Some athletes when they retire take up quiet lives of solitude. Others begin new careers that, while successful, keep them far from the public spotlight.

The world, especially the sports world, lost an icon on Thursday in Craig Sager. The garishly dressed NBA sideline reporter captured the hearts of many for his valiant battle with cancer, but more importantly, captured the respect of many for what he did better than anyone else in his profession: ask the right questions.

One of the more enjoyable aspects of my job is that I get to see a lot of onsite sports marketing activations from multiple perspectives. As a researcher, I have the privilege of observing the "rubber hitting the road" on these programs through my own eyes as well as through the lens of the target audience. Efficacy testing is an important element of any sponsoring brand or property's ROI/ROO measurement.

Sports have always been associated with emotional exchanges. Whether you're a player, fan, or just know someone who is, you know how it goes: conversations about a certain player's intensity, a sour illegal play and even about what piece of equipment works best in a particular setting can go from friendly discussion to heated banter in a matter of minutes.

It happens all the time in sports marketing - planners and buyers craft intricate media plans to reach the exact right consumer, using sports as the unparalleled platform of interest that it is, but they lose them in the messaging. In any vertical, but especially in sports, it's important to not only reach consumers on the correct channel, but to tell the correct story for that channel as well. If you're reaching Gen Y women in the Midwest who love college football with your media, but you aren't reaching them with your story, you've missed the point.

Every year marketers look for the next big, untapped frontier of opportunity. We want to introduce our brand to a group of people large enough and passionate enough to buy our products before our competitors get there first.