Manny Pacquiao already is "boxing’s undisputed champion pitchman, with an endorsement portfolio that puts him in a league with stars from major league team sports," according to Morgan Campbell of the GUELPH MERCURY. BusinessWeek magazine in January "ranked Pacquiao 24th on its Power 100 list of influential athletes," ahead of Magic C Dwight Howard and Yankees SS Derek Jeter. For Top Rank Exec VP/Business Development & Marketing Lucia McKelvey, calls from potential sponsors "have come with increasing frequency." McKelvey previously worked for IMG and in February signed with Top Rank as Pacquiao’s deal agent. Pacquiao first signed "deals with Hewlett-Packard and State Street Produce," and last week Hennessy "announced it had signed Pacquiao to a one-year promotional pact" worth $1M. Campbell noted Pacquiao's portfolio growth is "improbable considering the widespread perception that boxing’s popularity is in a steep decline." His success also would be "impossible without McKelvey," who "stepped into her role with Top Rank specifically to unlock Pacquiao’s latent marketing potential." McKelvey said, "Most companies are looking for that brand ambassador who hits a fan base around the world. Manny Pacquiao hits that fan base like no other. He’s global." Pacquiao's "magnetism and sense of humour didn’t translate into significant sponsorship dollars until McKelvey was hired, and when she joined Team Pacquiao she quickly figured out" her client's "entourage" was interfering with his business deals. McKelvey said that she "would often call marketing executives at major corporations and learn that several 'advisers' had already contacted them about sponsorship, each claiming to represent the champion and each angling for a percentage of the deal." But McKelvey said that Pacquiao "was skeptical of a new way of procuring sponsorships -- until she sealed the HP deal." That endorsement "convinced Pacquiao that allowing McKelvey to work the contacts she cultivated at IMG would boost the fighter’s outside-the-ring earning power, and showed other corporations the right boxer is a safe sponsorship bet." McKelvey added that she "doesn’t see Pacquiao’s marketability leveling off, and estimates the fighter could earn up to $50 million outside the ring" (GUELPH MERCURY, 11/7).
LIVING SOCIAL: In California, Leighton Ginn noted boxer Timothy Bradley, also a Top Rank client, "returns to the ring Saturday when he defends his WBO light welterweight title against Joel Casamayor on the undercard of the Manny Pacquiao-Juan Manuel Marquez" matchup. Since signing with Top Rank, Bradley "has a Facebook page (Tim Bradley Jr.), a Twitter account (@TimBradleyJr) and will start a website timbradleyjr.com," which is scheduled to launch soon. Bradley's wife Monica said, "We're moving up in the business part, and we had to get with the program. People would ask him about his Facebook and Twitter pages, and he didn't have one. Getting on those, it will allow him to talk and show who Tim is." Bradley said, "You have to build the Bradley brand if we want to make the big bucks. I have the talent, but Top Rank opened my eyes to it. I have to do it to gain popularity, and (social media) is free publicity." He added, "This is the way I should have been run a long time ago, run like a business. My promotional company, they can only do so much, but they have a really good marketing team and they'll push me to get out there" (Palm Springs DESERT SUN, 11/8).
