Portland Trail Blazers Sustainable Marketing

PORTLAND TRAIL BLAZERS: SUSTIANABLE MARKETING

Portland Trail Blazers: Sustainable Marketing

Gavin Flynn

University of Portland

Abstract: The purpose of this study is to gain a better understanding of the inner workings of the

sustainability and marketing procedures of the Portland Trail Blazers organization. Using a

STEER analysis of the industry, company and competitor profiles, and product marketing

descriptions information was gathered about the sustainable marketing strategies of the Blazers.

The research indicates that even though the Trail Blazers are not the absolute leaders of

sustainability in the live sporting event industry, they have distinguished themselves by

implementing sustainable practices into the production of live basketball games, clearly

marketing their products, and being transparent in their communications with consumers. Most

importantly, the Portland Trail Blazers are focused on the continual advancement of their

sustainable practices into the future.


This essay will contain three major sections. The first is a STEER analysis of the live

sporting event industry. The STEER analysis will look at some of the factors that influence

decision making processes in the live sporting event industry. The major influential factors are

socio-cultural, technological, economic, ecological and regulatory factors.

The second section is a profile of the Portland Trail Blazers and an analysis of its major

competitors. This will give background about the company and its place within the live sporting

event industry. The sustainability of the organization will be highlighted in this section.

The third and final section is a description of the product that the Portland Trail Blazers

sell. This section will also include a critical analysis of the sustainable marketing techniques that

the organization uses to market the product.

STEER Analysis of the Live Sporting Event Industry

Live sporting events have been an integral part of American culture for decades. This

$400 billion sports industry draws huge numbers of spectators to sporting events year after year

($400 billion sports industry, 2010). The attraction of watching the best athletes in the world

compete at the highest level is showing no signs of declining. To the contrary, the growth of the

sports industry is set to accelerate in projected future. The high visibility that the sports industry

benefits from has other effects besides profits. It is imperative for organizations within the

industry to be conscientious of keeping pace with country wide economic and social trends. In

the past five to ten years, the emphasis on environmental sustainability has become a hot button

issue, and consumer and shareholders are demanding different practice from large organizations.

An important issue that the industry faces is balancing their primary concerns. They must


provide an entertaining event to fans, sell tickets, and also be environmentally sustainable. This

is a challenge that the industry has not faced in the past. The push for environmental

sustainability is stronger now than ever before. Every industry encounters different outside

influences when striving for sustainability, so it is important to pinpoint these influences to gain

a better understanding of what is really going on. One way to identify and analyze the influences

on the industry is a STEER Analysis. The STEER Analysis will look at the external issues that

affect the decision-making processes of organizations within the live sporting event industry.

These influencers will include socio-cultural, technological, economic, ecological and regulatory

issues.

Socio-Cultural

The overall increased visibility of environmental issues and consumer awareness of

environmentally friendly practices within the business world are important factors that greatly

affect the industry. Corporate social responsibility is becoming continually more important to

businesses as the importance of sustainability develops and solidifies in the minds of consumers.

“The terms 'corporate sustainability' and 'corporate social responsibility' are already dominating

board rooms of many public and private organizations.” (Buchmeister, B, 2013). It is clear the

socio-cultural mind state of the wider American public is making its way into the live sporting

event industry. In fact, “all commissioners of professional sports leagues in the United States

have made commitments to environmental stewardship and are actively encouraging the teams in

their leagues to incorporate sustainable measures into their operations” (Natural Resource

Defence Council, 2012). It is also important to remember that the popularity of sports in the

United States has a huge effect on the industry's decision making. “13% of Americans say they


follow science, 61% say they are sports fans” (Hershkowitz, A, 2012). With more than half the

population is cognizant of the sporting industry and with general trends in environmental

sustainability is increasing, it is clear that the sports industry is directly influenced by the socio-

cultural climate of the country.

Technological

Technological advancements have made sustainability in sports an achievable goal. The

accelerated technological development is apparent across all industries, and live sporting events

have benefited greatly from these advancements as well. One way developments in technology

are influencing the live sporting event industry is the building of stadiums. Not long ago, it

would have been impossible to build an environmentally sustainable stadium. Organizations now

have the opportunity to use huge amounts of recycled steel, plastic and concrete in the

construction of their stadiums. This opportunity was not available before the technology to

recycle these materials was put into action. Also, advancements in technology have made it

possible for franchises to encourage the usage of greener public transportation systems that are

more prevalent now than they ever have been in the past. Instead of having huge parking

structures where individuals drive to stadiums, many people in urban environments are taking

advantage of the ever-growing developments in green public transportation systems. The United

States Department of Transportation is using advancement in technology to invest in the

promotion and implementation of renewable energy and the reduction of greenhouse gases (Our

Sustainability Efforts, 2014).

