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Carolina Panthers, Cam Newton, Empty Seats, Social Media, and Branding

Jeremy Igo

By Jeremy Igo,
in Carolina Panthers

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morgan55 Newbie

morgan55

Posted
Posted
3 hours ago, joeyxfresco said:

Honestly, the fanbase is the worst part about this team. When we let Peppers go I was a senior in HS and started to lurk around a lot of Panther boards and blogs and was so turned off by the “fans” reactions. The post 2015 reactions towards Cam have been equally as embarrassing. I went to a home Panthers game for The Peppers homecoming game again the Bills in 2017 and it was my first time ever going to a Panthers game given I’m from Texas. I always heard about the treatment towards Cam from “that side” of the fan base but I always dismissed it as people overreacting to a small group. I poo you not, every sack, missed throw and run that was short a first down you heard the groans and boos from what I would say 1/10 of the stadium. Then, there was one play where Cam sat out and DA came in and couldn’t believe when people started cheering. There was even a few fans in front of us that I heard murmur something along the lines of “finally a QB worth watching”. Keep in mind, this was two years after the MVP run and a season removed from when the league declared open-season on helmet to helmet hits on Cam. I also took a buddy who recently got into football and latched onto the Panthers in 2015 because I would drag him to the bars to watch the games with me and that game and experience left a really bad taste in our mouths. Now factor in the this season where fans are wanting to move on from Cam after he had a good first half of the season in 2018 and you have a huge poo storm that had been brewing for a while. Like someone above mentioned, I will still be a fan after Cam leave but less enthusiastic about it given the treatment of the two best players to suit up for this team. It was bad with Julius and even it’ll be even worse with Cam. 

I stopped reading when u said when we let peppers go.

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Forty-Eight Newbie

Forty-Eight

Posted
Posted
3 hours ago, Jeremy Igo said:

There was quite a bit of a discussion yesterday surrounding the lack of fan excitement at the game. While it was not terrible, the attendance and crowd noise was not typical of a what a winning team and a home victory historically yield. Plenty of empty seats and an opposing offense that was able to utilize hard counts for most of the game. That isn't normal at Bank of America Stadium. 

So what happened? I have thoughts. 

Enter Cam Newton

When the Carolina Panthers drafted Cam Newton they found themselves completely unprepared to handle a guy with so much talent and charisma. I have heard as much from more than one source. The Carolina Panthers, and indeed the greater Charlotte area, has never hosted such an amazing athlete and huge personality. 

It would not take long before Cam Newton was not a franchise quarterback. He was the franchise. 

Cam Newton was the first player to my knowledge to ever have his own video/photo/social production team accommodated by the Carolina Panthers. A team that was present on gamedays to provide content for Cam's personal brand.  To Cam's credit, this was a brilliant business decision and forward thinking approach to today's landscape. Thanks to social media, there are no longer any barriers between celebrities and fans. Cam developed a talented and successful pipeline from himself to his fans. He no longer needed internal or external Carolina Panthers media or promotions to reach his fans. 

The end result was a dual brand franchise. The Carolina Panthers and Cam Newton, inseparable brands working together for mutual benefit. For the past several years, you could not mention one without the other. And you know what? It worked. Money was being made by both entities. Life was good. 

But now the Carolina Panthers are starting to see the down side to being dual branded. When Cam Newton is no longer at the games there is a vacuum of interest and excitement. There is no one else on the team that can even approach Cam's showmanship and theatrical ability between the plays. The Carolina Panthers Show has lost its most beloved character. They are now the "Joey" to Cam Newton's "Friends". 

So what now?

What we are seeing now from the Carolina Panthers is a marketing transition. What was once 80% Cam Newton is now Christian McCaffrey. While McCaffrey is an amazing and marketable player, he still brings a fraction of the interest that Cam Newton brought. 

When (hopefully years from now) the Carolina Panthers and Cam Newton inevitably part ways, the Panthers will need to essentially re-brand themselves to their fans. I suspect they will take all the lessons learned above and not allow other player brands to rival their own. I would be shocked to see a production team allowed for CMC or a future franchise quarterback. While great for the players and short term for the team, it is to the long term detriment of their own Panthers brand. 

Week 1 vs the Rams had the most attendance and still there were a lot of Rams fans in CLT.
 

Week 2 vs the Bucs had plenty of emptied seats all over BOA.
 

Vs. the Jags, I don’t know but it didn’t look full on television either. 
 

I don’t believe that fans are not attending games anymore because the team is without Cam. I believe that fans are just tired of this franchise’s consistency of being inconsistent. I’ve been to two Hornets games so far. It is so much more better than the Panthers this year. 

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onmyown Grand Master

onmyown

Posted
Posted
4 hours ago, Jeremy Igo said:

There was quite a bit of a discussion yesterday surrounding the lack of fan excitement at the game. While it was not terrible, the attendance and crowd noise was not typical of a what a winning team and a home victory historically yield. Plenty of empty seats and an opposing offense that was able to utilize hard counts for most of the game. That isn't normal at Bank of America Stadium. 

