The Case for Embracing an Industry-Wide Event Tiering System
There’s a Glaring Problem
in the Sport & Tourism Industry
And it’s causing us to destroy our own advocacy efforts…among other drawbacks.
What is it you might ask? Simple. It’s astounding inconsistency in the way we refer to events.
To build credibility and consistency in the sport and tourism industry, we need to be speaking the same language. Right now, something as simple as the way we classify events is subject to interpretation.
Understandably, this leads to confusion and inconsistency across the board. For instance, academic literature presents various event types (Types A-E, “mega”, “hallmark”, and many more), yet there isn’t even a standardized definition of event categories, or the concept of “sport tourism” for that matter.
Over in the industry, the classification of events is a jumbled mess at best. And we’re in the business!
Case in point, I recently watched a recording of a public presentation in a to-remain-nameless destination where the organization’s leader AND their consultant completely fumbled in defining types of events in the very meeting in which they were requesting funding support for said events. I saw another one at a state-level, again, asking for funding for something that could not be clearly defined.
Therein lies the problem: If we – as the people who live and breathe this stuff – can’t sing from the same song sheet, how do we ever expect those we are trying to convince to support our work to understand?
No Two Events are Created Equally
Inherently, we know that no two events are created equally. A high school lacrosse tournament is not the same as a College Football Playoff game.
Events are complex organisms that can take on a life of their own. Categorizing events could – and should – be based on myriads of factors including, but not limited to aspects such as size, scope, exposure, or capacity draw proportionate to the market. The characteristics of the event are paramount, as are the characteristics of the market. A “major event” in Timbuktu may not even register on the radar in a market like Las Vegas, LA, or Dallas.
We know this. We’re in it.
But meanwhile, key stakeholders, policymakers, and funders hear confusion from those responsible for recruiting and delivering these events. Misguided representations of event outcomes arise due to preconceived notions and lack of clarity. The classification of events – or lack thereof – fundamentally impacts projected outcomes and how they should be measured.
That high school lacrosse tournament should not be measured – nor expected to perform – the same as the CFP game. So why are lumping them all together and holding them to one standard?
Without consistency, we are ill-equipped to perform fundamental tasks such as:
- Properly analyzing our event portfolio,
- Measuring event performance,
- Crafting and communicating our true story and value proposition.
The Method Behind the Madness
With these shortfalls in mind, Cimarron’s gang of misfits set out to find a better way.
As they discussed in the classic movie Apollo 13 when solving for increasingly toxic CO2 levels and Mission Control leader played by Ed Harris replies, “Well, I suggest you gentlemen invent a way to put a square peg in a round hole. Wrap it.”
The team dumped a box of random supplies on the table and went to work.
Make no mistake, we weren’t saving astronaut lives, but our team embraced the same methodology.
We read all the research, put our collective experience together, which includes multiple PhDs, more than a half-century in the sport and tourism industry, association leadership, and countless project learnings. We went to the drawing board with pyramids, plates, upside-down wedding cakes, and buckets. We mapped it out, beat it up, erased it, and started again. We laughed about Disney Princess quiz results, strolled down memory lane with Mr. Bucket, and got some (more) grey hairs. We nearly gave up. Then, we landed the plane.
We landed on a proprietary “best fit” approach. In other words, rather than comparing apples to bananas or pineapples, we want to be comparing apples to oranges and peaches. And this, we could do.
What emerged isn’t the end-all-be-all; nor does it perfectly classify every event (remember, no two events are the same). But in our humble estimation, it is a giant leap in the right direction of correcting industry inconsistency and speaking the same language.
It’s a framework for advancing the sport and tourism industry’s collective intelligence and performance, without a doubt. And it’s called Cimarron Global Solutions’ Proprietary Event Tiering System.
Behind the Curtain of Some of the Nerd Stuff
To establish this system, we took more factors into consideration than we care to admit. Trust us, it would bore you. But for those out there who are likeminded and love digging into this stuff, here’s a very short list of the factors our system takes into consideration:
- Spectator or participant-driven
- Local, state, regional, national or international
- Single sport or multi-sport
- Scope of exposure and awareness
- Type of event organizer/rightsholder
- Draw on local capacity
- Event frequency
- Event host location rotation
- Ticket sales
- Sponsorship depth and reach
- And dozens more!
