By Gordon Chu | September 08, 2009

Of all the Olympics I remember watching since the 1984 Los Angeles games, last year’s 2008 Beijing Olympics is the only one I remember taking my breath away in absolute awe. From the opening to closing ceremonies and for 16 days, all the worlds’ eyes were on Beijing. And, in true Hollywood fashion, the drama that unfolded at the Beijing Olympics did not fall short – from Usain Bolt’s 100M and 200M world records to Michael Phelp’s eight Olympic gold medals. But for the Chinese, nothing could be more exciting and more representative of China than basketball.

 The moment you walk into the heart of any metropolitan city in China, you will be hard-pressed to not find a slew of NBA jerseys amongst the urban crowd. The Chinese may not understand the word “thank you” in English, but you can be sure that they will all recognize the name, “Kobe Bryant.” Today, basketball is more than just a past-time or hobby, but is engrained into the very cultural fibers in today’s China’s youth. A brief NBA history in China:

HISTORY

1979 – NBA’s first venture into China with the Washington Bullets touring all of China as a team

1985 – David Stern invites the Chinese national team to the US for exhibition games against several NBA teams

1987 – NBA aired the 1987 All-Star game on CCTV

1989 – NBA struck a deal with CCTV to start broadcasting games on China’s only national TV station

1994 – First live feed for Game 1 of the NBA Finals

2002 – Yao Ming was picked number 1 in the NBA draft by the Houston Rockets

2003 – Mandarin Chinese site for NBA.com was launched

2007 – NBA China was formed to serve the China market

TODAY

Popular as it was pre-2002, Yao Ming was the catalyst to transform the popularity of basketball in China to epic proportions. Today, an estimated 300 million Chinese play basketball. Over 83% of Chinese males aged 15 – 24 claim they are a basketball fan. Today, basketball has eclipsed even the popularity of soccer and is on the forefront of ‘sports’ in China. Recently, the NFL (National Football League) and the MLB (Major League Baseball) have both tried to penetrate the China market by coat-tailing the success of the NBA; however, with a 30-year head start of either and plans to expand the NBA with a strategic partnership with AEG to construct 12 new basketball arenas, the NBA has a clear market share of sports in China.

MARKETING MACHINE

Let’s not kid ourselves and pretend the NBA’s aspiration to be an international sport – but truth be told, the NBA is a very successful marketing machine. With the growing popularity of the NBA in China, it’s no mystery that companies have flocked and gravitated towards basketball as a viable medium to attach their brands.

The advent of digital media, the emergence of the upper middle class in China, and the 7’6 phenomenon named Yao Ming – was the perfect storm to open the doors (and wallets) of brands looking to penetrate the China market. As way of example, in 2008, Nike had sales of over $1 billion in China – second to that of the United States. Previously in 2002, Nike’s sale was a mere $100 million in China.

Today, more companies than just Nike are riding the NBA wave in China. Thirty years after their inaugural visit to China, the Washington Bullets (Wizards) will go back to where NBA China all started - this time not as ambassadors to the sport, but as an open ambassador for brands and sponsorships. The financial crisis has no doubt negatively impacted most sports franchises, but China is one of the few markets and resource that has been relatively untapped and is a glimmer of hope for many teams.

For China, the number one foreign import IS sports and the brand association with the NBA is highly favorable. Some companies even go to questionable extents in order to attach themselves with branding next to the NBA in order to boost image. Beyond companies marketing through the NBA, the real lesson to be learned is how the NBA marketed themselves to be the force that they are in China today.

THERE IS NO “I” IN “TEAM”

As a sports fanatic, I’ve heard that cliché term used by numerous coaches throughout my recreational sports career. Although true in the spirit of the game, the ideal falls short in China in terms of the NBA’s success. China loves personalities – and plenty of it.

In China, the NBA is driven by individual players – not by the team they play. The drama, the heroics, and the spotlight of everything basketball is what the Chinese thrive on and is what drives where the money goes. Kobe Bryant sits at the top with his spectacular basketball play, but over-the-top personalities such as Shaquille O’Neal is still a big money-draw about how the NBA portrays and markets itself in China.

LOCALIZATION, LOCALIZATION, AND LOCALIZATION

First golden rule of marketing in China – localization. Granted this is a golden rule for any international business, China is one very unforgiving market and localization can very much make or break a brand. For the NBA, marketing itself went far beyond the traditional marketing strategies we would often assume and think. Brand association does not cut the muster and in order to really capture a true following, localization to the culture and social awareness are equally important.

Today, visits to China, donations to charitable Chinese funds (i.e. Sichuan earthquake), time at basketball camps and colleges are all important ways for the NBA to demonstrate their interest and good intent in China. For the Chinese people, this level of localization and interest in the people is what drives the popularity and fanship for the NBA.

GIVE FIRST, RECEIVE LATER

I have to give a lot of credit to David Stern and the NBA for his vision to grow basketball in China. Unlike many other sport franchises (and companies) who look to quickly penetrate and enter the China market, the NBA really has invested the time and resources to secure a long-term relationship with the Chinese. Thirty years to be exact. Thirty years of painstaking rejection, thousands of visits, and unprofitable ventures. For years, the NBA practically paid to air its NBA games on national television which brings up my next point of NBA marketing – give first, receive later.

Despite the ‘dark’ years of NBA China, today it reigns on top for the Chinese market. After years of giving, today – the NBA China is reaping hand over fist the benefits of going in first, generous giving, and lots of patience.

CONCLUSION

I should caveat that the NBA does indeed have deep pockets to market themselves ‘right’. And I will also caveat that the NBA explosion in China closely patterns the same growth as in the US which lends itself convenient. But, marketing is marketing and I have to give credit when it is due… in this case, the NBA has done a remarkable job at marketing itself – not only as a true international sport, but one seemingly ‘made in China.’