The 3 Best Business Lessons we can all learn from Arnold Palmer!

Written by Mel Sole on December 2, 2016. Posted in Business Golf

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Every single golfer on the planet loved Arnold Palmer! That is a statement I can make with confidence. And Arnold amassed a fortune with his swashbuckling style, good looks, and magnetic personality! But Arnold was smart enough to know that just playing golf and winning money was not enough. So he slowly and methodically built a huge business empire of products all across the spectrum through TV commercials and magazine ads. If you want to learn about business, learn from this great man! Thanks to Tanner Simkins for Entrepreneur for sharing this educational article!

One of the last pictures of Arnold!

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’s empire was valued at approximately $700 million upon 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 a brand out of who he was on and off 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 $4 million 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 was was unheard of for golfers to become household names, but Palmer was the first golfer to successfully break out of the golfing mold and gain widespread popularity among a variety of people. Later in life, Palmer attributed his brand equity to his willingness to stretch his business endeavors outside the narrow realm of golf.

Business Ventures.

Palmer’s business ventures and diverse 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 by Coca-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”; now commercially licensed to 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 diversification.

To see the other two business lessons we can learn from Arnold Palmer, go here!

Source: Tanner Simkins Entrepreneur

Pictures: Getty Images

Thanks for reading – The 3 Best Business Lessons we can all learn from Arnold Palmer! I hope you learned as much as I did!

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The 3 Best Business Lessons we can all learn from Arnold Palmer!

1. Take measured risks, explore new opportunities.

Business Ventures.

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