Elizabeth Blackburn Article

[*pally*]

Elizabeth writes about "The Vision"

She has done an outstanding job of bringing the Bengal's social media into the 21st century.  Hopefully she can do the same thing with  fan engagement

https://www.bengals.com/news/chapter-2-the-vision-high-standards-connection-and-enduring-legacy

Here is Chapter 2: The Vision, by Elizabeth Blackburn.

The Vision
It is important to me that our fans know and trust our direction and it's even more important that they know we have projects and plans in place to accomplish our objectives. For the past year, our Club has started every single full staff meeting with our vision statement:

The Bengals strive to be a championship football team with a culture built on high standards and competitive hunger. We connect players, fans and partners into one team to create an enduring legacy in Cincinnati.

This purpose grounds our work across every aspect of the organization. And while this article will stay high-level, I can promise you that we will be rolling out specific initiatives in 2021 and beyond to bring these goals to life. For now, I hope you will trust me and get excited for what is to come:

High Standards
Connection
Enduring Legacy
Stripes Dont Come Easy
High Standards
We want to win – more than anything. We want to bring Super Bowl titles to Cincinnati. We need to. It is the singular purpose that drives my family and the one goal on the top of my mind every day. It's what I have wanted most in the world from the time I could remember and has occupied my dreams since I was 2 years old. I've loved the Bengals since before I could walk, and a Super Bowl was my first wish as soon as I could talk.

I joined the Bengals after working in Management Consulting and Private Equity, two distinct worlds rooted in data and driven by results. With this background informing many of our organizational initiatives, our team is setting aggressive goals over the next few years to hold ourselves accountable in everything from personnel to attendance to player awards. We are raising the bar by cultivating objective measures of success across our entire organization. Of course, Super Bowl Championships and wins will be the numbers that guide all of our work, but we will have high standards in every area of the organization that underlie these goals.

How does this work in practice? Let's take team-driven content as an example. One of our first goals in 2020 was to alter our strategy on team content, bring graphics & video creation in-house for the first time and give our fans more & better content on social media to keep you feeling close to the team. As a result, I hope you have noticed an improvement from our social media channels and team-generated content this year.

This is the type of progress we will strive towards across all areas.

Connection
We love our fans and have two major projects in the works for the 2021 season to bring us together: (1) revamp 2021 Season Ticket Memberships and (2) change game presentation elements to add energy to gameday at Paul Brown Stadium. Why are we acting on these projects now?

First, we are optimistic about the ability to reconnect as COVID-curfews and capacity limitations lift. We think that football plays an important role in bringing people together. Football, in locker rooms and bleachers, has a unique ability to connect people with different backgrounds.

Second, we want to give our returning players a warm welcome back – especially since Joe Burrow, Tee Higgins and the rest of our outstanding rookie class haven't had the opportunity to play in front of a full NFL stadium … we want to fill it up for them!

And finally, we have heard fan feedback, especially from current and former Season Ticket Members. Your experience needs to be the best in the NFL because we have the best fanbase in the NFL. I appreciate each and every one of you and want to thank you for your resilience and optimism. This year, we are adding several forms of perks to make you feel more valued and appreciated.

If you like what you are hearing and want to make The Jungle roar, you can consider tickets & learn what these "perks" are here.

Enduring Legacy
This is certainly an exciting topic for this upcoming season. I personally value tradition deeply - it's why I chose to follow in my mom's and grandpa's footsteps by attending Dartmouth College. I want this next chapter of Bengals history to create an enduring legacy on the field, have more traditions in the stands and bolster the legacy of past Bengals legends. Here are a few examples for this year:

First, in case you have not heard, we are getting new uniforms. I know many of you have asked for these for quite some time. It's a long process working with NIKE and the NFL and, like I said above, we have high standards. We want this next iteration of our jersey to become as beloved, iconic and timeless as our helmet. We'll be publishing a LOT of great content around the launch of our new uniforms later this spring. I will leave you with this tease to say that I hope you're excited for a clean look.

The second "legacy" is our in-game entertainment. I love singing the Bengal Growl song after touchdowns – my sister, our best friend Amelia and I even dance along to moves created by this guy who sits in front of us at home games. I want the Jungle experience at Paul Brown Stadium to be even more legendary – truly the best live experience event. So, we'll be making changes to infuse energy and add traditions that make Bengals games a can't-miss.

Finally, I am right there with many of our fans who feel that many of our Bengals legends have not gotten the respect they deserve. I am personally working on ways, big & small, to amp this up. Our great players deserve their proper recognition.


