Today's headlines report cities going bankrupt, states running large deficits, and nations stuck in high debt and stagnation. Philip Kotler argues that thousands of "places" - cities, states, and nations - are in crisis, and can no longer rely on national industrial policies, such as federal matching funds, as a promise of jobs and protection. The authors show that places must, like any market-driven business, become attractive "products" by improving their industrial base and communicating their special qualities more effectively to their target markets. From studies of cities and nations throughout the world, Kotler offer a systematic analysis of why so many places have fallen on hard times, and make recommendations on what can be done to revitalize a place's economy. He shows how "place wars" - battles for Japanese factories, government projects, Olympic Games, baseball team franchises, convention business, and other economic prizes - are often misguided and end in wasted money and effort.The hidden key to vigorous economic development, the author argues, is strategic marketing of places by rebuilding infrastructure, creating a skilled labour force, stimulating local business entrepreneurship and expansion, developing strong public/private partnerships, identifying and attracting "place compatible" companies and industries, creating distinctive local attractions, building a service-friendly culture, and promoting these advantages effectively. Strategic marketing of places requires a deep understanding of how "place buyers" - tourists, new residents, factories, corporate headquarters, investors - make their place decisions. With this understanding, "place sellers" - economic development agencies, tourist promotion agencies, mayor's offices - can take the necessary steps to compete aggressively for place buyers.

Sports are a multibillion-dollar global business that will continue to grow by leaps and bounds into the foreseeable future. The bad news is: It's never been harder to attract, engage, and retain the sports fan.

Today's sports fans are bombarded by choices. Traditional sports, such as baseball, football, and basketball, compete for fans' dollars with snowboarding, lacrosse, poker...even paintball. The old business formulas, developed in the age of three TV networks and creaky stadiums, no longer apply.

World-renowned communication expert Irving Rein, international marketing guru Philip Kotler, and communication specialist Ben Shields deliver an innovative new business model centered squarely on fan satisfaction and retention. They give you the tools to transform your sports product into an enduring brand-immune to the vagaries of winning and losing-that quickly adapts to changing market conditions. Along the way they illustrate their points with fascinating case studies, including Manchester United's transformation from a plucky home team to a billion-dollar international franchise Professional golf phenomenon Michelle Wie's quest to maximize her talents and marketability Southlake Carroll High School football team's benchmarking of professional and college football programs to build its own brand Daytona International Speedway's reinvention of fan intimacy

Combining expert analysis with field-tested strategies for winning hearts and minds, "The Elusive Fan" is your guide to surviving and thriving in today's ever-widening world of sports.