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This educational review provides an overview of the application of experiential learning in the area of sport sales. Insights are provided for sport management academicians that relate to planning and initiating experiential client-based sales projects, and the analysis of the benefits and drawbacks associated with four approaches to lead generation (promotional lead approach, sales table approach, upselling approach, and retention approach), delivery of sales training methods (professor driven, team driven, and practice), and operation of a call center within three distinct frameworks (remote, on-site, or independent). Guidance for project assessment, both during the project and after project completion, is discussed, and the article concludes with a strong connection of the inherent value of such training with the added value of client-based sport sales training to the sport industry.

Experiential learning within sport sales is a growing component of the sport management curriculum. Assessment of student learning outcomes within these experiences is important in quantifying the effectiveness of the learning experience. This study utilized a survey to examine the change in students’ perceptions of sport sales as a result of completing an experiential, client-based sport sales program. The methodology included development and analysis of a survey instrument and application of that survey with enrolled and non-enrolled groups with pre- and post-test experiential learning assessment. Student expectations of a career in sport sales significantly decreased after program completion (t(56) = 2.33, p < .05), while their perception of skill level and preparation for a sport sales employment did not significantly change for the experimental group. These findings relate this learning experience to a realistic job preview for the students, which typically decrease an individual’s expectations toward a particular job (Premack & Wanous, 1985).

In 2004, Andy Dolich (president of business operations for the National Basketball Association’s [NBA] Memphis Grizzlies), decried the lack of sales training in sport management curricula. In response to that criticism, this paper provides a history and description of a metadiscrete sales-training program recently developed and implemented at two universities. This paper is designed to serve as a blueprint for faculty interested in enhancing their understanding of the theoretical underpinnings and practical logistics of implementing a similar sales-training program in their curriculum. It is the authors’ contention that such programs, based on sound pedagogical principles, can enhance the process of reconnecting sport management curriculum to the 21^st-century sport-industry.

Sales pedagogy and student perceptions of sales have long been studied in business programs across college campuses. While sales pedagogy is a growing content area for sport management programs, it continues to be an area in the field in need of further understanding. The purpose of this study was to explore student perceptions of sales throughout a 16-week course. A qualitative case study methodology was used to develop a rich description of how sport management students perceive sales as a content area, and as a potential profession in the sport industry. Analysis of the themes indicates that throughout the course of the semester, students developed more holistic perceptions of sales, viewed sales as a necessary skill for many jobs in the sport industry, and were more open to a sales job as an entryway into the sport industry.