The Cincinnati Bengals x BlaCkOWned™️ 'Stripes Dont Come Easy'
The best way I can think to end this editorial is with our fall campaign and partnership with my new best friend, Means Cameron, and the team at BlaCk OWned by saying: STRIPES DON'T COME EASY.

Who Dey Nation and Cincinnati know that stripes don't come easy. But we are resilient. As Joe Burrow said, "It's an Ohio thing." Or for anyone anywhere else (shoutout to @WhoDey_UK), "Who Dey is a State of Mind." And my only ask to you is that you'll join in my belief that the stripes will come.

Cheers to earning our stripes together. WHO DEY!

[GreenCornBengal]

I love the message and it’s true, their social media game has improved dramatically. Is it bad to wish these changes could happen faster? I suppose strong effective change takes time. She’s doing a great job and I love her mindset. I appreciate her vision as I think many of us share the same thoughts about the team and the progress that needs to be made. Thanks for posting this here.

[*Synric*]

Maybe she will marry an up and coming scout and the Bengals could have a GM in 30 years.

[Truck_1_0_1_]

For what she can do within her power, she is already doing fantastic things like this; how many other sports franchises have their content person flat-out lay down details like this?

Fingers crossed that the on-field product can match (and I think it will)

Looks like we will be getting a RoH or similar, if the pics from a couple of weeks ago didn't already give it away.

[fredtoast]

I have no problem with getting new uniforms, but that is basically the OPPOSITE of an "enduring legacy".  

And if "high standards" are so important then why did we bring back a coach with the worst won-loss record in history?

A lot of this almost seems like a joke to me.

[GreenCornBengal]

(02-24-2021, 01:16 PM)fredtoast Wrote: I have no problem with getting new uniforms, but that is basically the OPPOSITE of an "enduring legacy".  

And if "high standards" are so important then why did we bring back a coach with the worst won-loss record in history?

A lot of this almost seems like a joke to me.

Lol I think you believe Elizabeth has more responsibility than she actually has. The things she is in charge of have been improving. She doesn’t however control what’s put on the field and who is coaching them, let’s be real here.

Elizabeth is changing the image, and I’ve seen progress there or at least attempts. “jUstT wIN SuMz GaymEz” doesn’t really apply to what she does....

[Nicomo Cosca]

Sounds good to me. It’s refreshing to see them (at least claim to) actually care what the fan base thinks.

[Wes Mantooth]

Before anyone gets too upset by what I'm about to write, let me say I'm sure Elizabeth Blackburn is very talented and capable person.

To be honest, I don't know enough, nor do I care (at all) about social media to really have an opinion on whether or not it's greatly improved. For me, when it comes to businesses and social media it all seems way to forced and cringe. I don't like companies that are trying sell me something pretending to be something they're not. But as an older dude I know that I'm not really their demographic in who they're trying to engage. I also know that social media is incredibly important in business today. So I am not really faulting her approach or the job's she's doing.

Ok, with all that said, here comes the part I'm sure some will get pissed off about....

The Bengals have a product that has stuggled to sell tickets these last few years. We all know this. And you can pretty much guarantee that other sources of income have followed similar trends in sales. (Concessions, merchandise, cooperate sales, and probably even advertising)

What we're now seeing from the Bengals is a response to this, which is what you expect from any business. If your product sales are suffering, or if you're losing customers, you have to counter that with something to create excitement and to improve sales. Whether it's successful or not is another question, but the point is you have to try.

So that's exactly what we're seeing right now. The new uniforms, the flashy younger social media, the ticket promos. These are all attempts from a business (Yes, the Bengals are a business) to make more money.

There's nothing wrong with that, but I do roll my eyes a bit when I see things like "investing in the fans" or it's insinuated that they're doing this out of the kindness of their hearts. They're investing in themselves, and they're trying to sell you a product.

Fwiw, I saw someone recently state they really appreciate the Bengals keeping their ticket prices so low. As if they're doing this out of pure generosity. The reason their ticket prices are where they're at is because someone determined that price point would result in the best combination of sales and margin, or more specifically profit.

If Paul Brown stadium was sold out every week, and tickets were impossible to come by, then they would charge more. If they weren't struggling to fill up more than half their stadium you wouldn't see them "investing in the fans" by offering $10 food vouchers (Probably $3 in actually cost)

To each their own, but as it's been stated by others, I just want to see a winner. Until then this entire thing, and the work of Elizabeth Blackburn is nothing more than a marketing stragegy. And I care as much about the marketing strategy of the Bengals as I do Coke or McDonalds.