Next, we rolled all this information up in real-time to create the broadest categories for the “best fit” framework. Remember, we’re aiming for apples to peaches here, not apples to pineapples or bananas. Then we created clear and concise definitions including examples for each. And we went to work testing, revising, and testing again.
Lo and behold, it worked!
Now, there are many more ingredients to the “secret sauce” in this recipe, but we’ll share some simple names, definitions, and examples in hopes it sparks conversation and reflection among those tasked with stewarding sport and tourism efforts in their communities.
The Cimarron Global Solutions Proprietary Event Tiering System
- TIER 5: Community Sporting Events – Sporting events geared toward local participation. They are typically put on by local community organizers for local participants and are usually recreational in nature (not highly competitive). Examples include local running races (5Ks, 10Ks, Half Marathons, etc.) and local golf tournaments that may be hosted by a parks and recreation department or as a fundraiser for a local nonprofit.
- TIER 4: Youth and Amateur Sporting Events – Team or individual sporting events with amateur (non-professional) participants both from the local community and/or from other states/regions. Examples of Youth and Amateur Sporting Events include high school athletics, AAU basketball tournaments, USSSA softball tournaments, adult pickleball tournaments, and Olympic governing body sanctioned events (such as USA Swimming Olympic Trials, etc.).
- TIER 3: College and Professional Sporting Events – Intercollegiate regular season events and most regular season professional sporting events that draw significant media attention and spectatorship. Examples of College and Professional Sporting Events include a college volleyball match, or football game, an NFL game or WNBA game.
- TIER 2: Major Sporting Events – Large-scale, elite-level annual sporting events featuring limited participation of college or professional athletes, very high media attention, spectatorship, and viewership. These events may be held in the same city or rotate host locations. Examples include the Super Bowl, NCAA Men’s/Women’s Final Four, Kentucky Derby, All-Star Games and Drafts, College Football Playoffs, Boston Marathon, etc.
- TIER 1: Mega Sporting Events – Global sporting events that take place once in each location, draw international attention and media coverage. Often not annual events, they feature elite athletes from multiple countries competing and spectators travel from countries to watch in person. Examples include the Olympic Games, FIFA World Cup, etc.
Friendly Reminders
Here are a couple of friendly reminders about this system:
- This system likely seems overly simplistic, and that’s intentional! If you’re reading this thinking, “This is way too easy”, then we’re doing it right! If the industry consistently got it right, there wouldn’t be so much confusion in the marketplace. Let’s start simple – getting it right in our own markets, and in the industry, and build from there.
- This is an evolution – we welcome your feedback! Do not lose sight of the forest for the trees. We know every event will not fit perfectly tidily into a category – remember, this is an exercise in “best fit” for maximum utility.
The Power of the System
Building Consistency: Using the Cimarron Proprietary Event Tiering System, we can bring consistency to what is quite literally the most basic unit of our industry’s core business: the event.
Enhancing Efficiency: By speaking the same language, we can not only increase the efficiency of our own industry communication, but we can also exponentially increase the effectiveness and understanding of our advocacy efforts to our key stakeholders.
Elevated Prospecting: Additionally, we can better target future events based upon desired outcomes.
Accurately Evaluating: We can get smarter about evaluating expected outcomes from hosting these events – such as economics, exposure, community engagement, etc. – based upon the tier of event.
Increasing Optimization: We can more accurately reflect the role each tier of events plays in our market and build a sustainable, well-rounded portfolio that enhances our overall market optimization, or ideal performance of events in our market.
The Charge
As we’ve highlighted several times before, and will continue to do, our industry is drastically changing. And we must learn, adapt, and grow accordingly. The way we’ve always done it does not suffice anymore. It’s time to embrace new ways of thinking, and it starts at the most basic element of our industry’s core business transaction. After all, without the “event” the sport and tourism industry simply does not exist. So, elevate your eyes, elevate your thinking, and elevate the impact you have on your market through Cimarron’s Proprietary Event Tiering System.
We’re Here to Help You Unleash the Power of Event Tiers
The power of properly tiering events is significant. But only if put into action. There are several implementation tactics that can help you and your organization harness this power. The ways the Cimarron team can help include:
- Reach out to us to chat.
- Review of your existing portfolio.
- Education of your staff, board, and stakeholders.
- Measurement of pre- and post-event performance.
- Fully optimize your market’s event portfolio.
Contact us today [email protected]!
