Secondary Characters - Why I'm Not a Fan

Here's the setting.  It's the off-season for any sports team, the marketing department is meeting to discuss new ways to entertain and reach out to the fans.  Guess who's usually missing?  That's right, the mascot.  Why on earth would you want to include the front line for your entertainment efforts in these types of decisions?
 
It's only a matter of time before the following things are sure to be said, "I think we need more mascots, like Disney" or "I think our mascot needs a friend" or "if we have more than one mascot, it will be so awesome, because we'll have a mascot out in the crowd no matter what".  This is my blog, so in my opinion, I plead all teams out there who sit through meetings like this to listen closely.

Maximize your current mascot first before even thinking about adding secondary characters into the mix.  Increase the skits during games, create an online video series, sell a sponsorship for the character, order new creative outfits for your character.

So what if you already have a mascot who is great?.  Do the following, order an inflatable of the character, create mini-mascots of the main one, create a different breed of character (Racing Sausages and Bernie Brewer come to mind), just don't do something that takes away from your primary brand of fun.

I will admit, I love Disney, who doesn't?  However, the Disney-fication of sports teams and their entertainment, especially mascots in general is a phenomenon that needs some serious consideration.  Name me successful secondary mascots for sports teams that were introduced during the current characters run?  It's alright to have have situational mascots for entertainment, like sponsored races or food giveaways, but not two primary mascots.

Cons

• Extra cost involved in more costumes, more performers, more upkeep
• Confusion among fan base
• Battle for attention between the characters and performers
• Not a consistent entertainment message

Pros

• More things for kids to hug
• You sound smart by saying you are mimicking Disney

Big Lug and Ratchet

Let me lay out three teams that have taken this approach.  First off, my hometown minor-league baseball team, the Lansing Lugnuts.  The Lugnuts have a main mascot, Big Lug, who is the mascot for the team.  At some point they introduced a female mascot, named Ratchet.  It was fun for a year or two, but it became a matter of staffing, pay and branding that Ratchet slowly was around the ballpark less and less.  Now you have a failed mascot and you spent time and money taking away from the main character of the team, Big Lug.

Pirate Parrot

Jolly Roger

Secondly, you have the Pittsburgh Pirates and their great mascot, the Pirate Parrot.  One of the great mascot performers and costumes in MLB today.  Always on SportsCenter, doing great charity work, entertaining fans creatively and being a great ambassador for the Pirates.  So what happens next?  Jolly Roger happens, that's what.

MoonDog

Sir CC

Thirdly, is the most recent team I can think of that has begun to "Disney" their  mascot entertainment.  The Cleveland Cavaliers.  They have a great primary performer in MoonDog.  He is a leader among mascots all over the country and is greatly respected in the industry as an innovator.  
So what happens next?  Sir CC, that's what.




I understand that things change and so does the way teams entertain their fans.  The only constant in this business is change.  If for some reason your team decides to bring in a secondary character, please make sure that your primary character is out of this world good and that they have a say in secondary characters.   It's their only hope for survival.