Economic


When running a for profit business, economic factors will always play an important part

in the decision making process within an industry. If external economic factors do not coincide

with organizations economic goals, then the likelihood of an organization adopting green

practice is slim. However, it appears that this is not the case in the live sporting event industry.

The economic factors that affect the live sporting event industry make it in a company's best

interest to be sustainable. “The processes of recycling, resource recovery, material reduction,

product reuse, remanufacture and systems redeployment lead to innovation and the reinstatement

of the business life-cycle” (Palcic, I, 2011). A NRDC reports titled, Game Changer: How the

Sports Industry is Saving the Environment (Natural Resource Defence Council, 2012) lays out

some basic reasons why professional sports is proving the case for going green. Greening

provides financial savings, attracts sponsors, tenets and entertainment clients and builds local

economic growth. The growing environmental awareness of the American population also

creates economic opportunities for social responsibility. “Green funds and SRI (socially

responsible) funds not only attract investors that are driven by their personal values in investing,

but also by investors who believe that green investing is a sector that will produce a favorable

return/risk tradeoff” (Mallett, J. E, 2010). If these economic factors discussed above did not

make it advantageous for the live sporting event industry to be sustainable, then the decision

making process from companies in the industry would be very different.

Ecological

When discussing the ecological factors that influence the live sporting event industry, it is

important to recognize the overlap between ecological, economic and socio-cultural concerns.

These three issues are connected in a myriad of ways, so it is important to recognize the true


priorities of an industry. It is no secret that there are seriously concerning trends that are

occurring in the environment. There are plenty of examples that show the effect humans are

having on the environment “24,000 heat records were broken across the United States in the first

six months of 2012” (Enloe, Jesse. 2012). “Nine of the 10 hottest years ever recorded have been

experienced since 2000” (Cole, Steve, 2012). “The warmest spring on record since 1895, when

temperature recordkeeping began, was in 2012” (Cole, Steve, 2012). The list of these examples

goes on and on. It is also very apparent that the sporting industry is cognizant of these ecological

trends. This can be demonstrated by observing the steps that these organizations have taken to

reduce the effect that live sporting events have on the environment. “Millions of pounds of

carbon emissions have been avoided, millions of gallons of water have been saved, and millions

of pounds of paper products are being shifted toward recycled content or eliminated altogether”

(Natural Resource Defense Council, 2012). The importance that these ecological factors have on

the industry cannot be overstated. Without these ecological trends, it is unlikely that

cooperation’s would be changing their business practices at all.

Regulatory

Regulatory measures play an influential role in shaping the decision making of the live

sporting event industry. There are specific regulations that the live sporting event industry has to

take into consideration when building arenas and putting on live events. “The regulatory

requirements for protecting the environment are becoming ever more stringent and the consumer

demands for eco-friendly products and services are at all-time high” (Buchmeister, B, 2013).

One of the more influential regulatory organizations that have an effect on live sporting events is

the International Olympic Committee (IOC). The IOC has become very forward and direct with


their policies in making the Olympic games as environmentally sustainable as possible. This is a

large task considering the amount of resources used in putting on an event of the magnitude of

the Olympics. Another relevant certification that American sporting arenas and stadiums are

achieving is the LEED certification. The LEED certification is a rating system designed to

measure the environmental sustainability of a particular structure. “15 professional North

American stadiums or arenas have achieved LEED green building design certifications, 18 have

installed onsite solar arrays, and virtually all have developed or are developing recycling and/or

composting programs” (Natural Resource Defence Council, 2012). Compared to the other areas

of the STEER analysis, the regulatory factors seem to play less of a role in the decision-making

processes of the industry. However, it should be noted that I had a difficult time locating

adequate information about the environment regulations put on this particular industry. I was

hoping to find a list of mandatory regulation and certifications that events must go through in

order to operate, but I was not able to. I am certain that more information exists on this topic, and

I would be very intrigued to learn more about the effects regulations have on the live sporting

event industry.

