Yankees 4, Red Sox 3. MTP: 52,325.

OK, yesterday was a really good Sunday. Unless you are from Boston. The Yankees came back to win in extra innings to beat the Red Sox. My son and his two college roommates from Quinnipiac took the train from Connecticut to meet us at the game, so my wife got to see her baby boy. I got to spend $400 on Yankee tickets, $23 on parking, $90 for train tickets, and around $225 on food. College kids can pack it away let me tell you. A bottle of water at the “new” Yankee stadium is $5. Beer is $10. Buy a Yankee shirt or anything else, and you need to take a second mortgage to see a Yankee game in person. And all of the 52,325 seats in the largest baseball stadium in the biggest city in the country had “asses” in all of them – sold out for one of the best rivalries in sports. Recession? Not in the Bronx.

Now, while I am sitting there enjoying the game, I am thinking of how much stuff I will have to sell this week to pay for this night out with the family. Then, on the big screen TV – which is MASSIVE – it says “text the word YANKSTEIN to 41513” and you might win an autographed baseball signed by all of the Yankees. Like watching the opening of the China Olympics, 52,325 people reached for their cell phones in what looked like a choreographed dance, and everyone with a phone entered the contest. I did it twice to see if it would let me cheat. It did not.

One of my son’s roommates brought a “Hot Dog” costume to the game. Seriously, at the 7th inning stretch, he transformed into a six foot tall hot dog. He was determined to get himself on TV. To guarantee this would happen, my son sent a text to the Yankee Stadium short code 669900 “There is a guy in a hot dog costume in Section 411. Get him on TV!” Minutes later, everyone in our section is on the big screen. Including me. Someone could have told me that I had mustard on my chin.

Now here is where it gets interesting. Steiner Sports now has a database of 52,325 people who paid several hundred dollars for an evening at Yankee Stadium. What is the demographic profile of these people? Yankee fans, of course, as we don’t allow Red Sox fans into the Bronx. But what else? These are people that are willing to spend a few hundred dollars in a single night, easy. Some fans never miss a home game. Gee, I wonder what else these wonderful Yankee fans spend money on? Who else could this database of 52,325 be of value? An auto dealership? Travel agent? Mortgage company? By opting into the mobile database, the “salt of the earth” Yankee fans are telling us more than they realize about themselves, and about their spending habits. And, this was only one game, of a very long season.

Now, I am in the wireless business, so I saw all of this from the eyes of a telecom and IT nerd. But, I can guarantee you that everyone who opted-in to the Yankee mobile database is now very much aware of the power of Mobile Marketing. They will be getting mobile coupons from Sports Authority, or from Bank of America, or some other official Yankee sponsor. They will be invited to dinner at Yankee Stadium, even during the off season. *Great steaks, by the way. Now, you can opt-out of a mobile database at anytime, just like with email. But the folks who are running the mobile marketing campaigns for the Yankee organization know what they are doing. They will never abuse the system, and they will give the people coupons, deals and special value offers that keep ‘em coming back for more. People will tell their friends to opt-in, to get these great deals.

Now, in how many other stadiums across the US, did this same scene play out yesterday? What about at the Jets game in Miami? Or at the Giants game? If you are not using the power of mobile marketing to grow your business, you are missing the boat. There is no area of marketing that has a greater ROI than with mobile marketing. Want to learn more? Text the word Tom to 30101 and get my mobile business card. Heck, MTP will even give you your first 30 days for free (Yankee fans only). Or, take a free test drive here: www.MTP-SMS.com

Only losers will miss the mobile marketing revolution, and I can prove it. Currently, there is no mobile marketing at Fenway Park. Now, that is the real “Curse of the Bambino”.