Another way to separate business partnerships from endorsement deals is to look at how quickly they drive results. Endorsements are often a quick grab: athletes and other celebrities can sign on the dotted line and start generating revenue for the duration of that deal. Partnerships, like the one James prefers at this point in his career - he's buy email list currently at the end of his fifteenth NBA season - are a little more complicated. The money may be guaranteed, but other business goals are sought, including goals that may depend on the success of this partnership. With that increased risk is likely come increased potential revenue if the partnership proves successful.

Particularly if James has a leadership or investor role in addition to his brand support role with the public. Partnerships of this nature can be difficult to find, as there are many hurdles to overcome. First, for someone like James, there has to be buy email list a significant financial opportunity somewhere down the line. And because James is a brand himself, and every business partnership can affect that brand story positively or negatively, every deal made needs to be scrutinized. A perfect example of James' brand-building strategy is the choice he made between partnering with McDonald's or Blaze Pizza. In 2010, James signed a sponsorship deal with the McDonald's brand, eventually earning around $4 million a year from the relationship. But in 2015, James turned down an option to extend the deal, leaving as much as $15 million on the table.

Instead, he took his influence and gave it to Blaze buy email list Pizza, a restaurant chain he invested in in 2012. At the time, Blaze Pizza's revenue was a tiny fraction of what that McDonald's offered and offered virtually no brand recognition offered by the gold arches. But moving from a fast food business to a pizza chain was better suited to James' personal brand. At the same time, it gave James a chance to play a bigger role in the success of one of his investments: with a stake of more than 10% in Blaze Pizza, James had a chance to earn more than this partnership than he could have become a celebrity endorser with McDonald's. That earning potential isn't guaranteed, though Blaze Pizza is doing well on the business side: The company's sales were up 83% from the prior year, reaching $185 million.