Company Profile & Competitor Analysis

Company Background

The Portland Trail Blazers are a professional basketball team in the National Basketball

Association (NBA). Located in Portland Oregon, they have enjoyed a relatively successful

history. In 1970, the NBA expanded from 14 to 17 teams. Spurred by the hand of sports

executive Harry Glickman, Portland won the bid to be included in this expansion. The Portland


Trail Blazers were introduced into the NBA with the Buffalo Braves (now known as the Los

Angeles Clippers) and the Cleveland Cavaliers,. After a short period of growing pains that

expansion teams often face, Hall of Famer Bill Walton lead the Blazers to their first and only

NBA championship in 1977. The Blazers have returned to the NBA finals twice since 1977 with

teams including most notably Clyde Drexler, but have not yet retained the title. The franchise

endured a dip in popularity in the early 2000’s “Jail Blazer” era. This included many league

violations and off-the-court drama. Power forward Rasheed Wallace set an NBA record for most

technical fouls in a season in 2000-2001. However, the team has recently recaptured the respect

of the basketball world. All-Star power forward LaMarcus Aldridge and 2013 Rookie of the

Year Damian Lillard are currently looking to lead the team deep into the playoffs in the 2014-15

season. The Trail Blazers initially played in the Memorial Coliseum, and would eventually be

relocated to the Rose Garden, which has recently been renamed to the Moda Center (“Moda

Center”). Since entering the league in 1970, the Blazers have been a staple in Portland sports

culture (“History Main”).

Product

Unlike many companies in other industries, professional sports teams offer one clearly

defined product. The chief product or service that the Portland Trail Blazers offer is the

production and presentation of live basketball games. Under the larger Trail Blazer organization

umbrella, there are a few other products and service lines that the Trail Blazers provide, such as

merchandise and television/radio broadcasts. That being said, live basketball games are clearly

the most important product that the organization produces.


Relative Market Share

Portland’s market share within the NBA, considering the relatively small market that the

Blazers pull from, is currently one of the best in the league. When looking at the top seven

markets that the Blazers are in competition with, it is impressive that they hold as large of a

market share as they do. The Blazers rank 22 out of 30 teams when organized by number of

television owning homes in the market (“NBA Market Size,” 2011). New York, Los Angeles and

Chicago make up the top three NBA markets using these statistics. Also, the markets of the top

NBA teams when organized by “percent above expected ticket revenue” have very different

characteristics compared to Portland. These cities include New York, Portland, Chicago, Boston,

Los Angles, San Antonio and Miami (Dignam, 2013). Which city looks out of place? These are

all huge markets with large populations and plenty of championship pedigree to their names

compared to Portland, yet the Blazers remain competitive in ticket sales. The smallest market

besides Portland, San Antonio, has five championships and has been hugely successful under

their coach Gregg Popovich since the 90’s, and this success has contributed to their ticket

revenue. However, the proof of the Blazers market share can be found in the statistics. Between

1977 and 1995, the Blazers sold out a record 814 consecutive home games, a NBA record

(Rovell, 2004). This is an impressive statistic in any sport. According to Forbes, the Blazers sit in

12th in current value based on their current arena deal, and 14th in Revenue (“The Business Of

Basketball”). This places the Trail Blazers in the upper half of relative market share in the NBA.

There are a few reasons for this. The chief reason being the avid fan base that supports

the Trail Blazers. Unlike the major markets that the Blazers are in competition with, Portland

only supports one major professional sports team. In fact, the state of Oregon only supports one

team in the three major American sports of football, baseball and basketball. Oregon’s neighbor


to the south, California, is an example of a state that has numerous professional sports teams.

There are five MLB teams, three NFL teams, four NBA teams, three NHL teams and three MLS

teams in California. Granted, the population of California vastly outweighs that of Oregon.

However,, the devotion that the Blazers fan base presents is more difficult to come across in a

sport team saturated market. This helps the Blazers remain competitive with larger cities when it

comes to relative market share.

Sustainability Reporting Analysis

The Portland Trail Blazers offer transparent information regarding the environmental

sustainability of their arena and the production of a live basketball games. Research revealed

extensive reports involving the details of the Blazers sustainability initiatives. While obvious

sources such as the National Basketball Association's website along with Blazer affiliated

websites offered clear information, the more detailed analysis came from outside sources and

news articles. One of the more illuminating reports came from the Natural Resource Defense

Council’s 2012 report entitled, “How the Sports Industry is saving the Environment”

(Hershkowitz, “Game Changer”). This offered the most detailed information regarding the

environmental impact of the Blazers organization and also the details of the initiatives that will

be discussed in the sustainability facts and initiatives section. The information provided by the

Blazers organization and outside sources was clear and transparent in regards to sustainability

initiatives.