So what happened? I have thoughts. 

Enter Cam Newton

When the Carolina Panthers drafted Cam Newton they found themselves completely unprepared to handle a guy with so much talent and charisma. I have heard as much from more than one source. The Carolina Panthers, and indeed the greater Charlotte area, has never hosted such an amazing athlete and huge personality. 

It would not take long before Cam Newton was not a franchise quarterback. He was the franchise. 

Cam Newton was the first player to my knowledge to ever have his own video/photo/social production team accommodated by the Carolina Panthers. A team that was present on gamedays to provide content for Cam's personal brand.  To Cam's credit, this was a brilliant business decision and forward thinking approach to today's landscape. Thanks to social media, there are no longer any barriers between celebrities and fans. Cam developed a talented and successful pipeline from himself to his fans. He no longer needed internal or external Carolina Panthers media or promotions to reach his fans. 

The end result was a dual brand franchise. The Carolina Panthers and Cam Newton, inseparable brands working together for mutual benefit. For the past several years, you could not mention one without the other. And you know what? It worked. Money was being made by both entities. Life was good. 

But now the Carolina Panthers are starting to see the down side to being dual branded. When Cam Newton is no longer at the games there is a vacuum of interest and excitement. There is no one else on the team that can even approach Cam's showmanship and theatrical ability between the plays. The Carolina Panthers Show has lost its most beloved character. They are now the "Joey" to Cam Newton's "Friends". 

So what now?

What we are seeing now from the Carolina Panthers is a marketing transition. What was once 80% Cam Newton is now Christian McCaffrey. While McCaffrey is an amazing and marketable player, he still brings a fraction of the interest that Cam Newton brought. 

When (hopefully years from now) the Carolina Panthers and Cam Newton inevitably part ways, the Panthers will need to essentially re-brand themselves to their fans. I suspect they will take all the lessons learned above and not allow other player brands to rival their own. I would be shocked to see a production team allowed for CMC or a future franchise quarterback. While great for the players and short term for the team, it is to the long term detriment of their own Panthers brand. 

I think we’re just going back to how things were. People at the games now are Panther fans only. And compared to the last time Panther fans only showed up to the stadium I’d argue there’s actually more interest and that’s thanks to Cam.

I’d also argue that until the Panther can establish a fanbase through SUCCESS, they will realize their fan base really isn’t that strong.

I’ve been saying forever half our fanbase are Cam fans and will not be around when he’s gone just like before he came. They generally have no interest in football altogether and to get those people to care was most certainly genius on Cams part.

Unfortunately for Panther fans is not sustainable since Cam isn’t immortal and can’t play forever. The only way to build a true long lasting, loyal fanbase and interest not based on a trend or single player is to win continually (unless you’re Cleveland).

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4Corners Grand Master

4Corners

Posted
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5 hours ago, dave-o said:

I will get poo'd but....    I deal with the public at my job all day...  The Panthers are a huge topic....  When Cam comes up in discussion a wide majority of folks say they are tired of him and his antics...  Showboating, the clothes, the general circus he brings to the table...  I admit I am one of those people...  I want him to be the best Panther ever but be more business like on the field...  Watch some of the top QB's warming up....  Its all business....  Cam runs around acting like an airplane....  Maybe I just expect more out of the face of a franchise....

I bet you want him to cut his hair and pull up his pants to

go pull for the cowboys 

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ncsfinest21 Proficient

ncsfinest21

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I will always be a Cam fan and want him to excel. But Im #1 Panthers fan. I am a Steve Smith fan too. But when he went to Baltimore. I rooted for him. But against Carolina. Im going for my team. I went to college in Chattanooga and had some friends in Atlanta and they told me about Cam in High School and wI went 2 hrs south to watch him play in High School. To have him play on my team has been a dream come true. But one day the dream will stop and reality will kick in and he will be gone or retire. I just hope he heals up and gets back to himself.

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AggieLean Grand Master

AggieLean

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I’ve been a fan of this team since I was 11 years old in 2000, and I have been on the huddle since 2008. I was here before Cam, and while I am a Cam fan, I will be a panthers fan when he leaves.

This whole Cam experience has opened my eyes a bit, and I’ve come to realize that Panther fans are the worst part of this whole shebang. I can remember them being horrible when I was a kid, due to lack of support, and I still feel they’re bad now.

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BrizzMachete Newbie

BrizzMachete

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But i was called a nut hugger when i said Cam put this team on the map and nobody would care about us if  he leave or never came . Now it’s even worse our own fans lost interest because of his absence . Ima still be a fan regardless but facts are facts . Sad how many people ready to run the main thing that makes us relevant out the door to save 20 million for one season . 

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