc...

 

I stumbled into it at a fairly young age and started doing the junk work. You work crazy hours and don't make much money. It is really competitive starting out. Once you get through the grind and become a full-time employee it really opens up the opportunity. Most of the entry level jobs though are still only paying like $30K as a base (which is why you have to do it young). There are bonuses and commissions depending on the position that can raise that quite a bit but you are still probably a few years away from 6 figures (and that is if you have some success).

 

It is a weird industry because it is a mix of "worker bee" types with a lot of experience and then young people with an education in sports management. People were often hired on a temp basis or at an hourly wage to do the grunt work. Many of those people have years in the business now and a tribal knowledge of how to make things go. Now you can't get in the door without a degree and a door opened. At the same time there are a lot of young, hungry people with really high ceilings. It is an interesting dynamic.

 

I left the business after 8 seasons (I think) because I was worn out. We had this campaign that David Stern was forcing on us (the NBA owned us at the time) where we had 100 events in 100 days to sell tickets and keep the team in NOLA. I was a director at the time which meant that I was at just about an event a day (sales people would rotate). I was standing in some rich person's living room (Oreck vacuum people) with a glass of wine in my hand, at 9:30 on a Tuesday Night, in the middle of July, begging people to buy basketball tickets. It was at that moment that I was just burnt out. I decided then that it would be my last season. I told my boss the next day and 10 months later I was out.

 

I really loved my time there and don't regret it at all. We were out all night, comped everywhere, knew everyone and had access to some crazy parties and events. It was a wild lifestyle and there were probably another 70 people in the organization (players included) that were within 5 years of me age-wise. We worked hard and played harder. A lot of my really good friends are still in the business but everywhere doesn't have the culture that we did. It was a really fun ride and I would do it all over again at that point in my life. With that being said, my life is so much less stressful now and my quality of life is better.

Edited November 23, 2016 by Kirby Jackson

[PromoTheRobot]

A few years ago this would have been my dream job, I woulda been all over it! Now that it actually exists and that I'm in a spot where I have the experience for it, I'm set and happy in my current job / industry / world - funny how life works sometimes...

 

Still, big opportunity for someone!

Drop a resume anyway just to see.

[Never NEVER Give-up]

 

The new guy or gal has to do better than "Bills Run Deep".

 

The slogan should be BILLS CUT DEEP!!!

[C.Biscuit97]

You almost have to get in during college or shortly there after. It is pretty rare that someone enters sports at an elevated level unless they have some sort of connection to the owner, president, gm, etc...

 

I stumbled into it at a fairly young age and started doing the junk work. You work crazy hours and don't make much money. It is really competitive starting out. Once you get through the grind and become a full-time employee it really opens up the opportunity. Most of the entry level jobs though are still only paying like $30K as a base (which is why you have to do it young). There are bonuses and commissions depending on the position that can raise that quite a bit but you are still probably a few years away from 6 figures (and that is if you have some success).

 

It is a weird industry because it is a mix of "worker bee" types with a lot of experience and then young people with an education in sports management. People were often hired on a temp basis or at an hourly wage to do the grunt work. Many of those people have years in the business now and a tribal knowledge of how to make things go. Now you can't get in the door without a degree and a door opened. At the same time there are a lot of young, hungry people with really high ceilings. It is an interesting dynamic.

 

I left the business after 8 seasons (I think) because I was worn out. We had this campaign that David Stern was forcing on us (the NBA owned us at the time) where we had 100 events in 100 days to sell tickets and keep the team in NOLA. I was a director at the time which meant that I was at just about an event a day (sales people would rotate). I was standing in some rich person's living room (Oreck vacuum people) with a glass of wine in my hand, at 9:30 on a Tuesday Night, in the middle of July, begging people to buy basketball tickets. It was at that moment that I was just burnt out. I decided then that it would be my last season. I told my boss the next day and 10 months later I was out.

 

I really loved my time there and don't regret it at all. We were out all night, comped everywhere, knew everyone and had access to some crazy parties and events. It was a wild lifestyle and there were probably another 70 people in the organization (players included) that were within 5 years of me age-wise. We worked hard and played harder. A lot of my really good friends are still in the business but everywhere doesn't have the culture that we did. It was a really fun ride and I would do it all over again at that point in my life. With that being said, my life is so much less stressful now and my quality of life is better.

Good stuff Kirby. Much respect. The plan now is to make a few connections or marry one of Terry's daughters.

[John from Riverside]

Hmmm maybe I should apply

I will write you a letter of reference

[Just Jack]

I know the Bills front office reads TBD, so I'm just going to workshop some 2017 slogans in real time:

 

"Now with only five years left on Dareus' contract!"

 

"17 Year Playoff Drought? More Like 17 Stress-Free Januarys"

 

"Did you know we went to four super bowls in the 90s?...it's true!"

 

"Brady's GOT to start regressing. Right?"

 

"The NFL won't add more wild card spots, because they know...oh do they know"

 

"We Reached out to Frank Reich for Head Coach...he gave us a Maybe"

 

 

"Now operating with a new and robust analytics department."

 

"Taking another significant step toward relevancy."

 

"Building the foundation to be WNY's Number One NFL Franchise."

"Bringing back the troughs in the men's room"

[Kirby Jackson]

Good stuff Kirby. Much respect. The plan now is to make a few connections or marry one of Terry's daughters.

That is a far superior plan!! You get the perks without the grind.

[hondo in seattle]

"Celebrating 56 years without a winless record!"

 

Fans submitting the top 5 taglines win interviews.

[CodeMonkey]

who in their right mind would ever want to work for this useless excuse of a franchise...i bet their paychecks bounce every week.

 

Maybe a failure on the field but consider this is a marketing job, and even with all the futility on the field look at the ticket and merchandise sales. Marketing has been a huge success with zero help on the field. My son, who has not seen anything but mediocre Bills teams his entire life, would take a job in the Bills organization in a heartbeat.