The Inevitable 2022 Pros Switching Sponsors Thread

[ru4por]

You're just a crabby old man. It's there, but not on your radar.

(This is an affectionate compliment, by the way. Birds of a feather.)

Yeah, I stand corrected.

I most certainly am not into ANY other social media. This is my social media and some music on YouTube. I had no idea that player, YouTube content was a thing for any other sport. I would now claim that it is ineffective in a "grow the sport" way, but....again, I fear it is me that is just not the target of their efforts or in position to receive it.

 

[spinachd]

I guess you need a "full pro sponsor deal" with Nike? Otherwise at least both Kristin Tattar and Silver Lätt is sponsored by Nike as far as I know.

So is Keiti Tatte

 

[ThunderEagle]

This is a bit of a generalization, but people get into activities that reflect their personality.

Disc golf is a serene, easy going activity and disc golfers tend to be quiet and reserved (Conrad, Heimburg, Dickerson, etc.).

I dunno, I think I see a lot wider representation of personalities than what you are describing. YMMV.

While there are some disc golfers who like attention and have a strong media presence, many players do not feel comfortable in front of a camera and are not interested in putting themselves on display which is what social media is all about.

And this is fine, however in the current climate, if they don't want to do this, or are bad at it, I don't think they can expect the same level of sponsorship deals that others are receiving that have the desire and ability to provide this.

I'm still not completely convinced a social media presence is that big of a driver of disc sales, with the notable exception of Brodie, but when you have 2.2 million subscribers, you really don't need to get a high percentage of those to buy discs to move the needle in disc golf. Say 5% of his subscribers buy a roach and a meteor that's approaching 240,000 discs. Take Kona's 57.3k Instagram followers at the same 5% at 2 discs each and we are talking just under 6000 discs.

Is the percentage higher? Lower? Where does it need to be?

 

[The Shide]

This is a bit of a generalization, but people get into activities that reflect their personality.

Disc golf is a serene, easy going activity and disc golfers tend to be quiet and reserved (Conrad, Heimburg, Dickerson, etc.).

While there are some disc golfers who like attention and have a strong media presence, many players do not feel comfortable in front of a camera and are not interested in putting themselves on display which is what social media is all about.

Just my 2 cents.

We may be birds of a feather. I am not comfortable having someone point a "camera" at me whilst I'm throwing.

 

[Emoney]

If I was the sponsor I would demand my pro did ALL the social media..

Hell...even the ppl that worked for me in the warehouse.

You are trying to sell a physical product.....it's a no-brainer and should be written into contracts.

I would def make the pro film a quarterly ITB. Not one at the beginning of the year, that gets released in october.

 

[Flick Maniac]

This is a bit of a generalization, but people get into activities that reflect their personality.

Disc golf is a serene, easy going activity and disc golfers tend to be quiet and reserved (Conrad, Heimburg, Dickerson, etc.).

While there are some disc golfers who like attention and have a strong media presence, many players do not feel comfortable in front of a camera and are not interested in putting themselves on display which is what social media is all about.

Just my 2 cents.

I dont agree with this at all. Huge blanket generalization. I've seen all kinds of people being into disc golf. I wouldnt draw parallels between personality = hobby with many other activities either.

Being fluent in creating social media content is also a generation/age thing. Kids "youtube" whatever these days. (7th most income from Youtube in 2021 was a 7 year old kid doing toy reviews for example)

 

[IndyTyler]

I feel like social media is viewed as highly important to sponsors and players due to the fact that we are not on national TV. If any major national TV company covered every pro tour event like they cover all the big golf tournaments and the NBA, NFL... then the players wouldn't need to promote themselves or their sponsors on social media like they do. Every one is trying to get interviews with Tom Brady, Lebron, Tiger and other top name pros but most media outlets don't even know that professional disc golf exists. It is a step to growing the sport by growing the amount of eyes that watch the content so that one day when disc golf gets more recognition and gets picked up by TV networks then they will have an audience. I believe it is necessary to have a good social media presence for disc golf.

 

[BogeyNoMore]

I don't think it reads that way unless you want it to read that way.

Typically, players changing sponsors will throw out a blurb acknowledging their time with their old sponsor, and maybe even a a quick thank you.

Cat didn't take a dig at Prodigy, but she didn't come out and thank them for their support over the years, either.

I agree people can infer what the want, but I think it's hard not take her wording, and complete omission of her previous sponsor as anything but 'They didn't have my back.'

You can't expect her to come right out and trash them.

 

[Lastchancer88]

Superman

I was gonna respond with McDonalds but the Man of Steel is older! who knew?

 

[Finny]

Typically, players changing sponsors will throw out a blurb acknowledging their time with their old sponsor, and maybe even a a quick thank you.

Cat didn't take a dig at Prodigy, but she didn't come out and thank them for their support over the years, either.

I agree people can infer what the want, but I think it's hard not take her wording, and complete omission of her previous sponsor as anything but 'They didn't have my back.'

You can't expect her to come right out and trash them.