Sustainability Facts & Initiatives

Portland takes pride in being on the cutting edge of sustainability, and the Trail Blazers

have taken part in a number of sustainability initiatives. First, the Blazers were the first major

sports team in the US to have it’s arena achieve a LEED Gold certification (“Trail Blazers Earn”

2014). A LEED certification has become a very prominent incentive for sports arenas across the

country, as it recognizes and rewards the sustainable performance of a building (Steinbach,

2013). It is important to remember that the LEED certification is just a indicator of the actual

work that must carried out on a daily basis in order to become a more sustainable organization.

Here are some of the initiatives that the Blazers have put in place.

The Moda Center is located in the Rose Quarter, a hub of public transportation in

Portland. Max and public bus lines run through this area and make it very convenient for fans to

get to and from games in a more sustainable fashion. 58% of the Organization's carbon footprint

is caused by guest commuting (Hershkowitz, 2012), and the Blazers are looking to combat this.

The Blazers have subsidized public transits passes for employees and 30% of fans to use

alternative transportation to travel to games (Williams, 2012).

Pacific Power and Northwest natural have partnered with the Blazers to help the purchase 100%

renewable energy for the Moda Center (“Portland Trail Blazers,” 2009). The Blazers have started

to use low flow plumbing fixtures, and have cut water use by 17% (Hershkowitz, 2012).

Finally, in order to improve sustainability practices, the Blazers have had outside audits

performed by the highly regarded Green Building Service consulting firm (Hershkowitz, 2012).

These audits analyze the full spectrum of the Blazers organization, including buildings,

equipment, policies, procedures, purchasing, travel, commuting and operations (Hershkowitz,

2012). The Blazers organization has made it clear that even though progress has been made,


these measures are just starting points. The Blazers have experienced a 467% return on

investment since 2008 after investing $643,000 into sustainability initiatives (Steinbach, 2013).

This is a clear economic incentive for sustainability. In the upcoming years, the Blazers hope to

achieve LEED Platinum certification and continue to develop their sustainable practices.

Past Troubles Around Sustainability Issues

When researching the Trail Blazers sustainability efforts, I did not come across any legal

troubles or public exposure in regards to sustainability.

Competitor Analysis

In order to obtain a broad spectrum of the competition that the Trail Blazers face, we will

look at two highly successful franchisees on opposite coasts. Two important competitors that the

Blazers have within the market of the NBA are the Los Angeles Lakers and the New York

Knicks. As discussed in the aforementioned section about the Blazer’s market share, the Lakers

and the Knicks are both huge players in the NBA market. According to Forbes, they are the top

two teams in both Current Value and Revenue by some margin (“The Business Of Basketball”).

The Knicks operating income is an estimated $96.3 million, which is $30 million more than the

second place Lakers. It is clear that the New York and Los Angeles are the two biggest markets

in the US, and their relative market share in the NBA mirrors this.

Even if the Lakers and Knicks do enjoy a larger market share than the Blazers, they

partake in many of the same sustainability initiatives. The Miami Heat, who play in the

American Airlines Arena, have achieved LEED certification and are looking to get recertified in

order to show improvement on their 2009 performance (Hershkowitz, “Game Changer”). The


team has installed an energy efficient 3,400 square foot LED screen that promotes their LEED

certification, along with creating recycling incentives that support US veterans. The Miami Heat

organization also promotes carpooling to games (Hershkowitz, “Game Changer”). The Heat

organization is reaping benefits from the greening of their operation, and has annually saved $1.6

million (Hershkowitz, “Game Changer”).

The Los Angeles Lakers play in the Staples Center, which is one of the busiest arenas in

the United States. With all of this use, it is important for the arena to operate at a sustainable

level during the numerous sporting events and concerts that are put on during the year. The list of

the Staples Center’s sustainability initiatives is extensive. The Staples center has earned an ISO

14001 Certification, which requires an annual in depth audit that evaluates the building’s

sustainable performance along with the training of arena staff (Hershkowitz, “Game Changer”).

1,727-panel solar array covering 25,000 square feet of the arena’s roof, waterless urinals,

recyclable paper products, electric vehicle charging stations and ticket discounts offered to

public transit users (Hershkowitz, “Game Changer”). The Lakers are clearly a leader when it

comes to sustainability initiatives

The Trail Blazers Fall & Sustainability Best Practices

After looking into the sustainability initiatives of the Portland Trail Blazers and its

competitors in the NBA, it appears that the Portland Trail Blazers are a sustainability leader in

the industry. Allen Hershkowitz, a senior scientist for the Natural Resource Defense Council

stated, “The Portland Trail Blazers are indisputably among the most progressive and

accomplished teams in the world of sports when it comes to environmental initiatives. Not just in


the NBA, but in all sports” (“Blazers: Sustainability”). The Blazers seem set to be an industry

leader in sustainability for years to come.

