10 Nov How do you keep the link with your fans during containment?
ANIME YOUR COMMUNITY FOR THE CONFINEMENT
A few days ago, the government announced new restrictive measures, plunging our daily lives into a reconfinement that has become necessary to counter the advance of the Covid. The year 2020 will definitely have forced sports organizations to reinvent their profession and the relationship with their communities, as they will not be able to take advantage of the revenues linked to their flagship product: ticketing. Unlike last spring, when sport had to come to a complete halt, professional championships continue, behind closed doors. That's something that will further innovate our relationship with the communities. Here's a (non-exhaustive) overview of good practices and the importance of keeping them, once we're out of this hectic period.
Before embarking body and soul on maintaining the link with the fans, the first step is to immerse ourselves in this new daily life, made up of confinement, telecommuting, missed festivities and benevolence towards our loved ones. Once the list of activities and expectations has been drawn up, you can begin to classify your ideas according to the following themes:
1. KEEP IN TOUCH WITH YOUR FANS AROUND THE GAMES
Most of the professional competitions continue during this confinement, which is new compared to what we experienced in the spring. Since the public can no longer come to the stadium, some clubs have gone out to the public, offering Lives to their community fond of sports content such as the UBB or the Paloise Section (22.000 views!). These highlights, which take place before, during and even after the matches, make it possible to broadcast proprietary content and to associate advertisers with it. Revenue can also be generated bydisplaying fans on the club's advertising assets. This is what Leganes does which offers its fans the opportunity to appear on the LEDs with the purchase of a mask bearing the club's image. Part of this money can also be used to supplement a jackpot intended to support associations or the medical service in these difficult times. Another way to earn money while maintaining a close link with its public. It is in the United States that the best activation was born, that of finding all these ideas in a unique place (thanks to Nicolas Bourreau for this idea, find his newsletter here). The Rally House application allows Notre-Dame (US football) teams to keep their fans engaged through exclusive content (polls, games, partner offers) and the ability tointeract with other fans. The club's former glories also play the game of interactivity, making it a premium relational product (free for subscribers, paying for others).
2. KEEP IN TOUCH WITH YOUR FANS OUTSIDE OF THE GAMES
In addition to the traditional devilishly effective contests to animate your communities, collect data and monetize from advertisers (we can cite as an example the Paris SG competition game co-branded by ALL or the famous Advent Calendar, from the same club.), the objective of this period is to interfere in the daily life of the fans. We are confined; it may be a good idea to involve the clubs' fitness trainers for daily sports sessions (for info, Decathlon's Instagram is back in operation.). On this subject, we had appreciated Grenoble Rugby activities during the last lockdown. And to finish killing the boredom, don't hesitate to take advantage of the games and coloring of the Paloise Section, always available via the following link. Visos can also be organised to strengthen the bond between players and their idols, especially for those who were unable to celebrate their birthday surrounded by them. We enjoyed the initiative of Liverpool FC during the last containment, including surprise calls from Jürgen Klopp. I mean, Christmas is around the corner... Christmas movies! Quietly installed under a plaid, it is the ideal time to get behind the screen. Paris Basketball has the most original idea with a video club for its fans (cult films to watch again such as Space Jam or Coach Carter).
3. SUPPORT YOUR COMMUNITY
Our crush went to AS Roma who came to the aid of their older fans. during the last confinement, by offering them benevolent packs including food, hydro-alcoholic gel, masks accompanied by the club's scarf. With the aim of making football a driving force for change in our society, Adidas is showing its support for amateur clubs across Europe. by providing uniforms for 10,000 teams. A life-saving boost for the amateur world in the grip of great difficulties, without competition and without event income (ticketing, refreshments, etc.). Finally, the clubs' partners are also suffering from the health crisis, especially those who have had to close shop because they are considered "non-essential". This is the time for clubs to activate their communities to promote Click & Collect and bring digital customers to their retail partners; their survival is certainly at stake. Good practice can be taken from an association in Limoges that is mobilising for its shops.
4. REINVENT YOUR BUSINESS APPROACHES
Containment gives your marketing teams time to focus on transactional approaches and think about improvements to sell more (on offer, segmentation, communication, discourse, etc.). This is what we do with our clients by accompanying them on the definition of their AIDAS model, available here. Deprived of ticketing and matchday revenue, it is also time for clubs to focus on other sources of income. For example, the NFL franchise of Los Angeles RAMS has Expanded its distribution channels by partnering with Postmates, an American home ready meal delivery company.. Via a dedicated pop-store, it allows fans to order merchandising items during a match and have them delivered (almost) as quickly as they have their food delivered. Bayern Munich has also taken a more supply-oriented approach, and in recent seasons has been working as a true retailer, adapting its offering to the calendar (Valentine's Day, school holidays, the start of the new school year, Christmas, etc.). We currently have Advent calendars, puzzles, mugs, gloves, hats and lots of Christmas gift ideas on their e-shop, which they promote in their newsletters.
Entertaining, animating, disseminating, promoting, monetising... are all words you can continue to use during containment. The current situation pushes us to innovate in order to keep in touch with our communities and to invent new relationships with them, full of empathy, support and positivism because we all need them. Once ideas are found, the tools CDP do the rest to spread them.
Alexis Riotteau
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