It's been over 11 years since Paul Fruitman came on the podcast. The Canadian sports executive has ventured from ticket sales to corporate to now looking at brand insights for the sports space. Fruitman talks about what changed and what hasn't since that time, and how everything matters now to a brand, less on what is in the stadium, but what eyeballs exist outside of it.

Rob Yowell has the entry of naming rights explode during his time in the industry, and has adopted the ability to sell new brands on the world of sports. Yowell has spent his time over the last few years helping groups such as bitcoin gain entry into the sports world space. Yowell covers some of the ins and outs of that industry segment, along with the role of sport tourism boards in order to attract larger events to a metropolitan area. Yowell also chats about his own experience as a sport educator at Arizona State University.

Dan Gale isn't shy about telling everyone that he finds the large sponsorship merger of Learfield-IMG College to be troubling for the landscape of collegiate athletics. Gale discusses some of the issues that arise from developing corporate sponsorship activation, especially with the lack of interest in signage and more interest in data. Gale discusses why he decided to move to an independent consultant model, along with the history behind his company's name. Twitter: @DanGaleJr

Jason Bitsoff comes on the podcast during a heavy hearted time for Feld Entertainment, with the announcement that the Ringling Brothers Circus will end after 146 years of traveling shows. Bitsoff discusses the nature of the decision to end the shows, but also the way that Feld framed the conversation for its sponsors and fans. Bitsoff talks about how partnerships with Feld Entertainment's many show lines, including Disney On Ice, work toward ensuring that activation is measured through data, as the company looks to bolster relationships with its sponsors through experiences. Bitsoff also presents his background as an adjunct sports management professor at Georgetown, and what future students need educated on most.

While Jeff Ferguson may be often thought of as a sponsorship guy, his third visit to the podcast is as much about digital live streaming acceptance as it is sponsor activation. Ferguson presents a compelling case for how he has helped Georgia Southern Athletics beat other media to market, using Facebook Live to enhance the digital sponsorship inventory available to Learfield, driving revenue in new ways. Ferguson talks about how social media live streaming pre-game shows don't have to be 2 hours, they can be 10 minutes, and still remain effective, as well as shareable content throughout the week. Twitter: @FergySports

Sports sponsorship activation has changed drastically over the last few years with the advent of digital components, as Michael Hurley sees it, there are few sponsors actually negotiating out what they see in a team's deck. Hurley discusses how some of the old ways of thinking, especially when it comes to product level sponsorships, are no longer relevant and must be done al la carte. Hurley talks about an issue of whether the buyers, some being older, understand new technology enough to invest in it as an advertising medium, as well as some of the demographic problems facing NASCAR down the road with young people. Twitter: @mhurley1

When it comes to corporate sponsorship activation, having a shorthand with sports franchises can be a key asset. Ben Shapiro relates back to his experience at selling The Golden State Warriors, first in the ticket sales office, before rising in the ranks to the executive vice president level overseeing corporate partnership revenue streams. Shapiro discusses where his company, PIVOT, can help organizations transition both the their corporate partnership activation as well as analytical measurements to increase overall ROI for the client. Shapiro talks about some of the projects that PIVOT has been involved in, primarily in the Bay Area. Twitter: @bmshapiro

The Fort Wayne Tin Caps are the essential honor to one of Indiana's greatest legacies: John Chapman, known as "Johnny Appleseed." Apart from the Disney version of Johnny Appleseed, The Tin Caps have incorporated various components of the Chapman's history into their ballpark and brand. David Lorenz, Tin Caps Vice President of Corporate Partnerships, discusses the ways in which The Tin Caps rebranded themselves to fit the family-fun model of Chapman's legend. Lorenz talks about selling B2B in the Fort Wayne area, as well as his ballpark tours, which has yielded further revenue generation benefits. Twitter: @DavidLorenzFWTC

The Tulsa Oilers are one of the ECHL teams owned by a single entity. Oilers Vice President of Corporate Partnerships discusses how that actually helps each of the teams, including his own, reap the rewards of an advantage when selling through the Southwest. Duffy talks about ways to create activation by building up not only a credible fanbase with the public, but also with the business community, reinforcing the passion for the minor league hockey product throughout the Tulsa area. Duffy describes his passion for B2B, as well as some of the experiences that he's had with other teams, including selling premium suites and seats in the NFL, NBA, and NHL prior to the Oilers.

The more that athletes are transforming themselves into brand sponsors, the more that they need to heed the advice of Vickie Saunders, who has consulted with several professional athletes looking to make a transition toward more sponsorship affiliations. Saunders talks about the current marketplace, especially when it comes to the defining category of social media as well as attention of the local public toward what an athlete endorses. Saunders shares her vision of how to further develop an athlete's brand identity, as well as how sponsors have to best protect themselves against the frailties of human nature when athletes endorsing products create national issues of public relations crisis. Twitter: @GetSponsorship