Product Description & Critical Analysis of Sustainable Marketing Approach

This is an investigation of the marketing approach used by the Portland Trail Blazers in

marketing professional basketball games. First, it is important to identify the primary target

market and look into why this market is being targeted. Secondly, the promotion mix will be

examined, along with the branding and communication of the product Lastly, I will explain the

pricing strategies the Trail Blazers use.

Market Segmentation

In the past, the Blazers highest number of ticket sales have gone to a generally older

demographic. “We were an older demographic, 55-plus with our season ticket holders. Our

package buyers, people who bought 10 to 15 games, were 50-plus. Even our individual game

buyers were in the 40-plus range" (Hogg, 2013). However, in recent years, the Blazers have a

strong push to shift their target market from old to young. Dewayne Hankins, VP of marketing

and digital for the Portland Trail Blazers, stated that attracting 25- to 39-year-old fans means

higher customer lifetime values (Fletcher, 2014). They have done this by methods that will be

discussed in the promotional mix section of this paper.

The Trail Blazers are in a unique position when it comes to targeting a younger

demographic of fans. Compared to conventional products, brand loyalty is extremely high when

it comes to professional sports teams. A study done by Jeffrey James at the University of Illinois

found that children were first able to develop loyalty to a sports team at the age of five. The same


study also found that the most relevant social agent in instigating loyalty towards a sports team

was from fathers (James, 2001). This is something that can’t be said for most conventional

products. Due to this long-term loyalty that can be built from a young age, the Blazers are

extremely interested in targeting this younger market. Formative experiences with the Trail

Blazers can create fans that will continue to support the team throughout their adult lives, and

maybe even pass down their love of the team to their children.

Promotion Mix

In the past, the Portland Trail Blazers have used fairly traditional approaches to sports

advertising. This includes TV and radio advertisements, along with large billboards and signs

(Hogg, 2013). However, in the fast moving world of sports advertising, it is important to stay up

to date with new methods of reaching young consumers. In the past two years, the Trail Blazers

have made a major shift in their marketing strategy in attempt to reach a younger demographic.

This new strategy is highly focused on social media and online marketing. The Blazers were

among the first NBA teams to get a Twitter handle, and now consider Instagram to be one of

their most effective ways of marketing towards younger fans (Schaeffer, 7 Tips...). Instagram

allows increased access to behind the scenes content that fans respond strongly to. Dan Harbison,

Senior Director of Digital Marketing and Media stated, “It makes them feel special” when

referring to the effect that social media has on fans (Schaeffer, 7 Tips...).

With all of this in mind, the Blazers are making sure that they don’t overload fans with

excess digital content. This would include any content that a consumer is not able to watch

because of to the draw of other content This is a trap that organizations can fall into (7 Ways the

Portland Trail Blazers, 2013). The relative ease up creating and uploading digital content to the


Internet can send organizations into a pattern of oversaturating the digital content. The Blazers

also face the challenge of having a very quick turnover on content. Sports are not an evergreen

market when it comes to advertising. There are 82 regular season basketball games, and content

is outdated almost as quickly as it can be uploaded (7 Ways the Portland Trail Blazers, 2013).

The Blazers as also making an attempt to consolidate the scattered content websites into one

place (Golliver, 2013). This will make it easier for fans to access information about the team.

Another way that the Blazers are currently reaching their target market is using the

players on the team as brand ambassadors. In the early 2000s, the Blazers had the unfortunate

marketing challenge of having perceived “negative role models” on the team, which turned off

many fans. Players like Ruben Patterson, Rasheed Wallace, Zach Randolph, Damon Stoudemire

and Darius Miles, while all very talented athletes, had multiple problems with the law for

marijuana charges, speeding tickets, DUIs, and sexual offenses. Even practices dissolved into

fights amongst players (Waters, P, Jail Blazers...). Fortunately, the volatile nature of the culture

in the Blazers organization has changed since then. In 2003, the organization even went as far to

publish the “25 Point Pledge.” This document promised to evaluate a player's’ character before

being selected for the roster, along with 24 more culture related commitments to fans (Nance,

2003). Rasheed Wallace and Bonzi Wells were traded the same year.