From her Instagram post announcing she was leaving Prodigy: "So, I would like to say a big huge thank you to Prodigy Disc, my fans and all the Prodigy community for making the last nine years so incredible. The tour can be a grind, it can be lonely and sometimes tough, but I have always felt love and support from Prodigy…"

On the other hand…from her post today showing her throwing a Rift (midrange) 340 damn feet: " Huge shoutout to DGA for giving me my first ever signature disc!"

So maybe Prodigy did the best they could for a while but it just wasn't good enough anymore.

 

[TheOtherBill]

Cat didn't take a dig at Prodigy, but she didn't come out and thank them for their support over the years, either.

I agree people can infer what the want, but I think it's hard not take her wording, and complete omission of her previous sponsor as anything but 'They didn't have my back.'

You can't expect her to come right out and trash them.

Can anyone recall a 'special edition' Cat disc by prodigy, like to recognize her Worlds win? There was a signature disc or two, but did prodigy make any kind of big deal over it?

 

[TheOtherBill]

...and she had exactly as many signature line discs as Will Shusterick :/

https://www.prodigydisc.com/collections/prodigy-signature-series

 

[Bush122]

I suspect this has been answered (probably in detail) in another thread, but...

If Discraft purchased additional equipment to increase volume, why can't they can't keep up with demand?

a) Can't get enough raw material (supply chain issues like long lead times, limited pellet mfg and high demand from other industries)?

b) Labor? Bodies needed to work machines?

c) They are running at full capacity, but demand for new discs is beyond anyone's wildest dreams?

d) Some other factor?

I feel kinda dumb not knowing the deal, because their factory/whse is basically in my back yard.
I just don't spend much time shmoozing with Jim Kenner's posse.


Maybe I should.

Missed this yesterday, but my 2 cents (I work in chemical manufacturing as a project engineer FWIW):

1) It's not out of the question that they haven't even gotten those machines yet, unless I've missed them confirming their arrival. My company has been waiting on a filter (significantly simpler than an injection molding machine!) since ~May 21, and we're likely 10x Discrafts size. If they didn't actually have those machines on order when Paul signed that contract I wouldn't be surprised if they didn't get ordered until April. Given what I'm seeing with plenty of my projects (~20 weeks for heat exchangers and tanks; again, simpler than injection molding machines) I think a 7-9 month lead time could well be in play, possibly even longer. Covid waves have hit and slowed factories multiple times since those orders got in, so even if the lead time was originally shorter, it could easily have been delayed by Delta/Omicron.

2) They have to actually install the machines, test them, ensure everything is working. Things like this don't just come with a switch then work, they require some tuning. So that probably takes a bit of time as well (as could any troubleshooting that may have to be associated).

3) Plastic supply is probably terrible. And disc manufacturers are certainly lower on the totem pole than a lot of other larger companies. I wouldn't be surprised to hear that any disc manufacturer has been put on force majeure throughout the past year still.

4) Labor could certainly be an issue, but I imagine you'd hear about that a bit more if they're in your neck of the woods

5) If everybody's going to keep buying raptors, forces, lunas, etc...why make other stuff? Changeovers cost time & money, and clearly it's selling. Not my favorite thing, but from a business perspective it seems to be working for them

 

[Finny]

My takeaway from Prodigy's off-season is they decided to go all-in on KJUSA. When two more accomplished players (Dickerson and Cat) asked for the same thing, they said no. Those two then left for better deals.

 

[Bush122]

Can anyone recall a 'special edition' Cat disc by prodigy, like to recognize her Worlds win? There was a signature disc or two, but did prodigy make any kind of big deal over it?

They made a 2x F7 to commemorate her worlds win

 

[Finny]

Can anyone recall a 'special edition' Cat disc by prodigy, like to recognize her Worlds win? There was a signature disc or two, but did prodigy make any kind of big deal over it?

Think they did a 2x edition F7. But I learned about this today, so doesn't seem like they promoted it.

 

[txmxer]

Re: extreme sports, during last Saturdays supercross race on NBC the riders were talking about some youtube videos they had made the previous week. I didn't pursue it any further than that, but obviously even one of the more mainstream fringe sports is relying on a fairly heavy dose of social media activity.

They do a lot of social media, but it's not the same as the DG folks trying to build a brand.

Bunch of kids that grow up in a bubble, so twitting, instagram, etc are how they socialize.

 

[Finny]

...and she had exactly as many signature line discs as Will Shusterick :/

https://www.prodigydisc.com/collections/prodigy-signature-series

Dammit, Schusterick was so good. Sucks he got hurt.

 

[Broken Shoulder]

Yeah, I stand corrected.

I most certainly am not into ANY other social media. This is my social media and some music on YouTube. I had no idea that player, YouTube content was a thing for any other sport. I would now claim that it is ineffective in a "grow the sport" way, but....again, I fear it is me that is just not the target of their efforts or in position to receive it.

I think it may be effective given the shift in the TV model. The only people watching network TV and regular cable anymore are geriatric crabasses.
It's the method to reach your audience now. Just because I'm not the target doesn't mean it's not happening.

 

[Finny]

My greater question with Cat is whether other companies bid for her services. If she got a big deal from DGA, great. It's hard to imagine they could offer the most, but I'd love to be wrong.