Since 1988, Jim Rappel has been working in sports marketing. First with the Miller Sports Group, directing programming for their sports agency throughout the Mid-West, to working at Wunderman with various motorsports and professional sports in order to expand branding on different media platforms. Rappel talks about different marketing challenges that professional sports face, as well as what social and traditional media mean for sports in general. Twitter: @JimRappel

Bobby Holland oversees one of the largest travel baseball facilities in the country, along with one of the most recognizable brands in baseball, The Ripken Experience, in Myrtle Beach. Holland talks about how his experiences from minor league baseball have helped his skills in developing The Ripken Experience’s travel sports structure with corporate sponsors, especially with hotels. Holland discusses his time with the Richmond Braves, Potomac Cannons, Potomac Nationals, Live Nation, and Global Spectrum in terms of what works and what he believes does not in professional sports leadership and staffing.

Joe Barbarito has worked in various levels of sports business for the NHL’s Dallas Stars, Charlotte Knights, Broomfield Sports & Entertainment, Colorado Crush, Macon Knights, and Toledo Mud Hens. Now taking on clients as the owner of Pre-Game Consulting, Barbarito talks about some of the training methodology he uses in order to improve revenue and marketing for teams. Barbarito is willing to admit mistakes in promotions, but while humbled, how he learned from them and improved his overall branding principles of his training to help others. Twitter: @JBarbarito

In an episode that was supposed to be recorded back in November 2012, T-Ante Sims finally sits down for a chat on working in sports, in higher education and with student athletes. Sims talks about his role at Sacramento State University Athletics, finding student workers, and some of the environment that CSSU creates with smaller venues and no amenities. It was a long, overdue chat with T-Ante Sims, and well-worth getting done.

Corporate Sales Directors constantly try to seek out what their sponsor prospects want and J.W. Cannon provides some of his answers. Helping the United Parcel Service develop good B2B within their sponsorship spaces, Cannon talks about what most team corporate sales directors are missing about national companies and why sponsorship should be tailored to client, not to what inventory is available. Cannon expands to talk about his involvement as co-creator of #sbchat which has helped build the conversation every Sunday night about what really matters in the sports industry for prospective sports management employees. Twitter: @CannonJW

Tickets drive revenues for an NHL team more than any of the Big Four Leagues because of a lack of major national television revenue. Eric Kussin is responsible for the creation of new revenues at a time when the New Jersey Devils have faced financial issues, especially a lockout-shortened 2012-13 NHL season. Kussin talks about the issues surrounding both the Devils and the NHL, as well as expands into his beliefs on dynamic ticket pricing and the secondary market. Twitter: @QSin34

Selling the MLS in a market filled with sports choices is exactly what Mike Ernst is up against, yet the Chicago Fire’s ticket sales have continued to set records and revenue marks for the league. Ernst talks about his philosophy on selling, the relationship between sales reps and season ticket holders, the impact of supporter clubs which are unique to the MLS in US team sports, and how the Fire continue to broaden their prospecting of new customers. Twitter: @RealMikeErnst

Edward O’Hara is a founding partner of SME, overseeing the company’s branding process from strategic development to creative direction and execution. O’Hara is a brand building expert who has appeared on ESPN’s Outside the Lines, CNN, CNNfn, MSG Network, and TimesCast, as well as has been quoted in The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times and BrandWeek. O’Hara knows brand, especially in the world of sports and talks about rebranding the Miami Marlins entire apparel & logo line, as well as what happens when LeBron James happens to tout the new look of an SME branded product. Twitter: @EdOHara

Selling hockey in NASCAR country means learning how to sell everything but hockey to the local audiences according to Shawn Lynch. Examined in this podcast is how Lynch has been able to develop fan development opportunities to grow the Checkers’ base as well as promote a cold winter sport in a Southern racing community. Lynch talks about different sales strategies as well as getting legendary sales trainer & author Jeffrey Gitomer to help develop the Checkers’ sales staff. Twitter: @CheckersLynch

Mekale Jackson won the 2013 Gold Award at NACMA for St. John’s Basketball “Takeover” in NYC Times Square in 2012. Jackson talks about the impact of publications, digital and social responsibilities of his department in order to create genuine responses for the general public. Jackson shares his passion for working with coaches and student-athletes on projecting each program in the right way and with fairness between both men’s and women’s sports. Twitter: @MekaleJackson