Led by Brandon Roy and Lamarcus Aldridge, the Blazers now have a roster full of

consummate professionals and highly marketable players. The Blazers marketing organization

has realized this, and utilities the players as was to market to the young demographic. All-Star

point guard Damian Lillard and All-Star power forward LaMarcus Aldridge are examples of

exciting players that are a perfect representation of what the Blazers organization looks to

represent. Tim Chaney, marketing director for Kia says, "It’s a star driven league, and there’s a


new, emerging class of younger stars ” (Younger Viewers, 2012). The Blazers organization

makes sure to keep players as available as possible for interviews and promotional events, in

attempt to create a strong connection with fans.

Branding / Communication

The Blazers are in an interesting place when it comes to communicating their brand as

sustainable. Judging by my research, the Blazers do not put an emphasis on advertising

sustainability during games or during the marketing of games. There are two reasons for this.

First, a professional basketball game does not need to include sustainability into its marketing

campaigns in order to sell tickets. Fans will be going to these games regardless of the amount of

sustainability advertising. Secondly, the Blazers are able to avoid green washing by not drawing

attention to their sustainability practices. Even though the Blazers do partake in plenty

sustainable practices, even well intentioned advertisements that highlight sustainability can be

interpreted as green washing. After looking at numerous Blazer advertisements online, in

magazines and on TV, not one highlights the sustainability efforts of the organization. This

allows the Blazers to remain environmentally responsible without attracting distracting media

scrutiny. There is plenty of information available online about the Blazers’ sustainability

initiatives and the environmental impacts of a basketball games if fans wish to seek it out.

Pricing

Recently, the Trail Blazers have utilized new online resources to improve their pricing

strategies. The most important strategy that the Blazers have implemented has been dynamic


ticket pricing. In the past, the Blazers would have charged the same amount for the same seat not

matter who the team was playing. For instance, if the Blazers were playing the Oklahoma City

Thunder, the price of a ticket would be the same as seeing the Utah Jazz (Hogg, 2013). This is

not a ticket pricing method that yields the highest potential profits. The demand for seeing MVP

Kevin Durant, division rival and title contenders OKC will be higher than seeing a bottom of the

league Utah Jazz. To combat this inefficiency, the Blazers now use up to 19 factors to determine

ticket prices (Hogg, 2013). These factors include day of the week, star players and opponents

(Brettman, 2013). The marketing team plugs these factors into a computer program, and they

then publish the ticket prices at 11:00 am on each Monday of the season (Blazers Single Tickets,

2014). In addition to this, the Blazers will also keep track of past ticket purchases, and

personalize upcoming ticket prices depending on past buying behavior (Hogg, 2013). This will

individualize the pricing of tickets, and further personalized the advertising of the games.

The Blazers have ticket prices that hover around the NBA average. According to data

collected by Business Insider, the Blazers average ticket price in 2013 was 48.40. This is 13th

most expensive out of the 30 teams in the league (Gaines, 2013). However, there is no way to

compare these ticket prices to a “sustainability conventional” counterpart, since the Blazers are

the only company in this particular Portland market. The Blazers have taken numerous

sustainability measures in the past, so the prices should be considered sustainable prices

(Hershkowitz, 2012).

In conclusion, it is apparent that the Blazers are doing an excellent job at marketing live

basketball games. They have targeted an important market to focus their advertising attention

towards and are using relevant marketing channels to reach these consumers. They have avoided

green washing while still maintaining a high level of sustainability and transparency within the


organization. The only thing I could recommend to change would be to let fans know about the

sustainability initiatives that are in place during games. There are plenty of opportunities to

display this information in a tasteful manner during the game, and I think that fans would

appreciate knowing about the levels of sustainability that the Portland Trail Blazers look to

uphold.

After conducting this research, it is clear that that even though the Trail Blazers are not

the absolute leaders of sustainability in the live sporting event industry, they have distinguished

themselves by implementing sustainable practices into the production of live basketball games,

clearly marketing their products, and being transparent in their communications with consumers.

The STEER analysis showed that there are important outside factors play a major role in the

decision making of the Trail Blazers. The company profile and competitor analysis indicated that

the Blazers are on the progressive side of the NBA when it comes to sustainability. Finally, the

product marketing description gave a clear insight into the ways the Blazers communicate

sustainability to consumers. Most importantly, the Portland Trail Blazers are focused on the

continual advancement of their sustainable practices into the future.


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