LeBron James. Andrew Luck. Brian Gainor? Yes, Brian Gainor.
Whether you know it or not, Brian Gainor, 28, belongs with this group of young men that all have one thing in common: success. And they are getting recognized for it.
All three were named to the Forbes “30 under 30” list in the field of entertainment. Other big names included Donald Glover and Jonah Hill, to name a few.
So who is Brian Gainor? One of Ohio University’s many famous alumni, of course. OK, Gainor might not be famous yet, but he’s on the right track.
After graduating in 2007 from OU’s sports administration graduate program with a master’s in that and business, Gainor went on to work at GMR Marketing, the world’s largest engagement marketing agency.
On top of this, he founded Partnership Activation Inc., his own consulting company dedicated to providing sports business professionals with the industry’s best practices, innovative sponsorships and marketing concepts.
Gainor said the OU’s sports administration graduate program is special because of its network of alumni and academic opportunities. There are about 1,300 alumni from the program, ranging from head coaches to athletic directors to owners of professional sports venues.
Bo Pelini, head football coach at the University of Nebraska, and Jeremy Foley, the athletic director at the University of Florida, the school where Gainor got his bachelor’s degree, are a few examples. Gainor credits much of his success to his OU education.
“The program is incredible. I wouldn’t be anywhere near where I am at today without the OU program. It really does wonders for you. One: It builds your network, so you build this solid group of friend and industry contacts that can really help you out in your career, which a lot of programs really can’t do for you,” Gainor said. “Two: The education and the learning opportunities are endless. You’ll go to class and have all these alumni speakers and people talk to you directly about their experiences going through the program and what their experiences are like in the industry.”
To Gainor, the prestige of the program was common knowledge.
“Not many people know about the program outside of the sports industry, but everyone that works in sports knows that OU has by far the best sports ad program,” he said. “It’s pretty incredible — the amount of people that have come from OU through this program.”
The sports administration program also boasts impressive job placement rates. According to Gainor, of the 20 to 30 people in the program every year, 90–95 percent get placed within three to six months, and almost all the students get placed by the time they leave. Some friends from his graduating class of ’07 are living proof, holding jobs at Nike or with sports team such as the Cincinnati Bengals, Columbus Blue Jackets, or St. Louis Blues.
But none has climbed the ladder quite like Gainor has. He found immediate success at GMR Marketing, where he serves as the middleman between sports teams and corporate sponsors, telling the brand how to sponsor and leverage its partnership.
With GMR, Gainor works directly with Comcast, a leading telecom company, representing partnerships with the NBA, NFL, MLB, and almost every major professional sports league. They have 90 professional partnerships in all.
However, what has set Gainor apart is Partnership Activation, his side business in addition to the full-time job at GMR. This was the company listed as Gainor’s claim to fame in Forbes.
“There weren’t really many sports publications that people could go to or read for sports research, so I just decided to create a website to network and differentiate myself,” he said. “When you go get a job, sometimes it can be hard to differentiate yourself. You’re kind of just a number; you have to work your way up. I saw developing a website on the side as kind of a way to differentiate myself and create a personal brand.”
Through Partnership Activation, Gainor works as a consultant and puts out a monthly newsletter targeting industry professionals. It has also led to speaking opportunities and served as a platform to promote his work.
“It’s really gotten big, and I’ve just gained a lot of attention that’s going to help me build my brand while I work at GMR full-time,” Gainor said.
Gainor shared some insight as to how he has reached such a high level of success at such a young age, right out of college.
“I really think it’s all about networking, working really hard, and finding something in life that you’re really passionate about. Those three things are the key things to success,” he said. “It’s also important to have a healthy work-life balance. You can’t put all your eggs in one basket.”
Another thing he emphasized was finding a way to set yourself apart from others. As a marketing expert, Gainor did it through branding.
“I’ve really focused on building a personal brand. You’ve got to look at yourself in the way a company like Coca-Cola might represent itself. You can’t be putting things up on Facebook that you wouldn’t want to be seen out there,” Gainor said. “I’ve tried to position myself as an industry expert, focusing on my personal brand and promoting sports social media and industry best practices, and I think anyone that does that can really have some success in their career.”
So those reading this, consider yourself lucky to hear such words of wisdom. And Forbes magazine beware: With Gainor’s advice, more OU grads might start popping up on the “30 under 30” scene.
as506610@ohiou.edu
