I was shocked and ashamed of myself this morning when I admitted, out loud, that the New York Yankees were actually a premium brand. Having grown up in New England, I’m a typical die-hard Boston Red Sox fan—anything but loathing for the Yankees is simply unacceptable and worthy of condemnation by one’s very family. My grandfather sold peanuts at Fenway in the 1930s, for goodness sake!
A brand’s heritage endears and evokes nostalgia in the hearts and minds of its consumers. Last night, the Yankees won their 27th World Series title—the first came in 1923 with Hall-of-Famer Babe Ruth, former Red Sox player. Their list of Hall-of-Famers is almost embarrassing where epic figures like Lou Gehrig, Yogi Berra, Joe DiMaggio and Mickey Mantle—just to name a few—are commonplace. Heritage, they’ve got.
Brand heritage means nothing without brand awareness and the Yanks have that in spades, too. Love ‘em or hate ‘em—it is just one extreme or the other no matter who you are—the Yankees ball club is immediately recognized all over the world thanks in major part to their iconic interlocking “NY” logo. Yankees players are expected to be clean-cut in order to wear the time-honored white uniform with blue pinstripes—a look that has changed very little over the club’s long history. New York Yankees brand awareness is hard to match.
Yankees Logo
Finally, and perhaps most important to longevity, is brand loyalty. Yankees fans are brutal and would have it no other way. My friend Tom Biggins is a New York transplant to Texas and you’d better believe you’ll never see him cheering on the Rangers. “I would never switch my allegiance because I have been a fan my whole life,” he said. I imagine each Yankees fan feels the same way. It truly pains me to say it, but that’s a great premium brand right there.
I really hate the Yankees! Go Sox!
Recent Comments