Mixed Martial Arts is one of the most successful businesses running right now during these economic times. It is the fastest growing sport and progresses by leaps and bounds each year that passes. In a world where many businesses offer similar products or services, it is the ones headed by the true leaders that are the most efficient, and that leave their mark on history.
Apple, a company that has truly changed the way the world operates, was created and led by a visionary that embodied all that he represented. This man was Steve Jobs. Sadly, Jobs passed away from cancer in October of 2011. The fans of him and his life’s work stood at attention and all reflected on what the world now was missing.
In combat sports, just as electronics or other goods, there are many other companies and organizations that one must compete with. What separates the great and most successful ones are the ones led by visionaries like Steve Jobs. MMA is no different.
Dana White, the president of the Ultimate Fighting Championship, is one of the greatest leaders in sports, and he has done what others could not. The UFC is the premiere brand of the sport of MMA, and it continues to pioneer into further greatness. White represents the UFC and has the Fertitta brothers in the background, just as Jobs was a major spokesman but had many background players as well.
The parallels between White and Jobs go far further beyond structure, though. Both men created a brand and then put themselves behind it wholeheartedly. Rather than dictating from an office somewhere, they got themselves very involved with their respective companies and what direction they were being taken.
Jobs was a visionary, as is White, but they both were/are very intelligent businessmen.
The processes carried out for the UFC to grow, and Apple to grow, were shepherded by the men at the helm. By successfully utilizing marketing strategies, both brands found financial payoff in television, social media and other outlets. The two men share a common trend of not just making a product, but selling and educating the public why it was worth their time and money.
This is another great harmony these two leaders possess with their companies. The public relationships formed and maintained by Steve Jobs and Dana White were/are some of the greatest contributions they could give into what they represented.
Steve Jobs stood on stage countless times, demonstrating the latest product, explaining changes and new directions and overall just being the face of Apple. Even in criticism, Jobs took to the stage and media and apologized if there were errors. He created new products each year that fans clamored for like no other. He then contributed Pixar to the media world and always continued to look toward the future.
Dana White also continues to address the fans (and critics) directly: he does interviews, promotes fights, all while running the business aspect of it all. Along with people like Marc Ratner, he has expanded the awareness and education of the sport all across the world, and he has helped take the UFC to new levels, as with moves like UFC on FOX.
Both are men who did not sit back and ignore their fans. Jobs and White are men who saw the importance of the individual fan/consumer from the beginning. A simple concept, but one that gets lost in big corporations sometimes. The fan or consumer is the business and the reason there is any success at all. The fans of Jobs and White never were perceived or treated like a blank check, but rather as part of the family each respective company created.
Steve Jobs’ campaign has left many signature moments in Apple’s history, including the phrase: “Think different.” A straightforward phrase, but one that challenged people to take on new trials and put more trust into a new change, something many find hard to do in all aspects of life. Dana White has done nothing but challenge the world to think different since the UFC started.
The UFC used to be much more unstructured, and in many senses, more dangerous. Exciting to many, but to be taken as a serious sport, changes had to be made. Rules and regulations were put into play, and the MMA game changed quite a bit.
A “cock-fighting” entertainment event was transformed into one of the greatest sports worldwide. The issues the UFC (and MMA) has faced in its journey of growth are derived from people and laws with a stuck-in-the-past mentality. White, the Fertittas and many others all encourage the world to think different.
Pushing the boundaries of what the future brings for electronics and MMA were the visions shared by both of these influential men. The torch has been passed within Apple, as it will for UFC one day. The legacy left by Jobs, and what will be left when Dana steps down, are not the stockpiles from men clamoring for success. Their legacies are testaments to their own passion and heart put into what they believe. Dana White and Steve Jobs both embody what customer service truly means.
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