PBA means profits and brand awareness

Business, particularly the entertainment business, is very fickle. In the TV business, TV programs come and go. These days, it’s very rare for a program to last more than five years, much less 10 years. As far as I know, there are only three local TV programs that were already on-air in the 1970s that that are still on-air today, and one of them is the PBA (Philippine Basketball Association).

In this day and age where the mantra is "in today, out tomorrow," that is quite a feat, especially in this Internet-centric, cable-powered, digital-crazy world. I am particularly interested in the PBA because 10 years ago, people were predicting its demise. And yet today it’s still making a lot of noise. The PBA is a great case study on business longevity, and I wanted to take a deeper look.

Running a basketball league — and airing it on TV — is not cheap. Each corporate team has to shell out roughly P100 million a year to maintain a squad. So to maintain the league, the corporate members have to tap someone — a commissioner — who will not only be responsible for running the daily affairs of the league (like doing the schedules, marketing, etc.) but someone who can also help them recover their expenses through TV rights fees, licensing fees, gate receipts and other forms of revenue. That’s certainly not an easy task.

Several years ago, the PBA searched for a commissioner to lead the league into the 21st century. They didn’t have to look too far. They tapped lawyer and then-PBA commentator Noli Eala. In only three short years, Commissioner Eala has been able to resurrect the once-struggling PBA and has steered it to greater heights — in terms of attendance, brand awareness, popularity, and profits.

I recently had a chance to chat with Commissioner Eala and asked him about everything from PBA as a business model to his plans for its future.

"The PBA has certainly had its ups and downs throughout its 32-year history," said Eala. "When I was tapped to be commissioner, I had a number of challenges — declining ratings, declining revenues, declining attendance, controversies on player eligibility, declining public support, drug problems, a tarnished image. All these had a negative effect on shareholder confidence and sponsor support. But just like my other endeavors in the past, I tried to look at the situation as an objective businessman. Sure, there were problems. But there were lots of positives, too. For one, we had a growing talent base. The MBA (Metroball) had just folded up so there were a lot of talented players who were available to play in the PBA. Also, basketball remained the number-one sport in the country. So I just focused on these pluses, and addressed the negative issues squarely."

One of the initial challenges that faced Eala was how to effectively manage and balance the interests of 10 teams that represent 10 of the biggest corporations in the Philippines.

"It certainly was a challenge for my management capabilities," smiled Eala. "One of the pluses I had, though, was that I knew the PBA inside and out. Knowledge is key in any business situation. Plus, I was not attached or beholden to any particular team. So in a way, I was viewed as possibly the most objective candidate for the job. And to run the PBA — and any business for that matter — I think that’s very important. It’s important to be viewed as an objective and impartial manager and leader. Once I was able to communicate that to the teams, I think they all felt confident that I was right for the job."

What was the key to the PBA’s turnaround? Eala says it’s all about being open to change and his being able to convince the teams to adopt the changes.

"I think that’s key to any business," said Eala. "We don’t operate in a vacuum. Our viewers, our sponsors, our teams — they all change. And as a business, you have to keep up with those changes. So I made some key changes, like changing the format from three conferences a year to two conferences a year. I felt we had too many tournaments and championships per year. Championships became trivialized, cheapened. If a team didn’t win, they could say, ‘It’s okay, we still have two more championships this year.’ So we removed that attitude. Now teams play each game with intensity. We brought prestige back to each championship. Also, we changed our season from calendar year to fiscal year. There are two important reasons for this: one, we had to adjust the schedule so that we could support the national team. Based on the marketing surveys we conducted, people felt strongly about the PBA playing a major role with respect to the national team. It was only right because we have the best players in the country. Also, this change of schedule had a positive marketing impact — we ended the season right before the rainy season. Before, the conference during the rainy season always suffered in attendance, which is understandable. It was difficult for people to go to the games. So it affected overall business. Now our break is during the rainy season.

"Another change I adopted is that I made the game more offense-oriented. People don’t want to watch basketball games for the stingy defense. They watch it for the shooting. So we made rules that allowed offensive players to operate more freely. That made the game faster — and far more entertaining. And once the crowd started coming in, the TV viewers started watching, and then the sponsors started coming in as well."

The PBA is here to stay, thanks to the vision, hard work, marketing savvy and business acumen of Commissioner Noli Eala. He has made the league profitable and awareness of the PBA brand is stronger than ever. His new slogan, "Astig," is such a perfect description for the league’s longevity and staying power; it’s also very Pinoy. And here’s good news for all of us basketball-crazy Pinoys — the PBA will only continue to grow.

"We’re looking at possibly having 14 teams," says Eala. "And we plan to go nationwide and have a South (Vismin) and North (Luzon) division. We’re also looking at building our own PBA Coliseum. We’re committed to promoting the PBA brand, to make it bigger not only for the shareholders but for all of us who enjoy basketball."

With Eala at the helm, those goals are certainly not a long shot.

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Thanks for your letters, folks! You may e-mail me at rodhnepo@yahoo.com.