Strokes of Genius: 3 Business Lessons from Arnold Palmer

In September earlier this year the world lost golf's patriarch, Arnold palmer.His stellar playing career aside,palmer’s biggest achievements stretched well beyond the game.Known today as the originator of sports marketing, palmer was one of the first athletes to turn his name into a brand.Using his image and business acumen, palmer'sempire was valued at approximately$700 millionupon his death.

Here are three lessons business owners can learn from Arnold palmer.

1. Take measured risks, explore new opportunities.

At a time when athletes focused simply on their performance, palmer opted to create abrand out of who he was on andoff the fairway. This approach was not only entirely new to golf, it made him one of the most successful athletes of any sport well after his playing days ended. In his lifetime, he earned almost $4million on the golf course; while earning more than 100 times that off it. In 2013 alone, palmer made $40 million despite not playing a round of competitive golf since 2006.

It waswas unheard offor golfers to become household names, but palmer was the first golfer to successfully break out of the golfing mold and gain widespreadpopularity among a variety of people. Later in life, palmerattributed his brand equity to his willingness to stretch his business endeavorsoutside the narrow realm of golf.

palmer's business ventures and perse portfolio of endorsements all flowed through parent company Arnold palmer Enterprises. This enabled palmer to put his branded signature on golf clubs, lawn mowers, sunglasses and other products from cardigan sweaters to cigarettes and everything in between. Over the years palmer was endorsed byCoca-Cola,Rolex, Cadillac, Hertz, United Airlines, penzoil, Heinz, Callaway and many more. palmer's branding genius even extended to his self-made lemonade/ice tea blend dubbed "an Arnold palmer"; nowcommerciallylicensedto AriZona Beverage Co.In 2015, the "Arnold palmer" beverage alone eclipsed$200 million in sales.

Early stage companies can look to Arnold palmer as a model of effective persification.

2. Innovate. Disrupt. Blaze your own path.

The legend holds that Mark McCormack, the first sports agent, and Arnold palmer, the first sports star, shook hands on a deal for representation and the roots of IMG, the first mega sports agency. In 2013, IMG sold for $2.3 billion.

In fact, practically everything Arnold palmer did commercially; he was the first to do. perhaps these statements say it best:

Taking a page from palmer's book, breaking boundaries with strategic vision and a branded message remains key to entrepreneurial success.

3. Harness the power of your brand.

All palmer's ventures were based on leveraging his personal brand. For example,palmer's golf fans became known as "Arnie's Army" which only boosted his promotion of golf into the television age. In 1995, palmer cofounded the Golf Channel.Today the network is in83 million homes and 76 territories around the world.

Through strategic messaging and brand management, Arnold palmer became theprototype for all of today'ssports starsand effectively the modernentrepreneur as well.

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