How Mailman Approaches Competition in China
China is transforming into a global sporting powerhouse. With it, an avalanche of sports related services and companies have risen over the past 12 months. Many of them are fantastic, creating awesome new initiatives. From training to education, consulting and more – and then there are some, here for all the wrong reasons.
This market is exploding and it seems that each week I’m asked: ‘Are they your competition?’ referring to a new entrant to the digital sports category in China. So having observed our own approach and success, while being mindful of the great companies out there – here are several things that are important to recognise.
They’ll always be 2nd
First and foremost we were here first. That’s right. Before the entire PR community began doing social, before event activation agencies tweeted and before the hundreds of other digital agencies began tackling sports – we were here. We launched the first international team on Chinese social media, the first live stream, the first 100k+ WeChat global football account. It’s important because we have the benefit of sharing our lessons with our clients. They don’t buy a theory with us, they get over 10 years of experience. (Drop the mic)
It’s in our DNA
Our DNA is different. Building a culture takes years to get right. Our culture is our greatest strength, it’s challenging, it’s dynamic but most of all it’s honest. We take on client projects with a genuine desire to ignite an army of followers behind them. We work as if we’ll be with the client for years to come and never take a short term approach to fan growth or brand. We build sports properties fans can grow to love, that takes a certain kind of DNA.
Trust us
Ultimately nothing happens without a level of trust. We’ve been in business for a long time and experienced many ups and downs. Nothing gets in the way of doing right by the client, regardless of whether it’s to our detriment. Integrity is at the core of our company, it’s non-negotiable.
We’ve spent a lot of money
We built technology that helps our people, our clients and our management do their jobs better. Our technology is designed to give global sports properties total transparency in market, total accountability and consistency in brand. We’ve invested well over $1m in our technology since 2013, with the vision to set the gold standard in social media marketing in China. Every single post made at Mailman is tracked, recorded, time stamped and tucked away in your cell phone app for access 24/7. It’s exhausting.
We like to have fun
Don’t we all? No, we really do! In fact, celebrating before we win is a favourite pastime of our group. We believe in a winning attitude, and a part of that is celebrating. We’re in the ‘People’s business’ so we make sure the people enjoy what they do and know WTF they do it for. Our partners and clients see this, they see it as they walk through our space and once they do, they want to be a part of it. We make sure that all partners are treated like our own.
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So, competition is welcomed, it keeps us all honest and it ensures we’re always innovating, improving and most importantly rewarding our people.
We’re still in the embryonic stage with China’s sporting landscape, the pie will only get bigger, but so too will the quality of work the industry will need to produce. We hope to continue setting that standard for many years to come.
Mailman is the leading China sports marketing platform. We help global rights holders, athletes, and leagues build a successful business in China. We serve, invest and partner with our clients at every opportunity.
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