Lauren Cochran is entering her ninth season with the Miami HEAT. As the Chief of Digital Marketing, she oversees a talented team that turns data into dollars. Under her leadership, the Heat has experienced massive growth in social audience and record-breaking sales in online retail.

In this episode, Lauren discusses how the Heat use their digital media strategy to move in lock-step with their players. She gives props to their in-house jersey design team, and talks about what it means to be one of the first arenas with a cryptocurrency naming rights partner. Her life in the sports business has been nothing short of entertaining… as she shares some of her favorite stories from her journey into the executive suite.

Bringing the players into the team marketing strategy is mutually beneficial.

It used to be that we were the annoying people taking pictures or coming in with a huge camera. We got really smart with how we were able to align our business strategies with something that the players found of interest to them.

As new players come on, they see how we interact with the players before them and they really buy in. We have amazing photography and amazing video that we help supply for them too. So they don't have to always do it themselves. And I think they're really starting to see the value that we bring to the table for them.

Embracing the crypto-wave and integrating it into the business.

The Miami Heat play in the FTX Arena, one of the few buildings in sports that boasts a cryptocurrency naming rights partner.

Lauren shares that Miami is embracing this new phase of their growth, and the deal is not only doing things for their business, but it’s also been an attractive asset to new players.

Hire smart people in order to elevate the team.

Lauren has always led with the idea of hiring people who are smarter than her to be on her team. She strategically builds her teams by identifying individuals who have complimentary strengths. When you get this right, she says, you as the leader look all that much smarter. 

Always be intellectually curious.

A great leader is always looking to learn more. Lauren advises leaders to volunteer to be a part of something that might be outside their area of expertise. Look for gaps and see how you can fill them. More times than not, women are apprehensive for fear of saying something wrong. Lauren assures that nobody knows the right thing to say all the time and that women should raise their hand anyway!

It takes a village to create an inclusive workplace.

One of the main concerns of working women in sports: how can I have a career and a family with the unusual and demanding hours? We see our male counterparts balancing it because their wife is at home, however we don’t have many women in high places as examples. Lauren luckily hit the jackpot with the Miami Heat. She saw examples of women with high positions combining both family and work.

Her advice for women in sports? Establish boundaries and ask for what you need.

I'm on this journey to really keep bettering myself. I've also learned that saying I need help, or that I can't do something right now is not making me a bad employee; it's making me a better teammate.

I try to be that resource for all my employees and everybody that it worked with. I think that sometimes women don't feel that confidence and empowerment to be able to ask for what they need, and I’d like to be part of that change.

Thank you Lauren for sharing your story with us.

This interview was powered by WINS, our exclusive media membership for women in sports and entertainment. To learn more about the membership and become part of our mission, visit wins.media.

Deja Wiggins is the Sales Coordinator for Ticket Operations at Madison Square Garden Sports.