Gabrielle Valdez Dow: Green Bay Packers' VP of marketing on the unique challenges facing the historic franchise
Green Bay Packers VP of marketing Gabrielle Valdez Dow: "The league has taken a methodical effort in trying to engage with the female fan - and realise those touch points for them"; Her Huddle celebrates the stories of women working in and around the NFL - available as a podcast below
Last Updated: 30/12/22 1:04pm
On the latest Her Huddle podcast, Hannah Wilkes spoke with Green Bay Packers vice president of marketing and fan engagement, Gabrielle Valdez Dow, on the unique challenges facing the historic franchise, their maiden voyage to London this year and the NFL's efforts in attracting a younger and more female fan base.
Valdez Dow has two decades worth of experience in professional sports, with stints working in the NBA and NHL as well as the NFL, where she was a Super Bowl winner with the Baltimore Ravens when serving as their VP of marketing during their triumphant 2012 season.
Now with the Packers since the summer of 2014, Valdez Dow told Her Huddle - the latest episode available below - of her "unique!" experience of working for the third-oldest franchise in the NFL.
"How I see my job, is to steward our brand and ensure it stays in the best light possible," she said.
"And we use this word stewardship as part of our mission statement and our values… to take care of this team and brand that is going to be here long after I'm gone.
"It's about 102 years old. It's really special and unique. No other team is like this.
"The mantra is to do what's best for the team, for the community and for the fan base all over the world.
"We are a small town but we have a big-town heart."
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Green Bay, Wisconsin, has a population of approximately just 100,000, but the support for the Packers within the community is fierce, while their reach extends far beyond their borders as a hugely successful global brand.
Serving as proof of the team's pull, the 81,441-capacity Lambeau Field - which plays host to the Packers - has a near 50-year waiting list for season tickets.
It's no wonder that the franchise has been so reticent to give up one of those prized home games in order to play an International Series game abroad... until finally agreeing to it this season, becoming the last of the 32 NFL teams to play in London when they faced the New York Giants at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on October 9.
"We obviously don't travel a lot," Valdez Dow said. "When you have a 100,000 person community, a home game is an economic windfall.
"But coming here is wonderful to globally touch the fans on this side of the pond and to strengthen our reach.
"We know that they're losing something in that community - and that people's lives and businesses matter there - but to bring our brand here and celebrate it here in England, bringing a piece of Lambrusco to London, is wonderful.
"We're very excited to be part of this community and to share our fandom with the folks of the UK."
Valdez Dow also spoke of the growing influence women are having in professional sports marketing and shared her own experiences from working in the industry.
"Don't second-guess a female fan, because she might be there for a specific reason," she said.
"In a lot of cases, the female manages the purse strings, so how do we connect with her? What are those symbiotic connections? What will make her become a season ticket holder, a supporter in some way - even if just watching on TV?
"The league has taken a methodical effort in trying to engage with the female fan - and realise those touch points for them.
"It's hard. It doesn't happen overnight."
She added: "Being in this business for a long time, you kind of grow up into it.
"My advice for any woman to advance in this career is to make sure you have a seat at the table, work harder - harder than your counterparts - because you need to stand out. And one thing I've learnt from the Packers and [team president and CEO] Mark Murphy is humility.
"I don't, as a female in this industry, have any horror stories. I have been very blessed."
Her Huddle is a new show to celebrate the stories of women working in and around the NFL. Subscribe now on: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Spreaker
