By Simon Collister, Director, Human Understanding Lab, UNLIMITED, part of Accenture Song
Over three-quarters of women’s sports fans engage with it on a ‘casual’ level according to research from Unlimited’s Human Understanding Lab.
This means that they currently only follow the big games, tournaments and competitions, and presents a significant opportunity for brands and rightsholders.
This cohort of fans is already somewhat engaged. They are already sitting at the top of the ‘fandom funnel’. To maximise their value and drive further growth in women’s sport we need to connect with them on a deeper level, and drive them towards becoming more regular, active and passionate fans.
How do we connect with them? Well, that’s where the Fan Emotion Index comes in.
The Fan Emotion Index is a proprietary tool that allows us to identify emotional drivers behind sports fandom. It is made of twelve human needs – which we use to pinpoint key emotional drivers behind sports fandom: including that of women’s sport. Understanding the underlying human needs of women’s sport fans, and knowing how to optimise them to ‘nudge’ behaviour change is key to unlocking growth.
What is a casual fan?
The ‘casual fan’ is someone who engages with women’s sport on an occasional basis. This could be for big tournaments like The Euros, World Cups, bi-annual competitions such as the Solheim Cup, or big moments on the global stage, such as The Olympics.
To maximise the value of this audience, we want to encourage these fans to engage with their favourite sports, teams and athletes on a more regular basis, which will ultimately drive viewing figures, ticket purchases, social media followings and overall engagement. As a result, brands and rightsholders will benefit commercially, and the sector will continue to grow, and these fans will invest more into the space. Our Fan Emotion Index has identified the feeling of ‘novelty’ as a key motivating factor for casual fans. They are enticed by the thrill of the game, the excitement of the unexpected, and the novel experience that comes with these big sporting moments – such as Emma Raducanu winning the US Open at only 19, or Rachael Blackmore becoming the first female winner of the Grand National in 2021.
However, if we want to engage the casual fan on a deeper level, we must look at other emotional drivers behind sport fandom.
Deepening Engagement
Play and Pleasure Seeking – Our Fan Emotion Index identifies the sentiments of ‘play’ and ‘pleasure seeking’ as intrinsic to sports fandom. These emotions are united by the sense of ‘escapism’ that we feel by getting lost in the sport we love, and are encapsulated by the thrilling moments we experience on the court, field or track.
As marketeers – we can engage with these emotions by creating content centred around these exciting moments. The goal highlights, the skill spotlights, the moments of athletic speed, power and talent – such as Ellie Kildunne and her try-scoring prowess, or the exceptional ball-striking of golfer Nelly Korda.
Belonging – Nothing has the power to unite people quite like a major sporting event. From the patriotism that sweeps the nation during the Olympic Games, to the drink-throwing euphoric crowd mentality that encapsulates every BoxPark venue during a major football tournament – our love for sport transcends geographies, cultures and demographics.
To engage the casual fan beyond these key moments, we must make them feel like they belong in the sport week-in-week-out, and beyond these singular moments.
Through clever storytelling, we can highlight the shared experiences associated with following a certain team or sport, sharing a common culture or being from a particular part of the world. From the Liverpool FC fans sat in The Kop in Anfield, to Red Roses fans congregating at the Cabbage Patch in Twickenham, to fans following Europe’s Solheim Cup team from all over the continent – we can create a sense of belonging through the content that we create, by making the fans part of the story too.
Simplicity – Humans are bombarded with millions of pieces of information every day. The faster, and more easily we can process this information, we are better able to make sense of the world around us.
To move the ‘casual’ fan to the more ‘active’ end of the spectrum, we must empower them with the tools and the knowledge to make sense of the sport, to allow them to understand and appreciate the sport on a deeper level – encouraging engagement.
Netflix’s Drive to Survive is an excellent example of an instance where the ‘regular fan’ has been offered a window into the technical nuances of motor racing, from the tyre management strategies, to the role of the team on the pit wall, to the nuances of how a safety car, or changing weather conditions can completely transform a race strategy.
This allows the casual fan to engage with the sport on a deeper, more profound level, and allows for a deeper, more ‘passionate’ level of fandom.
Long term, the ‘casual’ fan offers a huge opportunity for brands and rightsholders to engage an amenable audience with women’s sport. By tapping into emotions of ‘play’ ‘pleasure-seeking’ ‘belonging’ and significantly – ‘simplicity’ – with our advertising and marketing efforts, we have the opportunity to shift these fans to the ‘passionate’ end of the scale, which will ultimately provide a more substantial commercial opportunity for athletes, rightsholders and brands involved in the sector.