Being totally honest... I couldn't care less about Elizabeth Blackburn, nor her job, nor her qualifications. None of this cool or impressive to me. I don't need quirky twitter posts with emojis, and I don't need buzz words and slogans.

Just my 2 cents...

[*bfine32*]

(02-24-2021, 01:16 PM)fredtoast Wrote: 1. I have no problem with getting new uniforms, but that is basically the OPPOSITE of an "enduring legacy".  

2. And if "high standards" are so important then why did we bring back a coach with the worst won-loss record in history?

3. A lot of this almost seems like a joke to me.

1. Unless they return to a previous design and/or the helmet is the legacy

2. I too would like to see them hire Bill Belichek; but they have decided to give Zac a 3rd year

3. i didn't find too many jokes

[*bengalfan74*]

I like it

But the bottom line remains. You need more W's than L's to put butts in seats. To have a legacy you have to have deep playoff runs, Super Bowls.

I've said this a half dozen times over the last two decades but - I think this is a very important, pivotal off season.

We'll soon see how serious they are about pleasing the fans and winning.

[bengals67]

This is great talk.

Will they walk the walk?

Build an indoor facility, add processionals to personnel department, sign two really good  o lineman to protect Burrow, and a ring of honor.

If they walk the walk,  I will re-evaluate my very skeptical attitude towards the Family and their alleged commitment to winning and staying in Cincy.

Hiring/keeping a head coach and coordinators with one of the worst track records in NFL history and who could not get  similar jobs with any other NFL team is not consistent with the good values stated by Elizabeth.

[Bilbo Saggins]

(02-24-2021, 12:46 PM)Synric Wrote: Maybe she will marry an up and coming scout and the Bengals could have a GM in 30 years.

Maybe she can marry a Hapsburg so that the Bengals will rule over a Grand Duchy of Europe. They could appoint Marvin Lewis to be an Earl. Duke can be a literal Duke. Wouldn't it be grand? Zac Taylor may have to be demoted to an actual Taylor however.

[fredtoast]

(02-24-2021, 01:55 PM)GreenCornBengal Wrote: Lol I think you believe Elizabeth has more responsibility than she actually has. 

I fully understand that her job is to polish a turd.  But her comments were not about her turd-polishing capabilities.  Her comments were about the turd.  And I really don't care too much about how well polished a turd is.

[XenoMorph]

(02-24-2021, 02:20 PM)bengals67 Wrote: This is great talk.

Will they walk the walk?

Build an indoor facility, add processionals to personnel department, sign two really good  o lineman to protect Burrow, and a ring of honor.

If they walk the walk,  I will re-evaluate my very skeptical attitude towards the Family and their alleged commitment to winning and staying in Cincy.

Hiring/keeping a head coach and coordinators with one of the worst track records in NFL history and who could not get  similar jobs with any other NFL team is not consistent with the good values stated by Elizabeth.

right saying the right things is one thing...

Putting a good product on the field is really the only thing that matters in the long run.   

I believe the browns have always wanted to win just didnt know how.  Not sure they do now either.   

and completely agree with the bold.

[WeezyBengal]

Changes to the game day experience and fan experience are great, but if you were to ask pretty much ANY fan...they'd rather have all the time, energy, and resources invested into enhancing the on the field product.

Save your coin and sign some high prized free agents. Hire and expand upon your scouts and analytics departments. Until I hear and see more about that side of things and it results in more wins, then I really don't care.

[Luvnit2]

I see and expected different viewpoints from fans as they read this article. Yes, as a business person her job is to try to fill the stands and she seems very intelligent as knows, winning will fill the stands.

She is in a no win situation. She says nothing and fans berate her for a lack of transparency or make up their own narrative which in most cases for a losing franchise is a negative narrative based on opinions and frankly being upset with the team.

I like that she put herself out there, she is sharing her vision she shares with her staff, coaches, players, media and the fans. This is not new news from her, she has been working on her vision, but like any bad culture, it takes time to change it. I have never met her, but for those I know who have they all say she is an everyday person and not some rich spoiled lid taking over the family business.

It appears she has her own vision, not her grandfather's or her Dad's as she knows it is 2021, not 1975.

