INTERVIEW: ALAN J HEUER
A MARKETING CHARGE

By Robert Deitz

Golf, baseball remain key ingredients in MasterCard’s promotional strategy.

The nature of the game of golf is such that everybody can play, says Alan J. Heuer (pronounced “Hoy-er”), president of the U.S. Region of MasterCard International, making it an ideal tie-in for MasterCard’s far-reaching promotional strategy. One of the nation’s premier sports marketing/promotional organizations, MasterCard USA has developed strong sports marketing and promotional ties as of late, especially in golf and baseball. Among the most prominent of these links are with the PGA Tour (Tom Watson and Justin Leonard are MasterCard spokesmen) and Major League Baseball. In 1998, the company became title sponsor of the Associate Club Team Championships.

MasterCard’s U.S. region represented half a billion dollars in revenue in 1997, nearly half of MasterCard International’s worldwide volume. The 23,000 member financial institutions that own MasterCard International processed some 6.5 billion transactions worth more than $600 billion that same year.

Heuer, an athletic 57-year-old, is a graduate of Colgate University (where he played competitive golf) and the University of Rochester (where he earned an MBA in economics and finance). Before joining MasterCard in May 1995, he was executive vice president of retail banking for the Bank of New York. Previously, he was associated with Marine Midland Bank for 28 years, serving as chief banking officer and, at various times, the executive in charge of regional banking, marketing, human resources, consumer credit, and operations.

In the following interview, Heuer, a member of the Landmark Club in Stamford, Connecticut, talks about MasterCard’s sports marketing strategy.

What are MasterCard’s overall strategies regarding sports marketing?

Our basic strategy is to utilize our sports marketing agreements to effectively build preference for our MasterCard brand. That is our primary objective. In the United States the awareness level of the MasterCard brand is very high, so our objective is to build preference for the MasterCard brand in the minds of our targeted consumers. Our strategy is to use these [sports] properties in an effective way to reach our customers.

Did MasterCard take a lead over Visa in sports marketing when it got Major League Baseball?

It certainly was a major boost. Baseball is one of the foundations of sports in the United States. It really filled our portfolio of sports properties. We’re very involved with professional golf, hockey, soccer, and figure skating. But baseball is a foundation. Sixty-five to 70 million Americans are regular fans. It was a major coup for us. We were very fortunate in our timing. After signing the deal, we launched our first advertising in the [1997] World Series. We began what we call our “Priceless” advertising campaign in the World Series, and we used the father-son baseball ad as our first message. It was a good example of tying in our sports property, Major League Baseball, with the advertising theme to make an emotional connection with the passionate baseball fan. And, of course, the home run derby in 1998 gave it a good boost.

What is MasterCard doing in golf?

Golf is a great sponsorship for us. That’s because the demographics of the 26 million Americans who play golf fit very nicely with our target audience. It’s a very upscale market. The image of golf is one of integrity, tradition, and a lot of good things that we want to associate our brand with. The opportunity for us to work with professional golf to promote preference for our brand has been wonderful. We’ve been involved with golf in a big way for about three years now. Tom Watson is our spokesperson; he has been great for us. And we recently signed Justin Leonard.

So the golf sponsorship fits in with our target audience, and the image of golf fits with the image we want to build for MasterCard. It has been a wonderful opportunity for us to reach those passionate golfers. As you know, golf has been on an upswing for a number of years now. So we think golf and MasterCard go very well together. It’s the MasterCard Colonial, the MasterCard Championship, and we’re the official credit card of the PGA Tour, the Senior PGA Tour, and the PGA of America. Clearly, golf and baseball are our two major U.S. sports properties.

MasterCard was a sponsor of last year’s Associate Club Team Championships at Pinehurst in North Carolina. Is that an extension to a more grassroots marketing effort for the company?

Right. It very definitely is a grassroots effort. It’s a good example of how we’re working on a local level through the ClubCorp partnership to reach the kind of people we’re going after.

Do you anticipate more of that sort of thing? And, if so, in what areas?

Yes. A number of issuing member banks use golf in their business development efforts, and in their customer relationships. We work with a lot of issuing [bank] members on a local basis in promoting golf and in using golf. Golf, in my mind, is an absolutely wonderful means of entertaining and involving members and customers in outings and visible events. It’s unique in sports. Golf lends itself so nicely to local promotional events. I think it’s one of the real appeals for corporate sponsors. The nature of the game is such that everybody can play — at different levels, perhaps — but together, and be associated with the great names of the PGA Tour. It works very well for our kind of business.

You played with Tom Watson in a pro-am tournament, but you weren’t able to finish the tournament? What happened?

I was fortunate enough to be Tom’s partner at the 1998 AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am. At the end of the first round, we actually were leading the pro-am part of the tournament. At the end of the second round, we were tied for the lead. And then it got rained out. So my moment in the sun got washed out by the rain, because the pros scheduled the third and final round in August. The amateur part was canceled.

But you saw him at the Colonial in Fort Worth, Texas, a few months later?

Yes. Our titled sponsorship of the Colonial is one of the premier events that Tom had never won, but he was very desirous of getting his name up there with Ben Hogan and all of the other stars on the trophy. So this year was a real thrill to see him play so superbly, especially in the last round to win.

And once again, good fortune came our way because we had created a TV ad using Tom in golf slacks styles going back through the years, showing the old bell-bottoms and other outfits. We had produced that ad having no idea he would win the tournament. We bought a spot, and I believe it was actually broadcast with him going up to the 18th hole, the final hole of the tournament he won. It was truly priceless.

What’s it like to play golf with a pro like Tom Watson?

It’s a thrill. There’s no question he’s one of the great golfers of all time. His record is right up there. But on a personal level he’s absolutely delightful to play with. He puts people at ease. He’s so warm, so genuine, just a very fun guy to play with. I’ve been so lucky to play with Tom.

What kind of golfer are you?

I love the game. I enjoy playing very much. I played a lot in my youth, competitively in college. Then like a lot of other people, with my family growing up and focusing on my career, I didn’t play much. I have played more of late with MasterCard’s involvement in golf. I’ve had some wonderful opportunities. I’m passionate about the game, its tradition. I enjoy playing different courses. My handicap is seven.

How important is sports marketing to your overall marketing efforts? If you had to describe how you allocate your marketing resources, what percentage would go into sports activities?

Sports sponsorships are a very important part of our marketing mix. We approach our marketing in an integrated way — with media advertising, the sponsorships, and promotional tie-ins.

We don’t separate them, in a freestanding basis. Like in golf, we use Tom Watson in the ads, and we use Justin Leonard in the ads. We tie in all of the promotional things working with our member banks — win a chance to play golf with Tom Watson, or get an autographed hat or whatever by using your MasterCard. That type of thing. So we tie in promotions to the sponsorships, and we do media advertising.

Certainly sports marketing, particularly baseball and golf, are very critical to our marketing efforts. Hockey, soccer, and figure skating are also part of the mix. But baseball and golf are our two major sports. And we’re continuing to build on them.

What about future relationships with sports greats? Are you planning to do that in baseball?

We don’t have any current plans to engage a baseball spokesperson, per se. Golf lends itself because of the playability of the game, the involvement of civilians with Tom. Tom helps us in major member outings, appearances at tournaments, different events. So it makes sense for us to do it in golf, and we’re lucky to have one of the all-time greats as our spokesperson. It lends itself more to our involvement in golf than in baseball.

Journalist and author Robert Deitz is a former editor-in-chief of Texas Business magazine.