So, I understand those skeptical or butt hurt, but why not have an open mind? In 2020 the Bengals did change their approach in free agency. Sadly, the big players they signed or franchised either got hurt or in the case of AJ did not get it done. I am huge Green fan, but most would never have predicted a healthy AJ Green in 2020 would be that bad. They lost Burrow, blame it on the OL, but we lost Palmer to a knee injury also, a year the OL was pretty darn good so yes QB's do get hurt, once we lost Burrow our year and excitement ended.

I believe in Joe Burrow and I believe Katie can manage a multi faceted NFL operation, I think some may look back at this vision and letter in a few years and say that was the time I knew the Bengals had a great new leader.

[Wes Mantooth]

"We want to win – more than anything. We want to bring Super Bowl titles to Cincinnati. We need to. It is the singular purpose that drives my family and the one goal on the top of my mind every day. It's what I have wanted most in the world from the time I could remember and has occupied my dreams since I was 2 years old. I've loved the Bengals since before I could walk, and a Super Bowl was my first wish as soon as I could talk."

My response to this in particular...

Did you hire a GM? Nope.
Did you hire a new Director of Personal (Replace Duke Tobin)? No.
Did you make any chance changes to your front office (Name a new president, create new roles, advisors)? No again.
Did you add any scouts? Nada.
Did you replace any scouts? No siree.
Did you name a new scouting director? Negative.

Ok, so no real changes in the up top, let's go to the coaching staff. Maybe that's where you'll show me how badly want to win...

Did you hire a new Head Coach? Nope.
Did you hire a new Offensive Coordinator? Nope.
Did you hire a new Defensive Coordinator? Nope.

Wow, so no major changes to the coaching staff either.

Well did you at least announce a practice facility to show some commitment to winning? Didn't do that either.

So we've got no front office changes, no scouting changes, no major coaching changes, and no monetary investment from the team that signals real change, and a desire to win.

I'm not sure I really can believe this family wants to win more than anything. I'm sorry, but a free hot dog and nachos and some uniform changes isn't really going to change my mind.

[*ochocincos*]

(02-24-2021, 01:55 PM)GreenCornBengal Wrote: Lol I think you believe Elizabeth has more responsibility than she actually has. The things she is in charge of have been improving. She doesn’t however control what’s put on the field and who is coaching them, let’s be real here.

Elizabeth is changing the image, and I’ve seen progress there or at least attempts. “jUstT wIN SuMz GaymEz” doesn’t really apply to what she does....

Just my interpretation, but I think people get frustrated from things like this whether it's from Elizabeth Blackburn or Geoff Hobson.
Yes, they aren't the ones who can control things that the team is doing from an operational standpoint.
And most fans are frustrated that the team hasn't had a winning season in 5 years. Talking about the vision or really anything positive doesn't really carry much weight until it results in the team winning.

Basically like, "That sounds great and all, but when will it result in the team getting back to and advancing in the playoffs?"

[fredtoast]

(02-24-2021, 03:23 PM)Luvnit2 Wrote: So, I understand those skeptical or butt hurt, but why not have an open mind? In 2020 the Bengals did change their approach in free agency. 

And that was not just a "small change".  It was seismic.

Plus iit looks like they had a decent draft.  Burrow was a no-brainer that any team would taken, but Higgins was an absolute steal and Logan Wilson looks promising.

They just pissed me off when they did not replace Taylor.

[Luvnit2]

(02-24-2021, 03:14 PM)WeezyBengal Wrote: Changes to the game day experience and fan experience are great, but if you were to ask pretty much ANY fan...they'd rather have all the time, energy, and resources invested into enhancing the on the field product.

Save your coin and sign some high prized free agents. Hire and expand upon your scouts and analytics departments. Until I hear and see more about that side of things and it results in more wins, then I really don't care.

There are 3 types of fans:

Season Ticket Holders
Fans who attend at least on game in person per year
Couch Fans who never go to PBS, in some cases never have gone one time ever

The top 2 who invest financially in tickets, parking and concessions in some way every year may have a far different perspective from fans who rarely or never go to a home game. This may upset some fans, but have you earned  the right to evaluate the in person game experience if you never actually experience the in game experience? How to moan and complain, yet no idea personally because you watch the games at home, at bars or from afar.

All are fans, loyal fans but only 2 can fairly evaluate a PBS game experience so the things they are doing as a former season ticket holder will enhance in game experience when you get vouchers for food and drinks as a season ticket holder for example. Many fans want to win, but love football and love watching great athletes from both teams play the game, it is entertainment to them and winning is just a cherry on top.